Make the best spinach pizza with ricotta, mozzarella, and Parmesan! This easy white pizza includes tips to avoid soggy crust and simple variations.
Want to get your greens and eat your pizza at the same time? Try my favorite spinach pizza recipe! I’m a homemade pizza afficionado who’s developed recipes for over a decade, and this one is always, always a crowd pleaser.
This spinach pizza is a white pizza built on a base of ricotta, shredded mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, then topped with seasoned spinach, red pepper, and thin-sliced red onion. In this post, I’ll walk you through how to make it, techniques for avoiding a soggy crust, easy variations (hello, spinach artichoke pizza), and all your pizza dough options!
What You’ll Need
Here’s a look at the ingredients and equipment for this spinach pizza recipe. Find the full measurement list in the recipe below.
Ingredients
- Pizza dough: Homemade or store-bought pizza dough both work. See the Pizza Dough Options section below.
- Frozen spinach: The star of the show! Frozen has the best texture.
- Whole milk ricotta cheese: Full-fat gives you the right creamy texture and richness.
- Shredded mozzarella cheese: I like using whole milk mozzarella for the best melting.
- Parmesan cheese: Adds a nutty, irresistible flavor.
- Minced garlic, garlic powder, dried oregano: These add big flavor to the ricotta and spinach.
- Jarred roasted red pepper (optional): If you like, you can top with a little red pepper for color contrast and sweet flavor.
- Red onion (optional): Thinly sliced adds a savory bite.
Equipment
- Pizza stone: If you want a crisp on the outside, chewy on the inside pizza crust, a pizza stone is worth the investment. See my guide on how to use a pizza stone for recommendations.
- Pizza peel: This tool is essential for sliding your pizza onto the hot stone safely. A wooden or metal peel both work; I use a standard one for everyday baking. A rimless baking sheet or the back of a rimmed sheet pan works as a substitute.
Why Frozen Spinach Works Best
This spinach pizza has a little secret. It uses frozen spinach — and it’s not just for the convenience factor. Here’s why:
- Frozen spinach has a satisfying texture: think spinach artichoke dip! Fresh spinach and frozen spinach are almost like two separate ingredients. Frozen spinach is blanched before it’s packaged, meaning it’s cooked quickly before freezing. This gives it a super satisfying texture when topped on a pizza: lightly crunchy and almost fluffy, whereas cooked spinach can get a little slimy. It reminds us of spinach artichoke dip!
- It’s easy to use frozen spinach: no cooking necessary. Yes, the convenience factor is a thing too! Frozen spinach just needs a rinse under warm water to thaw it. No cooking required!
How to Make Spinach Pizza
This spinach pizza is a white pizza, meaning it has a white sauce (or olive oil) that covers the dough. The most technique-driven part of making a pizza is the pizza crust, which we’ll walk through down below. Here are the basic steps (or go right to the recipe):
- Make the pizza dough. See below for more on how to do it. Or, you can also do a “cheater” pizza by using this as a topping for Naan Pizza or Flatbread Pizza.
- Thaw and season the spinach. All it needs is a quick rinse under warm water. Here’s the important part: squeeze out as much water as possible over a strainer! This brings the spinach to a dry, almost crumbly texture. This is what you want!
- Season the ricotta. Mix it with some salt, pepper and minced garlic.
- Prep the remaining toppings. Thinly slice the red onion and dice the roasted red pepper. Keep portions modest: overloading toppings on a white pizza can lead to a soggy crust.
- Stretch the dough. Dust your pizza peel with cornmeal or semolina flour, then stretch the dough into a circle. See my guide on how to stretch pizza dough.
- Assemble and bake. Spread the seasoned ricotta over the dough. Top with mozzarella, Parmesan, then the spinach, red onion, and red pepper. Slide onto the hot pizza stone and bake until the cheese is melty and the crust is golden brown: about 5 to 7 minutes.
Pizza Dough Options
The most technique-driven part of any pizza recipe is the crust, but there are several great options depending on how much time you have:
- Best Pizza Dough (master recipe): My go-to homemade pizza dough. It takes about 15 minutes to mix and 45 minutes to rest, but the texture is worth it: crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside. It’s a reader favorite!
