Making this Christmas pizza recipe with pesto and veggie sides is the perfect Christmas tradition, especially with kids!
When the holidays come, one of our favorite traditions already is to do christmas pizza: It’s a pizza in the shape of a Christmas tree! We had this tradition with our nieces and nephews and after becoming parents we have continued this tradition with our son Larson! Turn your dough into a Christmas tree, sprinkle with pesto and mozzarella “snow” and add vegetable ornaments. There’s nothing we love more than getting in the holiday spirit with this delicious dinner (while watching the movie Elf, of course!).
How to make a Christmas pizza: some tips
Baking a Christmas pizza is easy, but it takes a little finesse with the pizza dough to create the shape of the Christmas tree! Here are some notes:
- Roll out the dough into a triangleThen add a small rectangle of dough for a stem.
- If you have a pizza stone, be sure to put it in the oven! Our favorite pizza shovels are this standard shovel, or even better, a conveyor belt pizza shovel. If you’re making a large Christmas pizza like the one in the picture, the conveyor belt pizza peel is great for pushing it through the oven without sticking. If you have a standard spatula or try a flat, well-floured surface (like a baking sheet), consider making a few smaller Christmas pizzas that will slide more easily on the pizza stone.
- Or build it on a baking sheet. If you don’t have a pizza stone, you can easily build one right on a baking sheet. It’s not as crunchy, but it’s still delicious!
- Decorating is fun and customizable! You can use any veggies you like to decorate. Here we used basil pesto for the greenery of the tree, red peppers for the decoration and sliced red onions for the garland.
Looking for more pizza recipes?
And that’s it! We hope you enjoy this Christmas pizza recipe. If you’re hungry for more, here are some of our other favorite homemade pizza recipes you can make at home:
The description
Making this Christmas pizza recipe with pesto and veggie sides is the perfect Christmas tradition, especially with kids!
- Follow the Best Pizza Dough recipe to prepare the dough. (It takes about 15 minutes and 45 minutes to rest.)
- Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500°F. If you don’t have a pizza stone, you can also build the pizza on a baking sheet.
- Preparation of the toppings: Dice the red peppers. Thinly slice the red onion, then rinse under cold water and pat dry (this will remove part of the sting).
- Place the dough on the pizza peel: When the oven is done, dust a pizza peel with corn or semolina flour, or do it on a baking sheet. (If you want to use a pizza stone but don’t have a pizza peel, you can use a rimless baking sheet or the back of a rimmed baking sheet to slide over a stone, but the shape of the tree can be difficult to slide it in. A conveyor belted pizza peel will do great for large trees like the one pictured.) Roll the dough into a triangle shape, adding a small rectangle for a trunk. Place the dough on the pizza peel or on the baking sheet.
- Garnish pizza quickly: Spread a thin layer of pesto on top, then sprinkle with cheese. Add the red onion and bell pepper “decorations”. Sprinkle with kosher salt.
- Bake pizza: Transfer the pizza to the pizza stone with the pizza peel or place the baking sheet in the oven. Bake until cheese is melted, about 5 to 7 minutes. Let cool slightly, then serve.
- Category: main course
- Method: Cooked
- Kitchen: Italian
- Diet: vegetarian
Keywords: christmas pizza
