Pesto Chicken Pizza with Wheat Crust

I love pizza.

this recipe

Seriously. I love it. Which is perfect, because I have SO MUCH yeast that I have to use up before we move, which means BREAD ALL DAY ERRYDAY. It’s basically my dream come true. Also, I have a ton of wheat flour to get through in the next 10 days (WHAT?! 10 DAYS?!) so I’ve decided to just make a ridiculous amount of pizza. And french bread. And waffles! Oh, man. The possibilities are endless.

But the problem with pizza is that you can easily get yourself into a topping rut. I won’t say you can get sick of pizza, because we all know that’s ridiculous, but there are definitely times when I’m ready to change it up and add a little variety.

Fortunately, this Pesto Chicken Pizza was the perfect thing to get me out of my topping rut. It’s light, fresh, and quick to make. Enjoy it as is or reduce some balsamic vinegar to drizzle on top for a kick of flavor.

Actually, I was going to have the balsamic reduction in ALL of the pictures. But then I forgot about it. And then Kyle was like “is that vinegar on the stove for anything?” and then I was like “CRAP.” So I had to drizzle it all over the pizza I had already started to eat (sorry I’m not sorry) and go all the way BACK to my office to take another picture or two. Just for you guys. You’re welcome.

PS the balsamic drizzle was delicious. Don’t forget about it like I did.

Pesto Chicken Pizza with Wheat Crust

• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 25 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Yield: Makes 1 pizza 1x

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Ingredients

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• 1 recipe pizza dough (I substituted 1 and ½ cups wheat flour for the same amount of regular flour in this recipe to make a wheat crust)
• ⅔ cup basil, cilantro, or arugula pesto (I used basil, but I can’t wait to try it with the other two!)
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
• ½ cup parmesan cheese, shredded
• ¼ cup pine nuts, lightly toasted
• 1 cup shredded chicken
• ¼ basil (I used boxwood basil, which has tiny leaves, but you could julienne some large leaves and use those instead) plus extra for garnish
• ½ cup balsamic vinegar

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Instructions

1. Press the pizza dough out onto a large pizza pan.
2. Spread the pesto over the pizza dough, leaving a small crust un-pesto-ed around the edge.
3. Spread mozzarella and parmesan cheeses in an even layer over the pizza.
4. Top pizza with shredded chicken, pine nuts, and additional basil.
5. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes until cheese has melted and crust has browned.
6. While pizza bakes, heat balsamic vinegar over medium-high heat in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer and reduce until it resembles a thick syrup, 15-20 minutes.
7. Slice pizza and drizzle with balsamic reduction. Serve immediately.

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