Garlic Bread Pizza Crust.
I’ve been seriously craving the Pizza Hut dinner box. I mean… SERIOUSLY.
Yes, Pizza Hut. Please tell me you’ve seen it advertised.
Now I firmly believe that people in this world are cut from two cloths: those who love Pizza Hut, and those who hate it. I, unabashedly, adore it and have since I was a child. Which didn’t help my cause, considering alllll my family members – including that guy I’m now married to – decided that they would rather have the hometown pizza joint’s pizza instead of the mass chain produced pie almost every.single.freaking.time.
Okay. Whatever. I totally understand. Sometimes I want that too. I’m not saying that the hometown pizza isn’t delicious. It usually is. But Pizza Hut is, like… Pizza Hut. It’s always the same. And it’s comforting to know that if I order a pan pizza, I’m going to ingest one of the thickest but fluffiest but chewiest smothered-in-butter, crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside crusts. And if I order a thin crust, I’m going to get super slim and crispy crust and pretend that I’m eating healthy pizza with extra cheese, which is delicious even if you have to eat six pieces just to feel full.
The fact is that I love food so much (I mean, like SO MUCH) that every singly solitary bite I put in my mouth? I want it to be fabulous. I want to 100% love it. I want to live it. I want it to thrill me. And more often than not, I want it to make me feel good. No… great. Or amazing.
I am no where near a snob about my eats. It’s just that since we want to love, enjoy and FLIP OUT over nearly every bite we take? We spend time choosing what we will be eating during the week, especially if it includes going out to a restaurant. Really? We just want to freaking love it. I want to remember it.
Hence why I’ve been suffering through each and every Pizza Hut dinner box commercial for about three weeks. Going out for a nice little date or getting a $10 dinner box? Easy delicious.
Actually, I’m lying. The real reason I’ve been suffering? Is, uh… because I was embarrassed to tell my husband that no, I really don’t want to go out for filet with lobster sauce or pear gorgonzola pizza. I’d rather sit here in my sweat pants and order the damn PIZZA HUT DINNER BOX! Food blog what?? I just caaaaaan’t stop thinking about how good it sounds.
But that all changed this week.
As we were hanging … the commercial came on and I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I screamed “OMG I want that dinner box SO bad! I don’t know why, it just looks amazing. Pizza… breadsticks… CINNASTICKS! Ugh. I can’t even take it.”
But! But but but… he’s all “I KNOW! I’ve been craving it too. It looks so good. I want to dominate it with a liter of diet Mountain Dew. But I didn’t want to tell you because I love homemade pizza so much!”
Hmmmmm. Okay. Communication wins again.
So… we still haven’t ordered the Pizza Hut dinner box. I think we had full plans on doing so this weekend, but… but… then I made this. A few weeks ago while traveling, my husband had a garlic bread pizza crust and didn’t really stop talking about. I didn’t stop thinking about it. I increased my go-to dough recipe a bit for a thicker, fluffier crust, then covered every square inch with melted butter and garlic and even parmesan.
Absolutely
no
words.
Garlic Bread Pizza Crust
makes one pizza
1 1/8 cups warm water (100-105 degrees)
3 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried basil
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 garlic cloves, pressed or very finely minced
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
In a large bowl, combine water, yeast, honey and olive oil. Mix with a spoon, then let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes. Add in 2 1/2 cups flour, salt, garlic powder and dried basil, stirring with a spoon until the dough comes together but it still sticky. Using your hands, form the dough into a ball and work the additional 1/2 cup flour (you don’t need to use all if it is not needed) in to the dough, kneading it on a floured surface for a few minutes. Rub the same bowl with olive oil then place the dough inside, turning to coat. Cover with a towel and place in a warm place to rise for about 1 1/2 hours.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
After the dough has risen, punch it down and place it back on the floured surface. Using a roll pin or your hands, form it into your desired shape (sometimes I use baking sheets and do rectangles or free form pizzas). Place the towel back over the dough and let sit in the warm place for 10 minutes. While the dough is rising again, melt 3 tablespoons of butter. Mix it with the garlic and 1 tablespoon of parmesan cheese.
