More Italian inspiration coming your way!! I'm having a little FOMO from all the Italian vacations I'm seeing right now on social media! So the only logical thing to do is to plot a way to move there for every summer in the foreseeable future! But until that happens, I’m bringing a little Italy into my kitchen with this Roman Zucchini Pizza!!
Pizza in Rome is served in rectangles and when you order they ask you how much you want and then cut rectangles or squares of the pizza off and serve it to you on a piece of paper so you can walk and eat at the same time.
It’s genius if you ask me. We sampled 4 different Roman pizzerias when we were there a few years ago and tried just about every flavor combination possible. The zucchini REALLY stuck with me. Zucchini is such a versatile vegetable- you can make a grilled zucchini salad, the perfect pizza topping, and even turn it into a sweet with the chocolate chip zucchini bread! Seeing as how zucchini bumper crop season will quickly be here, I wanted to get you this Roman Zucchini Pizza recipe ASAP!!
Roman Zucchini Pizza
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 pound pizza dough
- 3 cups fontina cheese, shredded
- 4-5 ounces cubed pancetta, cooked
- 1-2 large zucchinis, about 12 ounces, shredded on the biggest box grater setting
- Basil for garnish
- Lemon wedges for serving
For the Roasted Garlic Paste
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons shredded Parrano cheese
- 1 head garlic
- Pinch chili flakes
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 500 degrees. Combine the zucchini and 1 teaspoon kosher salt in a small bowl and toss to coat. Transfer to a strainer and set over the bowl. Let rest for 30 minutes. Squeeze zucchini with your hands to remove all excess moisture. Transfer zucchini to a paper towel–lined plate and set aside until ready to use.
- Divide the pizza dough onto a small baking sheet to create a large rectangle. Use a spoon to spread the roasted garlic paste all around the dough leaving a little bit for the crust.
- Top the pizza with the shredded fontina cheese and then add the drained zucchini on top. Transfer the pizza into the oven and bake for 12-13 minutes until the crust is golden and just crisp.
- Remove pizza from the oven and top with the chopped pancetta. Season with salt and pepper and additional red pepper flakes and basil, slice and serve. Great with a little lemon juice on top.
For the Roasted Garlic Paste
- Pre-heat your oven to 450 degrees F. Trim the top of the head of garlic to expose the tops of the garlic cloves. Place the head of garlic on a piece of aluminum foil and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Wrap the head of garlic up in the foil and transfer to the oven to roast for 40 minutes. Once soft, remove the head of garlic from the oven and carefully pop out the individual garlic cloves into a bowl with the parmesan cheese. Add the remaining olive oil and red pepper flakes. Mash the mixture together with a fork and use as needed for the pizza
Nutrition Information
Photo by Matt Armendariz / Food Styling by Adam Pearson / Recipe from What’s Gaby Cooking
I have made this twice now and we all love it. My only issue is soggy crust in the middle. The flavors of this pizza are so so good. I use the fresh pizza dough from Whole Foods.
Excellent choice of toppings… good photography…thank you for sharing..
This looks so good! I am always looking for new ways to use zucchini - i've made parmigiana with it, air fried, pasta, etc. Putting it on a pizza is a great idea. I would have been worried about the pizza getting soggy but you address it by salting, draining, and squeezing the shredded zucchini. Another trick to get rid of the moisture is to cut zucchini in half, and scoop out the center with the seeds where a lot of the water is concentrated.
Thanks for sharing!
So looking forward to travel again!! This pizza looks absolutely fabulous!!
Awesome use of zucchini and easily was one of the best Gaby pizzas I've made!
Is there anything better than cheese and bacon pizza? I don't think so. This looks amazing!
bacon and cheese and piiiiiiiiiiiizzzzzzzzaaaaaaaaa
yes, please.
I'd love a slice of this pizza right now! It looks insanely good!
All the bacon and cheese on this pizza!!! Looks fantastic!
Zucchini, bacon, and Parrano cheese?! 'Nough said! Looking ahhhh-mazing.
I need to try this cheese - you make it look and sound fabulous!! And I'm with you on Italy - easily, one of my fav countries!!! The last time I was in Italy was nearly 15 years ago?!
Looks completely divine! I have so much zucchini, this is on for tonight.
Nice summer pizza!
My mouth is watering over this pizza recipe! I can't wait to have this for dinner!