Treat yourself to this Pesto, Feta, and Veggie Pizza ... it's loaded with amazing flavors that are impossible to resist!
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If there's one food I could never pass by, it's pizza. I love, love, love it! And since I like my pizza packed with veggies, I can tell myself it's healthy. Ha!
It's hard to screw up pizza. I've eaten plenty of mediocre pizza, but I can only remember one truly horrible pizza. Well before my husband and I got married, we took a road trip, and one of our stops was St. Louis. This was before Yelp, and we didn't even have cell phones (yes, I am old), so we ended up wandering around and eating somewhere that looked good.
Well, it wasn't. The pizza we ordered was a soggy, gooey mess. It was such a disappointment. There's really nothing worse than eating bad food on vacation, know what I mean?
Thankfully, this Pesto, Feta, and Veggie Pizza is good enough to make memories of that bad pizza fade away! It's so delicious and super easy to make, too!
Pesto, Feta, and Veggie Pizza
This Pesto, Feta, and Veggie Pizza is a recipe worth craving. It's packed with so many fresh vegetables and delicious, flavorful ingredients that I can forget all about that other pizza!
Another thing I love about this pizza is how easy it is to make. I used store bought pizza dough and pesto, which really speeds things up.
Of course, you could make your own dough and/or pesto, if you wanted. (The Basil-Spinach Pesto I used for my Green Pizza would be delicious here.)
When it comes to quick and easy dinners though, I love shortcuts like this.
How to Make Pesto Feta Pizza
You're going to love how easy this gourmet veggie pizza is to make!
The veggies come first. Vegetables tend to release liquid while cooking, so I have a few tricks to avoid a soggy pizza.
Since mushrooms contain so much water, so you'll cook them first. It only takes a few minutes and adds tons of flavor. You'll also remove the seeds and membranes from the tomatoes. Finally, if any of your veggies are really juicy, blot them with a little paper towel.
Next, spread the pizza dough on your pan. I like to take my dough out of the fridge before I start prepping ingredients, that way it has time to warm up a bit. If the dough doesn't want to stay spread out, let it rest for a bit, then stretch a little more. Repeat until the dough covers your pan.
It's time to assemble your pesto and feta pizza!
You'll start with a layer of pesto (drain off any excess oil before you measure it) and a generous topping of cheese. Next, add the veggies: garlicky mushrooms, sweet red peppers, fresh tomatoes, and zippy red onion. A layer of salty kalamata olives and feta cheese balances out the sweetness from the veggies, and then it's time to bake.
Bake you pizza until the crust is golden and the top is lightly browned. Then it's time to eat. Yum!
Make this Pesto, Feta, and Veggie Pizza tonight! It's the perfect way to perk up your week.
Pesto, Feta, and Veggie Pizza
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ pound sliced mushrooms
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- salt
- pepper
- nonstick cooking spray
- 1 pound pizza dough
- ⅓ cup pesto
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 red pepper, quartered and sliced
- 2 plum tomatoes, seeds and membranes removed, chopped
- ¼ large red onion, sliced
- ⅓ cup kalamata olives, halved
- ¾ cup crumbled feta
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Remove pizza dough from refrigerator.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
- Add mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until browned.
- Stir in garlic and remove from heat; continue stirring for a couple minutes as pan cools. Season mushrooms to taste with salt and pepper. Allow to cool.
- Lightly spray a 15-inch pizza pan with nonstick spray (or coat with olive oil).
- Press pizza dough onto pan until it reaches the edges. (Tip: let the dough relax for a few minutes if it won't stay in place, then continue pressing it.)
- Spread pesto evenly over crust, then top with about ⅔ of the mozzarella cheese.
- Top cheese with mushrooms, peppers, tomatoes, onions, and olives.
- Sprinkle with feta and remaining mozzarella cheese.
- Bake pizza until crust is well browned, about 20 minutes.
- Let cool for a few minutes, then cut into slices or squares. Enjoy!
Loved this Gourmet Veggie Pizza?
If you enjoyed this recipe, you'll like these other pizzas, too!
- Deep Dish Pizza with Broccoli, Spinach, and Feta
- Roasted Butternut Squash and Gorgonzola Pizza
- Grape, Feta, and Pesto Pizza
- Easy Gorgonzola Pear Pizza
- Plum, Walnut, and Gouda Pizza
- Green Pizza with Pesto, Feta, Artichokes, and Broccoli
- Roasted Fall Vegetable Pizza
- Summer Veggie Pizza
- Easy Tortilla Pizzas - Three Ways
- How to Throw a Homemade Pizza
What are your favorite pizza toppings?
This looks great. I have one other tip in addition to those you mention above for making veggie pizza. I pre-bake the crust just a little. This gives it a little more dryness in the center for the inevitable water that still comes out of the veggies.