If you love pizza, you're going to love this grilled pizza dough recipe! Grilled pizza is a game changer and provides a nice change to traditional oven baked pizza. The grill marks leave a beautiful marking, plus it also tastes delicious. Grilled flatbread pizza is everything you want in a grilled pizza, only smaller and more rustic looking. Which if you're like me and slinging pies to get that perfect round edge intimidates you, then THIS is for you! Whoever you serve this flatbread pizza to is sure to be impressed, but little do they know how easy this is to make. No really, it's actually veryyyyyy easy.

I'm not a traditional baker, so the thought of baking bread, or sourdough, or even pizza dough can be intimidating. So trust me when I say this is easy, because I need easy when it comes to anything involving yeast, proofing or stretching out dough. If you prep the dough ahead of time, this grilled flatbread pizza will come together in about 20 minutes total. Or, if you really love the idea of making a grilled flatbread pizza but don't want to bother with the dough, just buy a flatbread yourself. Either way, grilled pizza is one of the best ways to eat pizza.

Ingredients for flatbread pizza dough

To make this grilled flatbread pizza dough, you only need some basic pantry staple ingredients such as:

• Dry active yeast: you only need one tsp for this recipe, because it's a flatbread it doesn't need as much rise as traditional pizza.
• All purpose flour: you can also use bread flour if that's what you have.
• Water
• Pinch of sugar: this is what feeds the yeast
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Salt

Why You'll Love this recipe

• It's easy to make.
• It's quicker than making traditional pizza dough.
• This recipe makes four flatbreads, perfect for freezing and quick dinners in the future.
• Ideal for entertaining or serving to guests in the summer months (no oven required!)
• Easy to shape (way easier than pizza dough)

How to make the flatbread (YES You Can!)

This is sort of like the beginners guide to making bread. Far less difficult and time consuming, this easy flatbread dough doesn't require any special skills. So, yes, if you haven't ever tried making pizza dough before, this is a good way to dip your toes in.

Again, there is no need to be able to shape your dough perfectly, because this is a flatbread. Rustic and misshapen dough is what we're after. There's no need to be perfect, or precise here, which is exactly what I like.

Here's how to make it!

In a stand mixer, add in your water and sugar and give it a stir. Then sprinkle in the yeast on top and let it sit for about five to ten minutes. You'll see that it gets all nice and foamy which is what you want it to look like as the yeast is getting activated. If nothing happens, you'll need to start again with new yeast. This is the only "difficult" part of the recipe. The water you use should be warm, like bath water, between 100 and 110°F.

Next, with the stand mixer running on low, add the flour, olive oil and salt. Beat on low speed for about 1 minute until it's combined. The dough will be thick and shaggy.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work space, including any loose flour in the stand mixer. Knead with your hands for about 2 to 3 minutes until it comes together and becomes smooth. Add more flour if it's too sticky.

Place the dough in a large greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel. Allow it to sit and rest for about 1 hour. Once it has slightly risen, you can transfer it to the fridge for up to 2 days (perfect for making in advance!)

Once the dough has risen, punch the dough down to release the air. Divide into four flatbread discs. You can weigh them so they are all roughly the same with a kitchen scale if you prefer.

Heat up your BBQ/grill on high.

Using floured hands and a lightly floured surface, go ahead and stretch the dough out with your hands, until it's about 1/4 inch thick.

You can transfer to a pizza peel to make the transition to the BBQ easiest.

Drizzle olive oil on the top side of the flatbread, you'll want to make sure you give it a good drizzle of olive oil to ensure it won't stick.

Lay the flatbread on the grill, oiled side down. Brush the top with oil and close the lid.

Let it cook for about two to three minutes. Look at those bubbles!

Carefully flip the dough.

Now, layer on all your toppings.

Close the lid and let it cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.

Remove the grilled flatbread pizzas and let it stand for a minute before slicing or adding on any additional toppings that you didn't want cooked.

Flatbread toppings

The toppings are the fun part! Feel free to get creative here and use whatever you want. I've went traditional with one pepperoni and one summer inspired. Here's what I included on each:

Pepperoni:

1. Spread your favourite tomato pizza sauce on the dough when grilling.
2. Top with mozzarella
3. Layer on your pepperoni
4. Sprinkle on some fennel seeds and thinly sliced serrano pepper

When you remove this pizza, you can drizzle some honey on top to balance the spiciness of the serrano. I also added some thinly sliced fresh basil.

Summer Market Inspired Pizza:

1. Spread on your favourite pesto sauce on the dough when grilling.
2. Top with sliced heirloom tomatoes, cooked corn and cooked asparagus.
3. Let this cook for those two to three minutes.

When you remove this pizza, layer on some fresh burrata, and prosciutto slices. I also added some chili flakes because I love things spicy. Dollop on any remaining pesto and a drizzle of olive oil.

Tips

Making grilled flatbread pizza is fairly easy, but there are some tips to keep in mind when making it.

• Have all of your toppings ready: things move very quickly once you get your dough on the grill, so have any toppings that need to be cooked done already. When you're outside grilling, it's important to have all the toppings ready to go. This will make the process easy and quick.
• Use a good amount of oil: this is key so that your pizza dough doesn't stick on the grill. Don't be shy with a good glug of oil here.
• Grill your toppings ahead of time: before you put the dough on the grill, you can grill your toppings ahead of time. This works well for veggies like corn, asparagus and proteins such as chicken or pork.

Substitutions

Gluten-Free: I haven't tested this using an all purpose gluten-free flour and I'm not sure it would work the same. I'd suggest looking for a gluten-free flatbread recipe, or using your favourite store bought variety.

Active dry yeast: you can substitute with instant yeast if needed.

No grill: Bake this in the oven at 475°F on a parchment lined baking sheet or pizza stone. You won't get the grill marks, but it will still be delicious.

No stand mixer: you can mix by hand.

Can you freeze pizza dough?

Absolutely! After you've let the dough rise and you've punched the air out, you can freeze it. Wrap it in plastic wrap and then place it in a sealed container in the freezer for up to three months.

When you're ready to use it, you can thaw it overnight in the fridge and then let it sit out for 30 minutes before shaping the dough.

How to store

You can store the dough after its risen in the fridge for up to two days (this makes it great to prep ahead of time). Then simply, take it out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature for about 30 minutes. Then go ahead and punch the dough to release any air and continue with the recipe as is.

Alternatively, you can also grill the flatbread on both sides and leave it plain. Then store this in a large freezer bag for a quick dinner. Simply let it defrost on the counter for about 45 minutes. Then broil it in the oven with your toppings to reheat it.

Similar recipes to check out:

• One pan Greek chicken
• Vegan mushroom pizza with creamy garlic sauce
• Socca pizza with asparagus, mushrooms & sage
• Jerk salmon skewers with mango slaw
• Savory gluten-free galette with tomatoes

This recipe was inspired by the best in the baking biz- Sally's Baking Addiction, be sure to check out her post to see how she grills it indoors in the oven.

If you make this grilled flatbread pizza recipe please share with me, by tagging me on Instagram or leave a comment and/or review below. I truly love seeing and hearing form you!

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