Basil Artichoke Pizza

Basil Artichoke Pizza is creamy and cheesy and oh so good! Full of flavour, the pizza has a basil pesto sauce, artichoke, blue cheese and olive topping with fresh basil added for serving!

Recipes like my Air Fryer Portobello Mushroom Pizza and Thai Chicken Pizza give us more than pepperoni pizza!

My Artichoke Olive Tapenade, Artichoke Spaghetti and Instant Pot Pasta Primavera give us ways to use artichokes in ultra yum fashion.

🤍 Recipe Highlights

Of the many things to love about this recipe, these are the highlights you will love the most:

• Some nights you want supreme, a New York slice, some pepperoni or ham and pineapple and some you want a vegetarian pizza. This works on the vego night with maximum flavour but no processed meats.
• Basil pesto sauce: using a store bought basil pesto is quick and convenient. You can simply open the tub and spread it on.
• Quick and easy: this pizza takes only minutes to bring together and has a quick cook time in less than 30 mins, no slaving away for hours to get dinner done!
• Everyday ingredients: all of the ingredients you need to make the pizza are simple and easy to find at the local shops. The gorgonzola will be in the fridge section with the other cheeses.
• Homemade pizza: we all know and love a good old slice of New York pizza, but some nights you want to skip the queue, skip waiting for delivery and have the smell of homemade pizza wafting through the house!

🥗 Ingredients

The photo below shows you everything you need to make the pizza. For exact measurements, please refer to the printable recipe card.

As you can see, the recipe calls for:

• Pizza dough: you can use homemade, store bought or a pita bread base, whichever takes your fancy. There will be a little effort in rolling out pizza dough with a rolling pin which some nights you may not have the energy for, so on those nights, pita bread is a great alternative!
• Artichokes: these are commonly available and will be near the sun-dried tomatoes and olives at the shop. We need to drain but not rinse these. Most often they will be marinated in oil with herbs and spices.
• Kalamata olives: the pairing with these and the blue cheese and artichokes is heavenly. Pitted olives have the centre pit or seed removed which is best as we don't want anyone to bite into a hard pit whilst devouring their slice!
• Gorgonzola cheese: this is a type of blue cheese and is so delicious, I recommend rushing right out to grab some if you haven't tried it already! You can use another type of blue cheese as an alternative if you wish, the flavours will be very similar.
• Parmesan cheese: I use only a tiny amount of this and grate it over the top of the gorgonzola cheese. You will find that the gorgonzola melts to a cheese like sauce and the parmesan adds a touch of bitey cheese on top!
• Basil pesto: I recommend using this for the pizza sauce. You still get a cream sauce type taste from the way the cheese melts into the pesto, however, you haven't had to spend hours making the sauce. I use the type that is a dip from the fridge section (cold) not the shelf with the pastas as these are more concentrated and the texture a bit mushy.If you want to make your own pesto sauce, my Rocket and Cashew Pesto is a great place to start!

Tasty Tip: I do offer a number of substitutions and variations to give you options when making the recipe. If in doubt of any of the above ingredients, or wanting alternatives, read this section before diving into the instructions on how to make the recipe below 👍😉.

🍳 Instructions

Here are the step by step instructions to make the recipe. We start by rolling the dough into a round pizza shape (Don't worry if it is not a perfect circle!).

• Roll the pizza dough into a shape you are happy with (Photo 1)
• Spread a layer of basil pesto on for the pizza sauce (Photo 2)
• Add artichokes and olives (Photo 3)
• Add both the gorgonzola and the parmesan cheese (Photo 4)

👩‍🍳 How to Make Basil Artichoke Pizza

If you choose to use pita bread or a store bought pizza base, you won't need to roll the dough.

If you are rolling, don't worry if the shape is not perfect, sometimes irregular is best so you don't overwork and tear the dough.

Sprinkle both the artichokes and olives across the pizza as you please.

The pizza will cook in around 25 to 30 mins in the oven. Keep an eye on it as if you use a pita bread base, it will cook a little faster than a dough based pizza.

The addition of fresh basil leaves adds color, flavour and texture. It is not essential to have them as we also have the basil pesto pizza base, but they are kindof yum, do give them a try if it appeals to you!

Once the pizza is cooked all you need to do is slice it and serve!

A pizza wheel is handy as it will cut through the toppings and cooked pizza base with ease.

Want to use store bought pita bread for the base? Check this photo. I have made it countless times with wholemeal pita bread and the pizza turns out perfectly across both types of pizza base!!

👍 How to Guide

How to Store

Store cooked leftover pizza slices in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat prior to serving.

How to Freeze

Make the pizza, then freeze prior to cooking. It will keep for up to 3 months. Reheat from frozen.

How to Reheat

You can reheat pizza slices in the oven or air fryer.

Simply place on an oven tray if using the oven for 10 to 15 mins.

Use can use baking paper under individual slices in the air fryer which will help save clean up if the cheese melts a little onto the tray or basket.

🍽 Serving Suggestions

The Turkish Garlic Bread, Ciabatta Garlic Bread and Garlic Pizza Bread are all excellent sides for the dish.

A glass of Pinot Noir is a great wine match and for light bright side salads try the Cherry Tomato Caprese Salad or Healthy Panzanella Salad.

😉 Substitutions and Variations

Regular readers know that I like to give you guys some switch in and outs that you can do with my recipes to suit you personal taste. Try any of the following as needed:

• Use pitted green olives instead of Kalamata.
• Try a different type of blue cheese other than gorgonzola.
• Use mozzarella instead of the parmesan cheese.
• Use a pesto that has garlic in it for ultra yum.
• Try a pita bread base instead of pizza dough base or purchase pre made pizza bases for ultimate convenience!

💡 Tasty Tips

Here are my top tips and tricks so that you can master this recipe from the get go:

• Triple check the olive jar to ensure it says that the olives are pitted!! (No rookie errors here!!)
• Ensure the oven is preheated before placing the pizza in to cook.
• Use a pizza tray with holes in it as this will help the base to cook.
• Sprinkle the basil leaves over the cooked pizza when removed from the oven to avoid them browning.
• A pizza wheel is handing for cutting the pizza into even slices.

🤓 Frequently Asked Questions

How do you eat artichokes?

Artichokes have a wide variety of uses both hot and cold. You can add them to pasta, a pasta salad, as a pizza topping, on a grazing board or cheese platter.

It is pizza time my friends and there is no wait for delivery!

How many calories are in artichoke basil pizza?

There is 259 kcal Calories in each slice of artichoke basil pizza.

This pizza makes approximately 8 slices.

What toppings can you put on pizza?

There is an unlimited array of toppings that you can use for pizza. Try some of the following popular choices:

• Salami
• Pepperoni
• Sliced black olives
• Sausage pieces
• Bacon
• Ham
• Pineapple
• Capsicum (bell peppers)
• Anchovies
• Olives
• Cheese
• Prawns (shrimp)
• Chicken
• Spinach, rocket or dried herbs.

😍 More Easy Takeout Recipes

If you love homemade takeout recipes or making pesto for pizza sauce then you might like to try any of the following recipes:

• Pear Gorgonzola Pizza
• Rigatoni Gorgonzola
• Basil and Cashew Pesto
• Roast Capsicum Pesto
• Air Fryer Roasted Red Peppers
• Air Fryer Chicken Burger
• Easy Air Fryer Chicken Skewers
• Air Fryer Spare Ribs
• Blue Cheese Mac and Cheese

It is time to get our pizza on my friend!

Adrianne

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