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Classic, delicious, crispy, thin-crust Margherita Pizza made with simple ingredients.
The one thing I crave most while being pregnant is Pizza! My baby just loves pizza! 😊
Gosh, I wish I had access to NY-style or Italian-style pizza. I would be devouring those pies so perhaps it’s a good thing I don’t.
My goal was to make thin-crust, crispy pizza and after five attempts, I finally got this right. For this recipe, I used store-bought pizza dough, but feel free to make yours at home.
Tips on making Thin-Crust & Crispy Margherita Pizza
- Invest in a castiron skillet or stone. For this recipe, I used a castiron skillet.
- Preheat the oven and place the castiron skillet inside the oven until it’s super hot.
- Remove cast-iron skillet from the oven and brush with olive oil.
- Roll out the dough until it’s thin enough, place in a cast-iron skillet.
- Don’t use too much sauce else your pizza will be soggy.
- Drizzle a little olive oil on top before placing the cast-iron skillet back into the oven.
- Bake for 10-13 minutes. Check pizza around 10 minutes to see if the crust is crispy.
Margherita Pizza is:
Simple
Delicious
Thin-Crust
Crispy
Flavorful
Made in a Castiron Skillet
Will transport you back to Italy
How to make Margherita Pizza recipe step by step?
Preheat Oven
1. Preheat the oven at 475 degrees. Place a 12″ cast-iron skillet into the oven. Once the oven preheats to 475 degrees, leave the skillet in the oven for an additional 10 minutes so it heats up nicely.
Prepare the Dough
1. I used store-bought dough, I love Trader Joe’s plain pizza dough, alternatively, you can use whole-wheat pizza dough.
Leave the dough out for an hour. Split the dough in half so each half is 8 ounces.
Flour the dough.
2. Roll out the dough in a round shape to the best of your ability, thin is out so it’s about a 1/4 inch thick.
Assemble the Pizza
1. Using kitchen gloves, carefully remove the castiron skillet from the oven. Brush the skillet with a little olive oil. Use a good quality olive oil, I love Lucini.
2. Carefully place the pizza dough onto the castiron skillet stretching out the dough. Be careful you do not touch the castiron skillet. The dough will begin to sizzle immediately.
3. Use a couple of spoonfuls of marinara sauce and spread onto the dough. Be sure to leave about half-inch of the crust without sauce. DO NOT USE TOO MUCH SAUCE. I love Rao’s Marinara.
4. Tear chunks of fresh mozzarella cheese and place them all over the dough like so.
5. Add lots of fresh basil and drizzle a little olive oil on top – about 1/2 tbsp. Optional: you can crack some fresh black pepper as well.
6. Place the castiron skillet into the oven for 10-13 minutes. The time varies based on how golden brown you like your cheese. 
7. Once 10-13 minutes are up, check to see if the crust is crispy before removing the pizza from the oven. Do not bake the pizza for more than 14 minutes total else your cheese will get too brown.
Transfer the pizza onto a tray rack so it crisps up. Slice into 4 slices.
Serve Hot!
More Pizza Recipes!
- Lavash Bread Pizza
- Veggie Pesto Flatbread Pizza
- Zucchini Goat Cheese Pizza
- Tandoori Vegetarian Pizza with Jalapeno Sauce
- White Mushroom Pizza
Margherita Pizza (makes 2 pies)
INGREDIENTS
for dough
- 1 pound store-bought pizza dough, split in half
- little flour to roll out dough
for pizza
- 2 tsp olive oil, brush over castiron skillet
- 1/2 pound pizza dough, spread out
- 1/4-1/3 cup marinara sauce, spread out
- 3 ounces mozzarella cheese, chunks
- 10-12 fresh basil leaves
- 1/2 tbsp olive oil, drizzle over pizza
- optional: crack black pepper on top
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat Oven
- Preheat the oven at 475 degrees. Place a 12″ cast-iron skillet into the oven. Once the oven preheats to 475 degrees, leave the skillet in the oven for an additional 10 minutes so it heats up nicely.
Prepare the Dough
- I used store-bought dough, I love Trader Joe’s plain pizza dough, alternatively, you can use whole-wheat pizza dough.
- Leave the dough out for an hour. Split the dough in half so each half is 8 ounces.
- Flour the dough.
- Roll out the dough in a round shape to the best of your ability, thin is out so it’s about a 1/4 inch thick.
Assemble the Pizza
- Using kitchen gloves, carefully remove the castiron skillet from the oven. Brush the skillet with a little olive oil. Use a good quality olive oil, I love Lucini.
- Carefully place the pizza dough onto the castiron skillet stretching out the dough. Be careful you do not touch the castiron skillet. The dough will begin to sizzle immediately.
- Use a couple of spoonfuls of marinara sauce and spread onto the dough. Be sure to leave about half-inch of the crust without sauce. DO NOT USE TOO MUCH SAUCE. I love Rao’s Marinara.
- Tear chunks of fresh mozzarella cheese and place them all over the dough like so.
- Add lots of fresh basil and drizzle a little olive oil on top – about 1/2 tbsp. Optional: you can crack some fresh black pepper as well.
- Place the castiron skillet into the oven for 10-13 minutes. The time varies based on how golden brown you like your cheese.
- Once 10-13 minutes are up, check to see if the crust is crispy before removing the pizza from the oven. Do not bake the pizza for more than 14 minutes total else your cheese will get too brown.
- Transfer the pizza onto a tray rack so it crisps up. Slice into 4 slices.
Made this last night—definitely husband approved! I ran out of olive oil so used truffle oil instead. Added some veggies too lol. Also I sprinkled half the basil before baking, half afterward. Amazing pizza! Thanks Nisha 🙂
This was a great recipe for a quick/easy dinner but still super delicious! Nisha’s method of using the cast iron skillet allowed the pizza to get thin and crispy. The only thing I would do differently next time is put the basil leaves on the pizza at the very end (once the pizza comes out of the oven) so they don’t burn while baking. Otherwise, this was an awesome recipe!
Thanks Niki. Appreciate your feedback. Glad you enjoyed it. xoxo