Chicken Pesto Paleo Pizza (Printable Version)
Crispy grain-free base with tender chicken, aromatic basil pesto, and fresh toppings for a satisfying Italian-inspired meal.
# What You Need:
→ Paleo Pizza Crust
01 - 1 cup almond flour
02 - 1/4 cup tapioca flour
03 - 1/4 cup coconut flour
04 - 2 large eggs
05 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
06 - 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
07 - 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
08 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
→ Pesto Sauce
09 - 1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
10 - 1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts
11 - 2 garlic cloves
12 - 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
13 - 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
14 - 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
15 - Juice of 1/2 lemon
→ Toppings
16 - 2 medium cooked chicken breasts, sliced or shredded
17 - 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
18 - 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
19 - 1/4 cup black olives, sliced (optional)
20 - Fresh basil leaves for garnish
# How To Make It:
01 - Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
02 - In a large mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, tapioca flour, coconut flour, sea salt, and baking soda. Whisk together until evenly blended.
03 - In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, olive oil, and almond milk until smooth. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir thoroughly until a cohesive dough forms.
04 - Transfer the dough onto the parchment-lined baking sheet. Flatten and shape it into a 10 to 12-inch round crust. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes until the edges turn golden brown.
05 - While the crust bakes, combine the fresh basil, pine nuts, garlic, nutritional yeast, olive oil, sea salt, and lemon juice in a food processor. Blend until a smooth, vibrant pesto forms.
06 - Remove the par-baked crust from the oven. Spread the pesto sauce evenly across the surface. Layer on the sliced chicken, red onion, cherry tomato halves, and black olives.
07 - Return the assembled pizza to the oven and bake for an additional 8 to 10 minutes, until the toppings are heated through and the crust is crisp.
08 - Remove from the oven, scatter fresh basil leaves over the top, slice into wedges, and serve warm.
# Helpful Hints:
01 -
- The crust crisps up like a real pizza base without a single grain of wheat, which still surprises me every time I make it.
- Homemade pesto from scratch tastes infinitely better than anything from a jar, and it takes about two minutes in a food processor.
02 -
- The dough will seem sticky at first, but wetting your hands with a little water makes shaping it incredibly easy and prevents a huge mess.
- Par baking the crust before adding toppings is the difference between a soggy center and a slice you can actually hold in your hand.
03 -
- Let the crust cool for two minutes after par baking before spreading pesto so it does not seep into the base and make it soft.
- Toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet until just fragrant before blending, and your pesto will have a nutty depth that raw nuts simply cannot deliver.