Easy Stuffed Crust Pizza

Homemade pizza is a staple at our house – but we hardly ever have a stuffed crust variety. 

What I love about this recipe is that the dough is ready in 20 minutes, and it was incredibly easy to make. 

If you’re looking for an extra special pizza night, this is the recipe to use!

Easy Stuffed Crust Pizza – Finding Joy in My Kitchen

Ingredients

• 1 C really warm water
• 1 tsp. honey
• 1 T yeast
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 1/2 C whole wheat flour
• 1 C white whole wheat flour
• 3 pieces of Mozzarella String Cheese
• 3-4 T tomato paste
• 2 tsp. Italian Seasoning
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• Toppings – as desired (we did cheese, mushrooms, spinach, bell pepper & pepperoni)

Directions

Begin by making the dough.  To do so, combine the 1 C warm water with 1 T yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer, or a large bowl.  Allow the yeast to sit in the water for 1 minute or so, until it’s frothy & begins to smell yeasty.  Then, add in the 1 tsp. honey, 1 tsp. salt and 1 T olive oil. 

Measure out the total of 2 1/2 C flour.  We use 1 1/2 C of whole wheat and then 1 C white whole wheat, but you can use all whole wheat, all white whole wheat, or a split of whole wheat and all-purpose flour, or even whole wheat and bread flour.  Choose what your family likes and add the flour to the wet ingredients.  Knead the dough for 3-5 minutes in your mixer, or for 5-7 minutes by hand. 

Cover the dough and allow it to sit for 10ish minutes while you prepare the topping ingredients.  First, mix together the tomato paste with 2 tsp. Italian seasoning and 1/2 tsp. sea salt.  For a real treat, add in a minced garlic clove. 

Then, grab three slices of string cheese.  Divide each into thirds – the long way.  Set aside. 

When you have the toppings ready, find your pizza pan and stretch out your pizza dough as you would to make a pizza shape.  However, make the pizza dough hang over the edge of your tray by 2-3 inches. 

Place the string cheese about 1 inch from the edge all the way around the pizza.

Then, dip your finger in a small dish of water and run your wet fingertip around the outside edge of the crust.  Fold that outside edge over the cheese and press to seal.

Spread the tomato paste mixture over the center of the crust.

Then, add your toppings. 

Place the pizza into an oven preheated to 425 degrees F.  Bake in the center rack for 10-15 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly and nicely browned. 

Remove from the oven and slice to serve. 

For an extra special treat, brush the crust with an olive oil, Italian seasoning and garlic blend…. yum! 

Serve warm.    

Linked to: Tasty Tuesday