Zucchini Corn Pizza
Satisfy your pizza cravings with this simple and tasty homemade pizza recipe featuring fresh sweet corn and zucchini. It’s the perfect pizza for summer!
I’ve been making homemade pizza for years. It started simple, with my basic pizza dough recipe which I baked on a sheet pan in my oven. As my confidence grew, I switched to my no-knead pizza dough recipe which creates a delicious light and chewier crust, and I moved to baking pizza on a baking steel and then eventually in an outdoor pizza oven.
Friday night pizza nights have become a favorite for my family and our friends and I love getting creative with pizza toppings and flavor combinations each week. Zucchini and corn have long been one of my go-tos during the summer months.
The combo of zucchini and fresh corn with mozzarella cheese, fresh herbs, and a drizzle of hot honey is fresh, tasty, and so perfect for the season! Follow my zucchini corn pizza recipe as written, or experiment with your own pizza creations. I’ve got lots of options and suggestions below for flavor and toppings variations.
Table of Contents
- Ingredients you'll need for this recipe
- Have fun with pizza toppings if you want
- How to make zucchini corn pizza
- Tips for making homemade pizza
- More tips and FAQs
- Zucchini corn pizza recipe
Ingredients you’ll need for this recipe
Here’s everything you need to make this zucchini corn pizza:
- Pizza dough— If you have a store-bought pizza you like, feel free to use it! Otherwise I highly recommend my easy no-knead pizza dough recipe.
- Mozzarella cheese— For great flavor, perfect melty-ness, and less sogginess, I use freshly grated whole milk low-moisture mozzarella cheese. I do not recommend skim or part-skim low-moisture mozzarella.
- Fresh corn from the cob— One ear of corn is the perfect amount for this pizza.
- Fresh zucchini— Thinly sliced so they’ll cook quickly.
- Fresh herbs. Thyme, rosemary and fresh basil are all amazing on this pizza!
- Hot honey—Completely optional, but it adds a fun flavor. Or add a sprinkling of red pepper flakes if you don’t want the sweetness from the honey.
- Olive oil, salt and pepper.
Have fun with pizza toppings if you want
One of the best things about pizza is it’s a choose-your-own-adventure every time! Here are a few ways to switch things up with this zucchini corn pizza:
- Cheese. Use sliced or torn fresh mozzarella. Or add a sprinkling of parmesan, feta or cotija in addition to the mozzarella.
- Bacon. And I often do! It adds fabulous salty, smoky flavor.
- Other veggies. Fresh tomatoes are an obvious addition, but bell peppers, onions and spinach are just a few other options.
- Herbs and greens. Any fresh herbs are delicious on this pizza! You can add them before or after baking, or both. Fresh arugula added after baking would be fantastic.
How to make zucchini corn pizza
- Prepare the pizza dough. Prepare your favorite pizza dough recipe as directed (here is mine, it’s so easy!). Or, if you’re using store-bought refrigerated pizza dough, let it come to room temperature at least 1 hour. On well-floured surface roll out the dough to about 15 inches, or make it a little bigger if you like a thin crispy crust.
- Add toppings. Ensure the pizza crust is loose on your counter and add more flour if needed. Quickly brush the dough with olive oil and top with cheese, corn, zucchini, herbs and salt and pepper.
- Bake. Use a pizza peel to quickly transfer your pizza to the oven. Bake until the edges are golden brown and the cheese is bubbly and just starting to brown.
- Slice and add garnish toppings. Slice the pizza, add a drizzle of hot honey if you like, and any additional fresh herbs.
- Serve immediately. And enjoy!
Tips for making homemade pizza
After years of perfecting homemade pizza in my kitchen oven, here’s what I recommend:
- Move oven rack up. Place the top pizza rack about 6 inches from the top of your oven. This way it’s closer to the heating element and your pizza will brown better.
- Bake at a high temperature. I bake my pizzas at 500°F. A high temperature causes the gas trapped inside the dough to expand very quickly, creating a light and fluffy crust.
- Preheat oven for longer. Preheating for at least 30 minutes ensures it’s super hot throughout.
- Use a pizza stone or pizza steel. (I prefer a pizza steel over a stone, it just does a better job.) When the pizza is baked on a hot stone or steel, the dough starts cooking immediately, similar to what happens in a traditional brick pizza oven. The pizza cooks faster, in about 8 minutes, and the light and fluffy crust is golden and crisp on the outside. Preheat your stone or steel in the oven for the entire preheat time so it’s very hot.
- Finish under the broiler. If you’d like even more browning, turn on the broiler for the last minute of cooking.
baking tip:How to prep pizza dough in advance
More tips and FAQs
You can always bake pizza on a sheet pan. Make sure it’s greased well or lined with parchment paper (the parchment paper shouldn’t burn but it will darken at the edges). The pizza crust won’t be as crispy on the bottom or edges, but will still be delicious!
Pizza usually ends up soggy from too many toppings, which weighs down the dough and adds too much moisture. When it comes to pizza, less toppings on your pizza will make a better pizza! Fresh mozzarella is full of extra water and can make little puddles of moisture on top, which is another reason why I prefer low-moisture whole milk mozzarella.
My favorite way is in an air fryer, and it takes just a few minutes. If you don’t have an air fryer, you can use a cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add the pizza and let it heat for about 1 minute, then add a tablespoon of water, cover it with a lid and let it heat for about 1 more minute. The added moisture will melt the cheese and warm the toppings, while the skillet crisps up the crust.
For more tips on how to make pizza at home, see my full tutorial on homemade pizza with my no-knead pizza dough recipe.
Zucchini corn pizza recipe
Zucchini Corn Pizza
Ingredients
- Pizza dough for 1 pizza
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ear fresh corn on the cob (about ¾ cup)
- ½ cup thinly sliced fresh zucchini
- 1 cup freshly grated whole milk low-moisture mozzarella cheese (see Notes)
- ½-1 teaspoon fresh herbs , such as rosemary, thyme or basil
- Salt and pepper , to taste
- 1 tablespoon hot honey (optional)
Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 500°F (or its highest setting if it doesn't go to 500°F) for 30 minutes. If baking on a pizza steel or stone, preheat it in the oven at the same time, see Notes.
- On a well-floured surface roll out pizza dough to a rough 15-inch circle. If you like thin crispy crust, roll it a little thinner.
- Prepare all of the toppings, such as removing the corn kernels from the cob and grating the cheese, so that you can assemble the pizza and get it into the oven quickly (Once toppings are added, the pizza will start to stick to the countertop.).
- Make sure the pizza dough is loose on the countertop, add more flour if needed. Then spread olive oil over the dough and top with cheese, zucchini, corn and herbs (if using basil you may wish to add it after baking instead). Add a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper.
- Use a pizza peel to transfer the pizza to the oven and bake until edges of the crust are browned and cheese is melted on top, bubbly and just starting to brown.
- Immediately slice pizza, top with a drizzle of hot honey if desired, and add any additional garnishes such as fresh herbs and more salt and pepper. Then serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Feel free to use a homemade pizza dough recipe or store-bought. If using refrigerated pizza dough, allow it to come to room temperature at least 1 hour before rolling it out.
- I recommend using a baking steel if you make a lot of homemade pizza. It makes a big difference in texture and appearance! However, you can bake this pizza recipe on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper (the parchment paper shouldn’t burn, but it will turn dark brown at the edges). Transfer dough to the sheet pan before adding toppings.
- Whole milk low-moisture mozzarella cheese is my favorite for homemade pizza because it’s sturdy enough to grate, has great flavor and melts really well, and it doesn’t add extra moisture like fresh mozzarella.
