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This Spring Detroit-Style Pizza is a dream. The crust is thick and chewy with crisp edges similar to focaccia. It’s spring and veggie forward so a homemade arugula pesto steps in for marinara sauce and its topped with sliced radishes, frozen sweet peas, dollops of ricotta and so much melty mozzarella cheese. Using a premade Detroit-style pizza dough, this recipe comes together in just over 30 minutes. Serve with a Summer Rosรฉ Sangria for the best pizza and wine night!
I love pizza. This Meat Lover’s Pizza and Jalapeรฑo Pizza are my all time favorites to make, but there’s a special place in my heart for classic Detroit-Style Pizza or this Pesto Tomato Detroit-Style Pizza-it’s just sooo good! The thick crust with crispy and melty cheese is my weakness!
Ingredients You’ll Need for Spring Detroit-Style Pizza
- Detroit-style pizza dough – I used this Detroit-style pizza dough recipe. You can use focaccia dough in a pinch.
- Arugula pesto – Made with fresh basil and arugula leaves, grated Parmesan-Reggiano and pine nuts. Pesto pairs really well with the spring veggies and it’s a delicious switch-up from regular tomato sauce.
- Spring veggies – Radishes and frozen peas to give this Detroit-style pizza a spring-y flair.
- Cheese – Brick cheese is traditional to use for this type of pizza, it can be hard to find outside of Detroit/ the Midwest so a low-moisture shredded mozzarella cheese would work completely fine.
How To Make Spring Detroit-Style Pizza
- Make the arugula pesto – Add all of the pesto ingredients into a food processor or blender. Pulse until smooth, taste it and adjust the salt to your liking then set aside.
- Grease baking pan and stretch out the dough – Grease baking pan with olive oil then line with parchment paper. Press and stretch the dough in a baking pan until it reaches the corners, cover the pan with a clean kitchen towel then allow it to rise for 15 minutes.
- Assemble – Spread pesto over the dough, top with shredded mozzarella making sure it reaches the edges of the pan. Toss radishes with olive oil, salt and pepper then arrange over the pizza.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 8 minutes, sprinkle peas over top then bake for another 4 – 5 minutes or until the cheese has melted and the edges are crispy.
- Serve pizza topped with sprigs of fresh basil and a few dollops of ricotta cheese. Slice and serve!
Tips and Tricks
- Detroit-style pan: I used a quarter baking sheet lined with parchment paper so the crust doesn’t stick to the bottom and the sides of the pan. I didn’t want to buy a specific pan for Detroit pizza, you totally can if you want to!
- Rub the edges of the pan with olive oil to keep the cheese from sticking and it makes cleaning easier.
- Use this Detroit-style pizza crust recipe. I used the entire dough recipe for a quarter sheet pan, which is different than his recipe. He advises you to halve it. I found it to be too difficult to spread out and not thick enough. If you don’t have a quarter baking sheet use a 8×8-inch baking pan (think: brownie pan) as an alternative. So if you have that, use it!
- “Brick cheese” is not very easy to find (unless you live in Michigan and/or Wisconsin). I was totally happy with tons of shredded low-moisture mozzarella (I say splurge and use a good quality mozzarella!).
- Topping variations: classic marinara, mozzarella and pepperoni.
- Don’t try to bake 2 or 3 pizzas in the same oven. They will steam and get soggy and won’t crisp up. If you are making multiple batches of pizza do them one at a time.
Recipe FAQs
This is a type of pizza that originated in Detroit, Michigan. It has a thick yeasted crust that’s both crisp and chewy-similar to focaccia. This style of pizza is usually in the shape of a rectangle or a square baked in a Detroit-style pan rather than on a pizza stone. It’s topped with plenty of marinara sauce and cheese stretched to the every edge of the crust.
Many recipes will call for a custom Detroit-style pizza pan, its benefit is that a thin, dark pan conducts heat evenly which gives a crispier exterior to the crust. However, I find that a regular quarter baking sheet or a 9×13 baking sheet works just as well! Use a darker pan is you can because it will get hotter much quicker which is what we want for this kind of pizza.
