Lemon Pizza
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This fresh and flavorful lemon pizza combines creamy mozzarella with garlic, extra virgin olive oil, parsley, nutty parmesan, and bright lemon. It’s absolutely delicious!
It’s a flavor-packed white pizza perfect for summer!
Let me start by saying that I’ve been in love with this lemon pizza for years. This unusual pizza combo uses basic ingredients but packs a lot of flavor that blows me away every single time.
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And I LOVE to make it over and over all summer long. It’s just so delicious!
Firstly, I recommend using my easy pizza dough for the pizza crust. It is a breeze to whip up in one bowl; no stand mixer or kneading is required.
But what makes this pizza truly special is the brine.
The perfect combination of fruity olive oil, hints of garlic, lemon zest, and juice pairs wonderfully with mozzarella and parmesan cheese, making this pizza EPIC and perfect to please vegetarians and meat lovers alike!
But don’t take my word for it—try this white lemon pizza recipe, and I promise you’ll be hooked!
List of the ingredients
- Easy pizza dough (or your favorite dough)
- Mozzarella cheese in water (or firm shredded mozzarella)
- Parmesan cheese
- Fresh parsley
- Garlic
- Lemon
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Salt & pepper
How to make lemon pizza
(Note: this is a quick description; the full recipe is at the bottom of the page)
- Start by making this pizza dough recipe, which is easy to make and requires minimal prep time. You can also use your favorite pizza dough.
- Next, make the brine by shaking the ingredients in a jar with a lid.
- Once the dough has doubled in size and fluffy, stretch it into a large rectangular or round shape (approximately 9×13 inches).
- Now it’s time to add the brine! Make a few dimples with your fingers, and pour the brine over the dough to fill those dimples. Next, scatter with diced mozzarella, a few slices of lemon, salt, and pepper.
- Bake until golden and crispy, and finish with fresh lemon juice, parmesan cheese, and extra parsley. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Pizza dough: I recommend using my easy pizza dough. Combine all-purpose flour, instant yeast, salt, water, and olive oil in a large bowl; no kneading is required. You can also use your favorite store-bought dough or recipe.
Cheese: I love using fresh whole-milk mozzarella in our pizzas, but the shredded low-moisture option works well, too. The grated parmesan cheese at the end adds its delicious, nutty, savory flavor, but you can skip it to make a vegetarian pizza.
Extra virgin olive oil: For a wonderful, fruity flavor! But you’re welcome to use regular olive oil if you wish.
Fresh parsley: It pairs so well with the garlic and olive oil, but you can use fresh basil or arugula leaves instead of parsley.
Lemon: We use juice and zest to intensify the lemon flavor.
Garlic: You can’t go wrong here. Garlic packs so much flavor, and it works great in the brine.
Salt & pepper: To enhance the overall flavor.
Tips for a crisp pizza crust
- Preheat the oven. A burst of initial heat from the hot oven is so important!
- Bake the pizza on the bottom rack of the oven, close to the heating element. This is the best spot in my oven to make the pizza bottom crispy. But since each oven is different, use the position that works best for you.
- Stretch the pizza dough using your fingers and try to keep all those gas bubbles inside the dough. Don’t use a rolling pin.
- Bake your pizza on a hot pizza stone or pizza steel. Alternatively, you can use a baking tray (see my tips in the recipe card!) and make sure the pizza stone is inside during preheating so it’s already hot when you bake your pizza.
- Transfer your pizza to the hot stone using parchment paper and a pizza peel. This helps greatly if you use a high-hydration dough like this no-knead dough.
- For more flavor, serve with freshly ground black pepper and some crushed red pepper flakes.
More white pizza recipes you’ll love!
- Olive pizza
- Bruschetta pizza
- Pumpkin pizza
- Fresh tomato pizza
- Artichoke pizza
- Quick Caprese pizza
- Spinach pizza
- Sun-dried tomato pizza
If you make this wonderful lemon pizza or have a question, leave a comment. I would love to hear from you and get your feedback!
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Lemon Pizza
Ingredients
Pizza dough
- 1 ball Easy pizza dough (or store-bough dough)
Lemon Brine
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 small garlic clove, grated
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon fine salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Mozzarella
- 5 oz (150 grams) fresh mozzarella (or from ½ to ⅓ cup shredded firm mozzarella)
To finish
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
Pizza dough
- Follow the easy no-knead pizza recipe through step 5, including shaping the pizza and preheating the oven.
Lemon pizza
- Prepare the cheese: If using fresh mozzarella cheese in water, cut it into ½ inch thick pieces. If it’s very watery, you may want to dab the mozzarella with the paper towel to remove excess moisture.
- Shape the dough: when the dough is ready follow step 5, place the dough on a parchment paper sheet and starting from the center, gently press it out with your fingers until you get approx a 9×13 inch pizza. Then gently place the dough onto a pizza peel or onto the back of a rimmed baking sheet.
- Make the brine: Add the ingredients to a glass jar with a lid. Shake until well emulsified.
- Add the topping: Once the dough is stretched out, make a few dimples with your fingers, scatter the brine evenly over the dough, trying to fill the dimples with it. Add the mozzarella cheese.
- Bake the pizza: 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. Each oven is different, keep an eye on it (e.g. in a forced fan oven it will take about 8-10 minutes).
- Serve: Top your freshly baked pizza with the fresh lemon juice, then sprinkle the parmesan cheese and the parsley. Finish with more black pepper or a touch of chilli flakes if you like. Slice and serve immediately.
