Home · Recipes · Recipes · Main Dishes French Bread Pizza Author: Maryanne CabreraPublished: Jul 20, 2017Updated: Oct 23, 2023 View Recipe12 ReviewsThis post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy. Quick and easy French bread pizza is an ode to the classic favorite elementary school lunch item. Table of Contents Ingredients and ComponentsHow to AssembleMore Easy Pizza RecipesFrench Bread PizzaView moreView less For most kids, love for pizza starts in elementary school. Nearly every school cafeteria serves pizza at least once a week. Every Friday our cafeteria would serve French bread pizza. It was cheesy, full of sauce, and I loved it (along with every other kid). Fast forward to high school and college years. Teens can opt to cook frozen French bread pizza. Fast forward to the adult stage of your life. It’s unbelievably easy to make French bread pizza at home using store-bought French bread! Alternatively, use Italian bread, loaf bread, or whatever soft loaf your local market or bakery has on hand. This recipe couldn’t get any easier. It takes 5 minutes to prep all the ingredients. And, less than 5 minutes of actual cooking time! Use the oven’s boiler setting to have hot, bubbly, saucy French bread pizza ready in minutes! Ingredients and Components Begin with your choice of French bread or Italian bread. Or, use whatever soft loaf your local grocery store or bakery carries. From there, you can pick and choose your choices of toppings. Sauces: tomato sauce or marinara sauce, basil pesto, sun dried tomato pesto Toppings: Cheese: fresh mozzarella, shredded mozzarella, fontina, Swiss, pepper jack Protein: pepperoni, ham, turkey, crumbled sausage, grilled chicken Vegetables: tomato, mushroom, bell pepper, olives, zucchini, onion Herb Garnishes: fresh basil, fresh thyme, fresh oregano How to Assemble Follow assembly progression clockwise beginning at the toasted bread on the upper left hand corner: Place bread cut-side up on baking sheet and set under broiler for about 30 seconds until the bread is toasty. Spread pizza sauce (this one is my favorite!) all over toasted bread. Top sauce with shredded mozzarella and sliced tomatoes. Add pepperoni, more shredded mozzarella, and crumbled fresh mozzarella. Pre-toasting the bread gives the pizza structure and crunch. You’re able to pick up the pizza without it falling apart. Fresh mozzarella is key! That’s how to achieve pockets of that ooey-gooey cheese pull. Plus, it’s an easy way to elevate basic French bread pizza and make it more classy! Return to the boiler for a minute or so until the cheese has melted and is starting to brown. Season with some crushed red pepper flakes and top with fresh basil. That’s it! Doesn’t it look a 100 times more better than the frozen ones? While I’m a fan of more sophisticated pizzas like ricotta and squash blossom pizza or fig prosciutto pizza with balsamic glaze, I’ll always have a soft spot for my first pizza love- pepperoni pizza! More Easy Pizza Recipes Summer Vegetable Pizza Homemade Bagel Bites Two Ingredient Pizza Dough French Bread Pizza No ratings yet Quick and easy French bread pizza features fresh mozzarella and pepperoni slices. Customize topping choices to make it your own! Prep Time: 5 minutes minutesCook Time: 3 minutes minutesTotal Time: 8 minutes minutes Servings: 4 Print Recipe Pin Recipe Rate Recipe Equipmentoven broiler Ingredients▢ 16 oz (1 pound) soft loaf French bread or Italian bread▢ ½ cup pizza sauce*▢ 1 medium tomato, thinly sliced▢ 4 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded▢ 3 oz fresh mozzarella cheese▢ 2 oz pepperoni slices▢ crushed red pepper flakes, to top▢ fresh basil, to garnish Instructions Position rack in center of oven*. Set oven to broiler.Slice bread loaf in half crosswise and lengthwise until you have four pieces total. Arrange bread cut side up on a baking sheet. Place under broiler for 30-45 seconds until tops of bread are lightly toasted.Remove from oven. Spread about 2 tablespoons of pizza sauce over each piece of bread. Sprinkle about 1 oz of shredded mozzarella over sauce. Top with sliced tomatoes and pepperoni. Crumble fresh mozzarella over tomatoes. Sprinkle remaining shredded mozzarella on top.Return to oven and place under broiler for 45-60 seconds, rotate baking sheet, and heat for another 45-60 seconds until cheese has melted and is starting to brown. Season with crushed red pepper flakes, if desired. Garnish with fresh basil. Serve immediately. Notes Position rack in center of oven about 6-inches from broiler. The broiler setting is very HOT. Keep a close eye on your pizza to make it sure it doesn’t burn. I used this store-bought tomato sauce All images and text ©The Little Epicurean NutritionCalories: 542kcal | Carbohydrates: 63g | Protein: 27g | Fat: 21g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 53mg | Sodium: 1364mg | Potassium: 373mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 724IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 320mg | Iron: 5mg Author: Maryanne Cabrera Course: Main Course, SnackCuisine: American Did you make this recipe?Show us on Instagram! Tag @littleepicurean and hashtag #littleepicurean.
Sarah Althouse says: July 20, 2017 My husband and I make pizza all the time but I never thought about making it on frenchbread. Reply
Maggie Unzueta says: July 20, 2017 I could eat pizza everyday. So easy and yummy! Thanks for the recipe. Reply
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says: July 20, 2017 I love pizzas prepared this way, I almost prefer the French bread over traditional pizza crust! Reply
Ashley says: July 21, 2017 This is such a brilliant idea! Making these this weekend! They look delicious and I can’t wait to try! Reply
carrie @ frugal foodie mama says: July 21, 2017 French bread pizza is definitely my go-to for dinner on lazy evenings! :) In fact, I think I just may be making it this weekend. Reply
Dee says: July 21, 2017 We usually have pizza night once a week, and I know my kids would love this pizza! Reply
Courteney Noonan says: July 22, 2017 My boyfriend would love this! I might have to try and make it myself… Reply
Lauren @ Hall Nesting says: July 22, 2017 It looks 1000x better than the frozen ones. I wish I could smell it through my computer right now! Reply
Karly says: September 22, 2017 So, simple, so easy and so delicious! This is perfect for a snack or a quick dinner! Reply