From our Pizza with Broccoli Sauce meal, we knew that we quite liked Pizza and Broccoli together…so we made another pizza and incorporated broccoli as the primary topping rather than a sauce component! Of course, with the broccoli no longer being embedded into the sauce, we had to find a sauce alternative. So, we decided to try blending two different pizza styles into one. We borrowed Ricotta Cheese from the White Pizza concept and marinara from a more traditional pie, and we mixed them both together into a pink sauce (with added garlic, of course).
From there, we stretched out our crust, spread the sauce, topped with steamed broccoli, and finished everything off with shredded mozzarella. As it cooked, the smell of roasting garlic wafted gloriously throughout the house, and the dogs clearly caught the scent of pizza crust (as evidenced by their excitement). And when the pie came out of the oven, it was absolutely delicious.
Time: 30 Minutes (+ time if making your own dough from scratch)
Ingredients:
- Pizza Dough or Crust (store bought, or Make Your Own Funky One!)
- Broccoli
- Ricotta
- Marinara Sauce
- Garlic (we used 3 cloves)
- Shredded Mozzarella
Method:
- Place your Pizza Stone in your oven, and preheat to 425 degrees F.
- Cut your broccoli into small florets, and steam in the microwave for 2.5-3 minutes to soften.
- Combine equal parts ricotta and marinara sauce in a bowl. Then, peel your garlic and use a microplane grater or a garlic press to pulverize your cloves. Stir everything together to form a cohesive pink sauce.
- Place some parchment paper on your counter, and shape your pizza dough on it.
- Spread your sauce atop your dough, and get close to your edges.
- Arrange your broccoli on your dough.
- Sprinkle your cheese over everything.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes (until your crust reaches your desired level of crispness, and your cheese melts and starts to caramelize). Hint: Use full whole milk mozzarella if you’re cooking a thicker pizza crust, and use part skim for a thin crust so that everything cooks at the right relative pace.
- Remove from the oven, and slice.
- Plate, devour, and enjoy!
