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–+ servings
Multiple personal sized pizzas for a build your own pizza party.
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How to Host a Build Your Own Pizza Night

Let your kids and guests build their own pizzas! You can bake these pizzas in the oven, or grill it for a restaurant-worthy result.
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 1 10-inch pizza per guest

Equipment

Ingredients

For the crusts

  • 1 lb pizza dough for every 2 pizzas (see note)
  • olive oil
  • kosher salt
  • semolina flour cornmeal may be substituted

Sauce ideas

  • 1/4 cup pizza sauce per pizza
  • minced garlic and olive oil
  • pesto
  • alfredo sauce
  • buffalo sauce I like Frank's
  • cheese sauce

Topping ideas (cheese)

  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese per pizza
  • fresh mozzarella sliced
  • blue cheese
  • ricotta cheese

Topping ideas (meats)

  • pepperoni or turkey pepperoni
  • Italian sausage browned and crumbled
  • ham or Canadian bacon
  • bacon cooked and crumbled
  • cooked chicken diced
  • chicken apple sausage I use Aidell's
  • meatballs cooked and sliced
  • shaved steak cooked

Topping ideas (fresh ingredients)

  • red or green bell pepper cut into strips
  • red or white onion julienned
  • mushrooms sliced
  • Roma tomato sliced or diced
  • spinach
  • kale thick stems removed, cut into bite sized pieces
  • fennel bulb sliced thinly
  • pineapple diced
  • basil

Topping ideas (canned and jarred ingredients)

  • olives black, green (without pimentos), or kalamata (pitted)
  • roasted red pepper strips drained and patted dry
  • jalapeño peppers

Instructions

Shape and parcook the pizza crusts (Do this up to one day in advance, and definitely before guests arrive)

  • If you have one, place pizza stone on your grill in your oven. Preheat grill on high or oven to 450℉.
  • Cut each pound of dough into two equal pieces and shape each into a ball. Roll or press each ball into a circle using a rolling pin or your hands. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes and roll again. You may also pick up the dough and stretch it from underneath with two fists. Repeat until you have 10" rounds that don't shrink back.
  • If baking on a sheet pan or pizza pan: Sprinkle pan with semolina flour and lay the crust on top. Bake for 2-3 minutes, until the exterior of the crust doesn't look so raw and doughy anymore.
    If baking on a pizza stone: Sprinkle pizza peel liberally with semolina flour and lay the crust on top. Give the pizza peel a shake and see if any parts stick. Pick up any sticking bits and add more semolina flour underneath until crust slides smoothly.
    Slide each crust onto your pizza stone, close the grill lid or oven, and cook for 1-2 minutes, until the exterior of the crust doesn't feel so doughy anymore.
  • Stack parcooked crusts on a plate with sheets of parchment paper in between. Cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator.

Prepare the toppings (the morning of)

  • Pick your family's and guests' favorite toppings, plus any that you will need for "specialty pizzas" you plan to make. Cook any raw meats in advance, slice or dice fresh toppings, and drain jarred toppings. Store in baggies, small bowls, or my favorite compact solution, in a couple "snackle boxes" in the refrigerator.

Set up assembly line

  • Before pizza time, arrange ingredients in an assembly line in the order they'll be needed: Empty plates, parcooked crusts, olive oil and salt (with pastry brush), sauces, cheese, and toppings. Remind people to brush the edges of their crust with olive oil and sprinkle with salt before adding their toppings.

Assemble and cook the pizzas

  • Preheat the pizza stone on the grill on high heat or your oven to 450 degrees again.
  • Start by putting together kids' pizzas and any shareable pizzas you plan to make, and then let other diners assemble their own pizzas.
  • Transfer each pizza onto the pizza stone (or onto a baking sheet for the oven), close the grill cover or oven door, and bake for 7-10 minutes on the grill or 12-14 minutes in the oven. Cheese should be melted and crust golden brown.
  • Cut pizzas into slices and enjoy!

Notes

How much dough to get? I recommend planning for one 10" pizza per person, plus a couple extras for shareable specialty pizzas or classic favorites. Each pound of dough should yield two 10" pizzas.
Alternate crust ideas: If you want an easier route than parcooking fresh pizza crusts, you can use precooked pizza crusts, flatbread, pitas, English muffins, or bagels instead.