Bacon-Basil Pesto and Chicken Pizza
ShareAn updated recipe for pesto pizza featuring bacon-basil pesto on top of a crisp homemade pizza crust, with salty bacon, chicken and freshly shredded whole milk mozzarella.
This post is brought to you by Aero Garden ULTRA and Kitchen PLAY.
I’ve never been one for getting into gardening. Every year I have big dreams of a garden full of fresh veggies and fruit, but every year passes without me getting beyond the dreaming stage. It could be the idea that I have to actually get dirty or deal with bugs, neither of which I care for. Sure, I’ve grown flowers here and there but never any giant colorful gardens, just simple and hardy varieties that need very little help. When I was given the opportunity to try out Aero Garden ULTRA, I jumped at the chance. Grow my own fresh herbs (veggies or fruit) at home… in the winter?! I was curious and excited to see it in action.
Not only was it easy to put together but it was a cinch to use! It’s basically dummy-proof with the machine walking you through everything from the setup to when to add water and even regular nutrients. The really cool thing was checking on the basil everyday. The kids and I were always excited to check in on their progress and as they got bigger and bigger, the kids were more in awe! I was too!
Seriously guys, it’s a snow covered 20 degrees in New Hampshire and I have fresh basil growing in my basement. How cool is that? The above photo is from early on, before the basil got big.
I knew immediately what I wanted to make with my fresh basil. Pizza! We have weekly pizza nights so it was fitting to finally share a new variety that is totally different than any other I’ve shared so far. Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be a fan. But I was blown away by this bacon-basil pesto pizza. So good! It’s seriously a pizza like no other.
Forget your run-of-the-mill boring pesto. This one has bacon, which makes it that much more amazing! A bacon-basil pesto on top of a crisp homemade pizza crust, with bacon, chicken and freshly shredded whole milk mozzarella (remember, whole milk is the key to an amazing pizza!). Add a dash of pepper for the final finishing touch. Trust me, this is a must make pizza!
If you’d like to try your hand at growing herbs and veggies in your home, any time of the year, AeroGrow will be running its ‘12 Days of Deals’ for the holidays with discounts and special bundles for the season. Plus, get up to 20% on everything storewide when using promo code ‘Holiday20’ in the shopping cart at checkout.
Bacon-Basil Pesto and Chicken Pizza
Ingredients
Dough:
- 1 C water
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 1/2 - 3 C all purpose flour
Pesto sauce:
- 2 C basil leaves
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/3 C bacon
- 1/2 C Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 - 1/2 C olive oil
Additional ingredients:
- Whole milk mozzarella shredded
- 1 chicken breast
- 2-3 slices bacon
- Ground black pepper
Instructions
- Prepare dough: In a measuring cup, combine warm water (115-120°F) with active dry yeast and sugar. Allow yeast to proof.
- Meanwhile, in the bowl of a stand mixer, add 2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour and salt. When yeast is ready, turn mixer on low and slowly drizzle in liquid. Increase mixer speed and continue mixing until dough comes together. Add additional flour as needed until dough no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. Transfer to a lightly greased bowl, cover and allow to rise in a warm location for at least one hour.
- In a medium skillet, cook 6-7 slices of bacon (or more as desired). Finely chop of half of the bacon for the pesto sauce, while reserving the rest for topping. In the same skillet, cook chicken breast over medium heat until cooked through. Shred chicken and set aside.
- Add basil leaves and garlic to a food processor. Blend together until only fine pieces remain. Add Parmesan cheese. Blend until combined. With food processor running on low, slowly drizzle in enough olive oil until a spreadable consistency is reached. Transfer mixture to a small bowl. Stir in bacon.
- Lightly grease a baking sheet with olive oil. Gently stretch and shape dough to desired size. Add to a cold oven. Heat oven to 425°F. When oven is ready, remove pizza crust.
- Spread bacon-basil pesto sauce in an even layer. Top off with shredded mozzarella, followed by bacon, chicken and finally a sprinkle of ground black pepper.
- Bake pizza for 15-20 minutes or until desired crispness is reached. Slice and serve.
Notes
More pizza recipes to try:
Broccoli and chicken Alfredo garlic bread pizza
Loaded mashed potato pizza
Perfect pepperoni pizza
Deep dish Chicago style pizza
Garlic bread pizza
Bacon and barbecue chicken pizza
Breakfast pizza
Buffalo chicken pizza
This post contains affiliate links.
Discolsure: This is a sponsored post. I was provided with product and compensated for my time. As always, all opinions are my own.
This is my kind of pizza. I love all of the flavors involved. Pinning cause I must make this version.
Thanks so much Norma! And yes, you must make it! :)
This looks and sounds delicious! I love pesto (and miss my basil plant). :-)
Oooh then you need to get one of these crazy awesome contraptions lol Especially so you can make this pizza and pesto – duh ;)
Oh my goodness this looks so damn good! I want it for breakfast.
I’d have said the same if I still had some lying around! :)
Rachel! I love basil and pesto on my pizza. This is my choice for pizza night :)
Thanks so much Sally!! So glad you agree :)
Bacon. Basil. Pesto. YES! I keep scrolling back and staring longingly at the photos…this looks and sounds stellar! And bacon basil pesto? It’s SO happening in my kitchen.
Haha! Thanks so much Heather. I hope you try it and enjoy it!
I need one of these things!! And seriously that pesto rocks my world
You really do!! And thanks :)
This is my dream pizza! All my favorites! :)
Thanks so much Tieghan!
I’m drooling. This has every single ingredient I love. Bacon..especially the bacon ;) I’m really intrigued with AeroGarden; if we had more space in our house, I’d totally get one cause I can’t seem to grow basil or any herb normally and I feel that this AeroGarden would help me out since it’s so much easier lol
Seriously – the bacon makes it that much more delicious. And you totally need one! Fresh basil year round. Crazy!
Looks amazing! I just featured a bacon pizza on my blog on Friday too. Bacon is so good on pizza!
Thanks so much Melanie! Bacon makes everything 100x better :)
Bacon-basil pesto… amazing idea!
This looks so good! I’m a sucker for pesto…and bacon…and pizza…haha. So trying this!
I recently found your website…and, I must take umbrage…you have taken up an Enormous amount of my time recently, navigating your site! Every time I find a Great recipe I want to try, I find ANOTHER one I want to try! You have some Terrific ideas! Thank you so much.
Just one thing tho’…This is the second recipe I have seen where you have homemade pesto…I’ve been making (and freezing) it for years…most recently using asparagus instead of pesto (yum, if you love asparagus). But, I’ve Never seen a pesto recipe without using nuts, normally pine nuts. Why is that?
It is nut free due to a nut allergy in my family. But, if you prefer nuts added in, go right ahead. :)
Oh, this looks so delicious and my 2 boys just love pizza.
Thanks Jan!
This was a great recipe. I hate making crust so I cheated with a pillsbury crust. Also good with a little balsamic drizzle on top!
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Kate! Thanks for sharing!