French Bread Pizza

This French Bread Pizza Recipe is an easy family meal idea! Pick your favourite toppings for this homemade French Bread pizza – a budget-friendly 30-minute weeknight dinner the whole family will love!

 

Estimated reading time: 1 minute

Even the most organized meal planners need a break once in awhile and recipes like this French Bread Pizza are perfect for those nights when you just don’t feel like cooking! We’ve all done it – reached for our favourite pizza delivery app on busy weeknights when the last thing we feel like doing is making dinner – but expensive take-out adds up and it’s not always the most healthy and wholesome option.

We LOVE this French Bread Pizza recipe for busy days for so many reasons: it’s easy to make so anyone in the family can throw it together (even the kids!), it’s perfect for customizing to whatever ingredients you happen to have on hand in your fridge and pantry, and it’s a meal everybody in the family will love because it can be made to everyone’s individual tastes and preferences.

French Bread Pizza is made with store-bought, unsliced French bread that’s cut open lengthwise. The French bread halves are used like the “dough” of a pizza and the sauce and toppings are placed on top of the open bread halves. They’re then baked until the cheese is bubbly, sliced like garlic bread, and served.

French Bread Pizza makes a delicious and super easy meal that can be served with a simple side salad to round out the meal! We love serving it with our favourite Olive Garden salad.

When it comes to homemade French Bread Pizza, the sky is the limit! Choose your favourite toppings from this list of our go-to toppings, or add whatever toppings you like!

• chicken
• tuna
• pepperoni
• ham
• prosciutto
• shredded cheese
• fresh mozzarella cheese
• feta cheese
• spinach
• sun-dried tomatoes (we don’t recommend fresh tomatoes as they can make the loaves soggy)
• bell peppers
• raw onions
• caramelized onions
• pineapple
• mushrooms
• pickled artichokes
• olives
• sweet corn

Here’s our best list of tips, tricks, dos and don’ts of making homemade French Bread Pizza at home in your kitchen!

Day-old bread is a little bit dried out, making it perfect for soaking up all the delicious pizza sauce. Fresh bread works in a pinch, but if the bread is just a little bit drier you’ll have a slightly better result.

Sliced French bread won’t work for this recipe, so be sure to choose unsliced bread and then slice it horizontally yourself to create two halves exposing as much of the inside of the loaf as possible.

Keep the mess to a minimum by lining your pans with parchment paper. The parchment will catch drips of sauce and toppings that might make a mess on your pan and it will prevent sticking.

Depending on the shape of your loaves, your French bread halves might have trouble staying flat on the pan, especially if the top or bottom of the loaf is rounded. If that’s the case, simply use a bread knife to slice a little off the top (or bottom) to help it lie flat.

Too much sauce will cause the bread to become soggy, so be sure to only add what the recipe recommends. And be sure to avoid vey moist toppings like large slices of fresh tomatoes for the same reason. Be sure to stick to the topping amounts recommended in the recipe.

To get the cheese to bubble and brown, once the pizza is done turn the oven to broil for 1-2 minutes to finish it off. This will create a deliciously caramelized topping.

Here’s a list of some common issues you might encounter when making homemade French Bread Pizza, how to fix them, and how to avoid them:

If your French Bread Pizza looks a little soggy as it bakes, simply increase the oven temperature. This will help remove some of the moisture.

Be sure to place the loaves in the middle of your oven, not at the bottom. Using the convection setting on your oven will help distribute the heat evenly so the bottom doesn’t burn.

If you find the loaves won’t lie flat and the toppings risk sliding off, simply slice off a little bit of the bottom (and/or top) of the loaf that’s rounded to create a flat surface. This will help the loaf halves to lie flat on the baking sheet.

If they look done but the cheese hasn’t browned, simply turn the oven to broil for 1-2 minutes to brown the top until the cheese is nice and bubbly!

Here at The Busy Baker we have shared so many of our favourite mealtime tips, tricks and secrets with you over the years. If you haven’t already signed up, we offer a FREE email course where we share our BEST weeknight meal tips, tricks and recipes to help you feed your hungry family without losing your sanity. Sign up for our FREE course below:

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Here’s a list of the basic kitchen equipment you’ll need to throw together this French Bread Pizza recipe in a pinch!

• large knife and Cutting Board for slicing the bread and chopping the toppings
• a Baking Sheet
• some measuring cups and spoons
• Parchment Paper
• a cheese grater for grating the cheese (or use pre-shredded cheese to save even more time)

Here’s the ingredients you’ll need to make this French Bread Pizza recipe – our way. But feel free to use any toppings your family enjoys!

• 2 loaves of French bread
• 1 cup pizza sauce
• 2 1/2 cups shredded cheese we use a mix of mozzarella, cheddar and Parmesan
• 1 cup mini pepperoni and ham we use 1/2 cup pepperoni 1/2 cup ham
• 1 small red onion diced (about 1/4 cup)
• 1/4 cup chopped mushrooms
• 1/4 cup pineapple chopped
• fresh parsley for garnish optional

To make your own version of French Bread Pizza with your favourite toppings, we recommend sticking to the following ratios:

• 1/2 cup to 2/3 cup of pizza sauce for every loaf of French bread
• 1 1/4 cup of shredded cheese for every loaf of French bread
• 1/2 cup of meat for every loaf of French bread
• 1/2 cup of veggies or other toppings for every loaf of French bread

Try one of these delicious variations on our favourite classic ways to make this recipe!

1. BBQ Chicken:
   • Top with shredded cooked chicken, barbecue sauce, red onions, and a mix of mozzarella and cheddar cheese. Finish with a sprinkle of cilantro after baking.
2. Mediterranean Veggie:
   • Use a base of pesto or olive tapenade. Add toppings like artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, roasted red peppers, feta cheese, and a sprinkle of oregano.
3. Four Cheese:
   • Use a blend of mozzarella, Parmesan, fontina, and gorgonzola, perhaps with a garlic butter base.
4. Margherita:
   • A simple, classic combination of tomato slices, fresh mozzarella, basil leaves, and a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic glaze.
5. Buffalo Chicken:
   • Combine shredded chicken with buffalo sauce, top with mozzarella cheese, and add diced celery and blue cheese crumbles after baking.
6. Tex-Mex Taco:
   • Spread a thin layer of refried beans, add seasoned ground beef or turkey, top with cheddar cheese, and bake. Garnish with lettuce, tomato, avocado, and a dollop of sour cream.
7. Meat Lover’s:
   • Top with a combination of pepperoni, cooked sausage, bacon bits, ham, and mozzarella cheese.
8. Greek:
   • Use a base of hummus or tzatziki, top with spinach, olives, red onions, tomatoes, cucumber, and feta cheese. Add a squeeze of lemon juice after baking.
9. Spinach and Artichoke:
   • Mix cream cheese, sour cream, cooked spinach, and chopped artichokes. Spread this mixture on the bread, top with mozzarella cheese, and bake until golden.

We hope you love this easy dinner recipe as much as we do! Let us know in the comments below, what’s your favourite quick dinner idea for a busy day? We’d love to know!

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