Grilled summer veggies, juicy heirloom tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella are what top this delicious spelt pizza crust, and is a MUST make meal idea in the spring and summer when these delicious veggies are in abundance!
For me, one of the best things about this time of year is its produce. I could do without the blazing heat, but I love the juicy, colorful tomatoes, crisp summer squash, fresh herbs, and all of the delicious fruit it brings. If I can ever get my thumb to turn green, I would totally love to have a big garden one day.
Since my family and I are such big fans of pizza, I could think of no better way to use up the abundance of produce sitting in my fridge than to grill it and pile it on top of a delicious homemade crust!
I found a bag of sprouted spelt flour on sale at the grocery store and since I’ve been hearing such great things about it, I decided to try it in this pizza crust. I was surprised at how similar it is to regular wheat flour in feel and taste. Spelt is an ancient grain and a relative of modern day wheat. This whole grain is high in fiber and a good source of iron and manganese.
Like wheat, it does contain gluten, so if you’re gluten intolerant then stick to gluten-free flours. Below, I included the link to my gluten free pizza crust, which is equally delicious!
Feel free to top this with your favorite veggies or use dairy-free cheese to keep this completely vegan. Enjoy!
- 3–3¼ cups Sprouted Spelt Flour
, more may be needed (can also use all-purpose flour, but you may not need as much)
- 1 package Rapid Rise Yeast
(or 2¼ teaspoons)
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
or Avocado Oil
- 1-2 tablespoons Honey
or organic sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup very warm water (120-130ºF)
, more may be needed (can also use all-purpose flour, but you may not need as much)
(or 2¼ teaspoons)
or 
or organic sugar- 1 medium juicy tomato
- ½ loose cup basil leaves
- 1 small garlic clove, peeled
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil, if needed to blend
- pinch of salt and pepper
- 2-3 tablespoons avocado or coconut oil
- 1 small zucchini or yellow squash, sliced into thin ribbons
- 1-2 ears of corn, husks and silks removed
- ½ red onion, sliced into wedges
- 5-7 asparagus spears, woody ends trimmed
- 2-3 heirloom tomatoes, sliced thin and patted dry (Can also use regular tomatoes)
- 4 ounces fresh mozzarella, torn into chunks
- salt and pepper
- For the crust, I use Rapid Rise yeast to cut the rising time down. If you are using regular active dry yeast, you'll have to let it rise a bit longer.
- Place 1 cup of flour, rapid rise yeast, oil, honey, and salt into a large mixing bowl. Slowly add your warm water and begin mixing with an electric mixer or wooden spoon.
- Beat until the mixture is smooth, about 1-2 minutes. Begin adding additional flour ½ cup at a time until it forms a soft dough.
- Place dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-7 minutes or until dough is soft and smooth. Be careful not to add too much flour or the crust will be hard. Place dough into a lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel and let rest in a warm place for 20 minutes. If using active dry yeast, let rise about 60 minutes.
- *Tip: If your kitchen is cool, you can turn on your oven to the lowest setting for 1-2 minutes and then turn off. Oven should be warm but not too hot to touch. Place bowl inside of the warm oven to rise. Alternatively, you can place a pan of boiling water in the bottom of your oven (turned off) and close the oven door. The steam and moisture will also be a good environment for the dough to rise.
- Place tomato, basil, and garlic into a small food processor or blender and mix until well blended and smooth. Alternatively you can use your favorite pre-made pizza sauce.
- Turn an indoor or outdoor grill on medium heat so it can begin heating up. Meanwhile, toss ears of corn, zucchini ribbons, red onion wedges, and asparagus spears in a little avocado or melted coconut oil to lightly coat. This will help them not stick to the grill.
- Place veggies carefully onto the grill, turning often, and remove veggies to a clean plate as they begin to get grill marks. The zucchini/squash cooks quickly, so keep a close eye on them.
- After all of your veggies are grilled, it's time to assemble the pizza. Lay the corn cob down on its side and with a sharp knife, saw the kernels off of the cob. Set corn aside for later and preheat your oven to 450F.
- By now, the dough should have almost doubled in size. You can make one large pizza or two smaller pizzas by splitting the dough in half. Use lightly oiled hands to spread the dough out onto a baking sheet into about a ½-inch, thin round (or whatever shape you'd like). I placed mine on parchment paper to keep it from sticking to the pan, but you can also lightly oil the pan if you don't have any parchment.
- Spoon some of the pizza sauce onto the dough and spread across in a light layer. You don't want to overdo the sauce and probably won't use all that was made.
- Top the sauce with slices of heirloom tomatoes (pat dry with paper towels to avoid adding excess moisture), zucchini, corn kernels, red onion, asparagus, and chunks of fresh mozzarella. Sprinkle a generous amount of salt and pepper over the pizza.
- Place pizza into the preheated oven onto the middle rack. Bake until the cheese is melted and crust is golden, about 15-20 minutes, depending on your oven.
You May Also Enjoy These Similar Recipes:
Heirloom Tomato Pizza
Grain-Free Heirloom Tomato Galette
Caprese Pizza With Homemade Crust
Definitely going to have to try this since all these veggies are in season!
Greta | http://www.gretahollar.com
Just discovered your blog and I’m literally mesmerized by these photos!
This pizza is absolutely stunning! I adore spelt crust—- but still have yet to make my own, so I think that might need to be happening soon 🙂 Thanks so much for this beautiful recipe!
Thanks, girl! Yes, you must try it, Liz! Homemade crust is just THE best thing in the world!
Woah, what a cool looking pizza! I’ve not heard of spelt before. I’ll have to try this out!
Thanks, Raj. Let me know if you get to try it. It was so delicious!
Oh that looks amazing! Yum and everything was fresh, mmmm.
Thanks, Leslie!
Yum! What a fun idea for a pizza!
Thanks, Rachel!
Wow there’s a lot going on with this pizza. I usually stick with simple cheese lol but hey I love veggies and I’m willing to try anything once so I might surprise my boyfriend and make this soon. He won’t know what to think 😉 thanks for sharing this awesome unique recipe
Aw, thank you Melanie. I hope you try this out. Your boyfriend will really like it!