- Thin Crust Pizza Dough: A thinner crust that’s easy to roll out with a rolling pin. Great if you prefer a lighter base!
- Naan Pizza or Flatbread Pizza: For a weeknight version with almost no prep, these are my favorite. Just add toppings directly to naan or flatbread.
- Sheet Pan Pizza or Pan Pizza: Neither require a pizza stone or peel! The sheet pan variation makes 3 large pizzas at once, or you can press the dough into an oiled cast iron skillet for a thick crust version.
Easy Variations & Topping Ideas
Here are a few fun ways to change up the toppings on a spinach pizza:
- Spinach Artichoke Pizza: Remove the red onion and red pepper, and add a handful of chopped canned or jarred artichoke hearts. It tastes just like spinach artichoke pizza (or make that recipe instead!).
- Spinach & Feta: Swap Parmesan for crumbled feta cheese for a classic combination. My Mediterranean pizza takes a similar direction.
- Spinach & Pesto: Swap the ricotta base for a thin layer of basil pesto.
Other fun pizza toppings to add:
- Thinly sliced tomatoes
- Red pepper flakes
- Caramelized onions
- Prosciutto (not vegetarian, but excellent)
- Sauteed mushrooms
For more, browse my full guide to pizza toppings or check out this ricotta pizza for another white pizza variation.
What to Serve With It
Here are a few of my favorite side dishes to serve with spinach pizza:
- Perfect Italian Salad: My top pairing for any pizza night. Crisp romaine, Parmesan, pepperoncini.
- Strawberry salad: Light and quick, perfect alongside a heavier cheese-forward pie.
- Caesar salad on a Caesar or tossed salad add texture that complements the creamy pizza.
- Wine: A bright, acidic white like Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay is a great contrast.
Storing & Reheating
Store pizza slices in foil or in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
To reheat, an air fryer is the best method, if you have one! Otherwise a 375°F oven works, or place a few pieces in a skillet over medium heat with a lid on for a few minutes.
Dietary Notes
This spinach pizza is vegetarian.
The Ultimate Spinach Pizza
Pin RecipeGet your greens and pizza fix all at once with this spinach pizza! Ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese make for a creamy pie everyone will love.
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Italian
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 ball Best Pizza Dough (or Thin Crust Dough)
- 8 ounces frozen spinach
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- Kosher salt
- Fresh ground black pepper
- 1 handful sliced red onion
- 1/2 jarred roasted red pepper (or fresh red bell pepper), diced
- 1/2 small garlic clove (¼ teaspoon minced)
- ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Make the pizza dough: Follow the Best Pizza Dough or Thin Crust Dough recipe to prepare the dough. (This takes about 15 minutes to make and 45 minutes to rest.)
- Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500°F. OR preheat your pizza oven (here’s the pizza oven we use).
- Prepare the spinach: Run the spinach under warm water in a strainer, then squeeze out as much water as possible so that it has a dry, crumbly texture. Mix it in a bowl with ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt, the garlic powder and the oregano.
- Prepare the other toppings: Mince the garlic. In a small bowl, mix the ricotta with the kosher salt, fresh ground pepper and minced garlic. Thinly slice the red onion, and dice the roasted red pepper.
- Bake the pizza: When the oven is ready, dust a pizza peel with cornmeal or semolina flour. (If you don’t have a pizza peel, you can use a rimless baking sheet or the back of a rimmed baking sheet. But a pizza peel is well worth the investment!) Stretch the dough into a circle; see How to Stretch Pizza Dough for instructions. Then gently place the dough onto the pizza peel.
- Spread the seasoned ricotta onto the dough. Top with the mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, spinach, red onion, and red pepper.
- Use the pizza peel to carefully transfer the pizza onto the preheated pizza stone. Bake the pizza until the cheese and crust are nicely browned, about 5 to 7 minutes in the oven (or 1 minute in a pizza oven). Slice into pieces and serve immediately.
Notes
- Storage and reheating: Store pizza slices in foil or in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To reheat, an air fryer is the best method, if you have one! Otherwise a 375°F oven works, or place a few pieces in a skillet over medium heat with a lid on for a few minutes.
- Variations: Try Spinach Artichoke Pizza, or swap the Parmesan for feta cheese crumbles for Spinach Feta Pizza.
More Pizza Recipes to Try
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