Ground Chicken Pesto Pizza with Artichoke Hearts
Ground Chicken Pesto Pizza with Artichoke Hearts
This Ground Chicken Pesto Pizza is one of my all-time favourites to make all year around! It’s incredibly flavourful, cheesy and loaded with tasty toppings which is just the way I like it! The blend of flavours from the basil pesto to the artichoke hearts compliment each other so well and using pesto as a pizza sauce is simply revolutionary! With your pre-baked pizza crust, you can make this pizza and have it on the table in less than 15 minutes! Just what you need on a busy weekday evening. You are cutting time, but not quality with this recipe.
Another bonus? You only need 7 ingredients and some spices to make this magic happen. You can go all out and make your own pesto and pizza crust (what I love to do) or in a pinch, buy both from the store to save time. Either way, you will enjoy every bite. There probably won’t be leftovers, but if there is, we all know that pizza is just as good (and sometimes better) the second time around! This one is no exception.
Let’s take a closer look at the ingredients needed for this recipe:
Pizza crust - You can use any pre-baked pizza crust that you like for this recipe. I love to make a yummy gluten-free crust for my pizzas, but regular wheat crusts or store-bought work just fine as well.
Ground chicken - I love using ground chicken for pizzas because it provides a finer, more “dispersible” texture as opposed to having large chunks of chicken breast on the pizza. This way, you get chicken in every bite! You can cover it with more spices too for better flavour.
Spices - You only need 4 spices to give this pizza the unreal flavour that it has! I love using dried oregano, fennel seeds, salt and pepper to spice the chicken. The fennel has a distinct flavour that really makes it! I also like to garnish the entire pizza with some red pepper flakes for a little heat. This is totally optional.
Garlic - I always love adding garlic to my pizzas in some way. This time, I minced and added it to the ground chicken while cooking. Garlic is an important ingredient in Italian cuisine, so it’s a must! I recommend fresh garlic for best results, but marinated garlic works as well.
Pesto - Basil pesto is the pizza sauce in this recipe. You can either make it at home or buy it at the store. If you buy it at the store, I recommend buying a really high quality pesto that has very simple ingredients. It should basically have basil, olive oil, pine nuts and parmesan cheese. This will be more authentic.
Artichoke hearts - Artichoke hearts add delicious flavour, texture and dimension to the pizza. I used marinated artichoke hearts for this recipe. You can find them at the store near the olives.
Shallots - You have to have onions on a pizza! I chose to use shallots for this recipe since they pair well with the other ingredients. They are more mild in flavour a spiciness, while still adding that onion-y flavour that we want. You can use very thinly sliced white, yellow or purple onion in a pinch if you don’t have shallots.
Mozzarella - Mozzarella is a popular cheese to put on a pizza because it is very mild in flavour. This way, the other toppings can shine and the mozzarella can compliment them. It’s also a great melting cheese!
Ground Chicken Pesto Pizza with Artichoke Hearts
Ground Chicken Pesto Pizza with Artichoke Hearts
Ingredients
- avocado oil, for cooking
- 1/2lb ground chicken
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- pre-baked pizza crust of your choice
- heaping 1/2 cup basil pesto
- 1/2 cup marinated artichoke hearts
- 3 tbsp thinly sliced shallots
- 2 cups mozzarella cheese
- *optional* red pepper flakes, for garnishing
- *optional* fresh basil, for garnishing
Instructions
- Drizzle a little avocado oil in a medium-sized pan and then add the ground chicken, minced garlic, oregano, fennel seeds, salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, breaking apart the meat as it cooks until done.
- Put the pre-baked pizza crust on a round pizza pan and spread the basil pesto on top in an even layer.
- Sprinkle 1 cup of mozzarella cheese on top of the pesto and then add the cooked ground chicken, artichoke hearts, sliced shallots and remaining mozzarella cheese.
- Set the oven to high broil and broil the pizza for 3-5 minutes or until the cheese is brown and bubbly.
- Cut into slices, top with red pepper flakes and fresh basil if desired and serve!