Chicken Pesto Paleo Pizza (Print Version)
Crisp almond-coconut crust topped with chicken, basil pesto, cherry tomatoes and olives for a low-carb Italian twist.
# What You Need:
→ Paleo Pizza Crust
01 - 1 cup almond flour
02 - 1/4 cup tapioca flour
03 - 1/4 cup coconut flour
04 - 2 large eggs
05 - 2 tablespoons olive oil
06 - 1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
07 - 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
08 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
→ Pesto Sauce
09 - 1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
10 - 1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts
11 - 2 garlic cloves
12 - 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
13 - 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
14 - 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
15 - Juice of 1/2 lemon
→ Toppings
16 - 2 medium cooked chicken breasts, sliced or shredded
17 - 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
18 - 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
19 - 1/4 cup black olives, sliced (optional)
20 - Fresh basil leaves for garnish
# Directions:
01 - Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
02 - In a mixing bowl, combine the almond flour, tapioca flour, coconut flour, sea salt, and baking soda.
03 - In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, olive oil, and almond milk. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir until a cohesive dough forms.
04 - Transfer the dough onto the parchment-lined baking sheet. Flatten and shape it into a 10 to 12-inch round crust. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes until the edges turn golden.
05 - While the crust bakes, combine the basil, pine nuts, garlic, nutritional yeast, olive oil, sea salt, and lemon juice in a food processor. Blend until smooth.
06 - Remove the par-baked crust from the oven. Spread the pesto evenly over the surface. Layer on the sliced chicken, red onion, cherry tomatoes, and olives.
07 - Return the assembled pizza to the oven and bake for an additional 8 to 10 minutes, until the toppings are heated through and the crust is crisp.
08 - Remove from the oven, garnish with fresh basil leaves, slice into portions, and serve warm.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- The crust gets genuinely crispy and holds up under toppings, something most paleo crusts fail at miserably.
- Homemade pesto made with nutritional yeast gives you that cheesy, savory depth without a single drop of dairy.
- It comes together in under an hour, which means weeknight pizza night is absolutely back on the table.
02 -
- The dough will seem too wet or too dry depending on your flour brands, so add a tablespoon of almond flour if sticky or a splash of almond milk if crumbly until it holds together like playdough.
- Parbaking the crust before adding toppings is nonnegotiable because skipping this step guarantees a soggy center that falls apart when you lift a slice.
- Nutritional yeast brands vary wildly in flavor, so taste your pesto before spreading it and adjust salt or lemon juice to bring it into balance.
03 -
- Toast your pine nuts or walnuts in a dry skillet for two to three minutes before making pesto because that single step transforms the flavor from flat to incredibly rich and complex.
- Let the pizza rest for three minutes after it comes out of the oven because the crust continues to firm up and you will get cleaner slices that actually hold together.