More Pizza Recipes
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Spring Detroit-Style Pizza
Equipment
- 1 Quarter baking pan or a 9×13-inch baking pan or a 8×8-inch pan
- 1 Food processor or blender
Ingredients
Pesto:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup basil leaves + more as garnish
- 1 cup arugula leaves
- 1/3 cup grated Parmesan-Reggiano
- 1/4 cup pine nuts
- Juice from 1/4 lemon
- Pinch of salt
- Pinch of crushed red pepper + more as garnish
Instructions
To Make the Pesto:
- In a food processor or blender, add the olive oil, basil, arugula, Parmesan, pine nuts, lemon juice, pinch of salt and crushed red pepper. Pulse until smooth, scraping down the sides as needed. Give it a taste and adjust the salt per your liking.
To Assemble the Pizza:
- Line a quarter baking sheet with a sheet of parchment. Rub the sides of the baking sheet with olive oil or grape seed oil. Transfer the ball of dough to the center of the baking sheet and push it and gently pull it until reaches the corners of the baking. If itโs a teeny bit shy of the corners, no biggie! Lightly cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise for about 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 450 degrees F. After the dough has risen for a second and last time, add a few tablespoons of pesto and spread atop the pizza dough. (I had some pesto leftover so I ended up serving some with the pizza and keeping more in the fridge for later.)
- Top with the shredded mozzarella and make sure it reaches to the edge of the baking sheet (this part is important because itโll give you those nice, crispy edges!). In a small bowl, toss the radishes with the olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Arrange the radishes atop the pizza.
- Transfer to the oven to bake for about 8 minutes. Add the peas to the top of the pizza and bake for an additional 4 to 5 minutes (for a total of 12 to 13 minutes), until the edges are crispy and the cheese has melted.
- Top with sprigs of dollops of ricotta and sprigs of fresh basil. Slice it up and serve (be careful the edges of the pan will be hot!).
Notes
Tips and Tricks
- Detroit-style pan:ย I used aย quarter baking sheetย lined with parchment paper so the crust doesnโt stick to the bottom and the sides of the pan. I didnโt want to buy aย specific panย for Detroit pizza, you totally can if you want to!
- Rub the edges of the pan with olive oilย to keep the cheese from sticking and it makes cleaning easier.
- Use thisย Detroit-style pizza crust recipe.ย I used the entire dough recipe for aย quarter sheet pan, which is different than his recipe. He advises you to halve it. I found it to be too difficult to spread out and not thick enough. If you donโt have a quarter baking sheet use aย 8ร8-inch baking panย (think: brownie pan) as an alternative. So if you have that, use it!
- โBrick cheeseโย is not very easy to find (unless you live in Michigan and/or Wisconsin). I was totally happy with tons of shredded low-moisture mozzarella (I say splurge and use a good quality mozzarella!).
- Topping variations:ย classic marinara, mozzarella and pepperoni.
- Donโt try to bake 2 or 3 pizzas in the same oven.ย They will steam and get soggy and wonโt crisp up. If you are making multiple batches of pizza do them one at a time.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Third time making this in the last 6 weeks. Instead of arugula, I’m using the four different lettuces growing in my Aerogarden, basil included for the peso. Using the traditional Detroit low moisture mozzarella and brick cheese 50/50. Keep forgetting to plop the ricotta on though. Still amazing.
Just found your blog and as a Detroit pizza-lover I just had to comment. I’m usually very loyal to classic Italian style pizza, but the first time I had Detroit style I was in love. There’s this awesome place in Austin (where I live) called Via 313 and if you ever come down to visit you MUST have some! Bonus: their gluten free pizza is the best crust I’ve ever had.
Definitely making some pizza this weekend now…
I made this! As a matter of fact, I am eating this right now… actually getting a second slice. Fantastic, love the radish ricotta twist! Thank you so much for the recipe.
yayyy! this makes me so happy! xo
Umm… YUM!!!!! This sounds divine!! And is happening here tonight!
So dreamy! I haven’t been Detroit, and for some reason I haven’t eaten Detroit style pizza! I know I would love it. Sounds like a much better alternative to deep dish ๐
i am planning a trip to nyc rn and just added emmy squared to my 750 item list of places to eat haha (ill be there 2.5 days)
Detroit pizza, I’ve never heard of it. But now I’m thinkin’ where has this fabulous looking stuff been all my life? I also see that you combine basil and arugula in your pesto, another thing I’ve never done but I’m sure I’ll love. YUM! My mouth is watering…
Oh wow, you’ve totally sold me on this pizza and I have a feeling every single one of your toppings is a must (Oh sweet pine nuts!!!)! I’ve honestly never even heard of Detroit style pizza so this is like revolutionary to me. Thanks, Adrianna!