How to Throw a Pizza Party

Gather your friends and throw a pizza party with this fun and easy tips!

How to Throw a Pizza Party

I love entertaining, and pizza is guaranteed to make everyone happy. Especially when they can pick their own toppings!

Pizza is one of my favorites foods. There are a million and one ways to top a pizza, and I'll never get sick of attempting to try them all.

Throwing a homemade pizza party is one of the easiest ways to entertain a crowd.

All you need to do is prep the ingredients. Then you can sit back and let your guests do the work!

Tips for Throwing a Successful Pizza Party

Throwing a homemade pizza party is a low key way to entertain guests ... as long as you stay organized!

Here are some simple tips to keep everyone on track:

Prep everything ahead of time, then you can relax during the party.
For the best pizzas, suggest that your guest add cheese to their pizzas after topping the crust with sauce. The pizza will be less soggy, and the pretty toppings will stand out.
Cook the pizzas in a hot oven for a crispy crust.
Get creative with the toppings! I'm suggesting some topping ideas below, but you can try other sauces, too ... like barbecue or pesto. You could also pick a theme like Mexican, and top your table with beans, salsa, pepper jack, olives, cilantro, etc.!
People tend to add lots of toppings, so err on the side of prepping extra toppings (especially cheese) if you're unsure.
Complete the meal with a simple salad, dessert, and a few drinks.

Pizza Party Ingredients and Topping Ideas

These are the ingredients I used for my pizza party. If you use the same toppings, then you'll have enough for 10 small pizzas.

Pizza Sauce:

1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
salt, to taste

Suggested Toppings:

8 ounces white mushrooms
1 large onion
1 large red bell pepper
4 large garlic cloves
1 pint grape tomatoes
1 cup kalamata olives
1 bunch basil
6 ounces baby spinach
6 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
8 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
½ cup olive oil
additional toppings of your choice

Pizza Dough

24 ounces pizza dough

Prepping and Setting Up the Ingredients

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

Combine the sauce ingredients in a small bowl, mix well, then season the sauce to taste with salt.

Next, prepare your toppings and arrange them in small bowls:

Thinly slice the mushrooms, onion, bell pepper, and garlic.
Halve the grape tomatoes.
Pit and quarter the kalamata olives.
Julienne the basil.

Arrange the ingredients on a table with the olive oil, pizza sauce, and cheese together on one end. You'll want to encourage your guests to start with the sauce first, followed by a sprinkle of mozzarella, and then their favorite toppings.

Once the toppings are arranged, divide the dough into 10 balls and carefully stretch each ball into a 6-inch round (don't worry if it isn't perfect). Let the dough rest for a few minutes if it won't stretch out.

Topping the Pizzas

If you have enough room for everyone at your party to spread out, place the dough on individual parchment paper squares. Once they add their toppings you can transfer the parchment to a large baking sheet (these Circulon baking sheets are my favorite).

If space is a little more tight, place the dough rounds on a lightly greased cookie sheet before adding the toppings.

Now for the fun part! Everyone gets to pick their favorite toppings and add them to their pizzas.

Pizza Topping Suggestions

Some guests will appreciate a few toppings suggestions.

Try writing your favorite combinations on a chalkboard. If you don't have a chalkboard, type your topping suggestions up in Word, print the file on cardstock, and pop the printout into a cheap frame.

Here are some combinations that are sure to be a hit at a homemade pizza party:

Margherita: olive oil, garlic, mozzarella, tomatoes, and basil
Greek: tomato sauce, mozzarella, tomatoes, onions, peppers, kalamata olives, and feta
Tricolore: tomato sauce, mozzarella, peppers, onions, and spinach
White: olive oil, garlic, and mozzarella
Green: tomato sauce, mozzarella, spinach, basil, and feta

Baking the Pizzas

Once the pizzas are topped, bake them for 15 to 20 minutes, or until they're are browned on the bottoms and sides.

If you have a lot of guests, you can bake the pizzas in batches.

Remove the pizzas from the oven and let cool a minute before cutting. Serve hot and enjoy!

Now that you’ve learned how to throw a homemade pizza party, check some of my favorite pizza recipes.

Set up these toppings for your party ... or just save these recipes for yourself to enjoy later!

What are your favorite pizza toppings?

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