Bring the dough back out and using a spoon or pastry brush, douse the outside edges with the butter and garlic mixture. You can spread the butter all over, just make sure to focus on the edges. Use it all up! Continue to make your pizza with your desired toppings. Bake the pizza for 23-25 minutes (or longer if needed, depending on your toppings), or until crust and cheese are both golden. While pizza is baking, melt remaining butter and combine with the last tablespoon of parmesan.
Remove pizza from over and immediately brush the outside edges with parmesan butter, using it all up. Sprinkle a bit of parmesan over top if desired. Serve!
Note: I realize that if you buy yeast in the packets, it can be a pain to measure 3 teaspoons. If you don’t want to do that, I suggest making a double recipe of this crust. However! I also prefer buying jars of yeast these days instead of packets, and just keeping it in the fridge, so I suggest doing that.
Yes. Really.
311 Comments on “Garlic Bread Pizza Crust.”
I have to admit, Pizza Hut pizza is good, but this pizza looks damn good too! I’m a sucker for anything garlicky! :-)
I have had a major and I mean major craving for pizza! This looks fantastic! The butter and garlic, mmmmm, what a great way to kick off the weekend!! Love it!!!
That is a win for communication- Aw, you two were on totally the same wave length. How cute. <3
I love all of your homemade pizza stuff *so* much! It always looks great and then when I get the chance to make it it- it's stinking wonderful!
Omg, my husband drools every time that commercial comes on! I’m thinking that might be a nice treat for dinner tomorrow night as we are moving tomorrow and I know my new kitchen will still be completely torn apart at that point!
O.M.Geeeeeeeeeee this looks YUMMY!
Do you think it’d work if I subbed whole wheat flour, or even just half ? Just to feel healthier really :)
Haven’t tried it so I can’t say for sure – I want to say yes but I don’t think it will be quite as fluffy.
Such a fan of homemade pizza crust…but then you add this garlic-y-ness to it?! If I try this, I may never go back…. Looks so delish!
I like Pizza Hut pizza, but don’t have one near me. This pizza looks crazy delicious. My family loves pizza and garlic bread, so I know this will be a hit in my house! :-)
This is almost diet food really because it means that I won’t (maybe) order both pizza and garlic bread. Yay for that.
I love that you made this! There is a local pizza place in Columbus, OH that had a garlicy crust just like this and I have been wanting to try to replicate it. Their pizza is just dripping with buttery-garlic it kills me that I am so far away now and cannot get it any time day or night (it was open 24 hrs).
Oh and that Pizza Hut commercial? Where the chick is singing? Drives me nuts. And I actually don’t really like Pizza Hut, at least not their traditional thicker crusts. I’m a thin under-the-toppings-puffy-on-edge-crust girl. Don’t shun me.
*licks the screen*
I.want.it.in.my.mouth :(
Sounds like me and the Husband. We aren’t the most effective of communicators.
This crust looks awesome! I make homemade pizza all the time, I will have to remember to make my next one with your garlic bread crust.
Why can’t we be real life friends?! Waaahhhhh I want this! It’s a greasy, sassy, piece of awesome.
Pizza on Friday! I love it. We always order pizza on Friday night, so this made me smile. Yours looks about 900x better than anything we get, though. That crust. Swoon.
As I kid, I loved getting my own personal pan pizza. It was special.
i’ve had a crush on pizza hut ever since my first bite of the buttery, crispy (yet soft?) crust. obbbbbbbsessed. these pictures speak for themselves… if you aren’t craving pizza after looking at these, you must be nuts! TGIF!
You are a genius. This looks absolutely incredible.
So… what about the bread sticks? When I worked at a Dollar Tree by a Pizza Hut while I was in high school, my manager would always send me to Pizza Hut to pick up breadsticks. I am drooling just thinking about it!
PS – this is me, begging you to do the breadsticks. PLEASE. :)
Oh man this pizza looks great!! I am with you on Pizza Hut. It’s the best. Growing up we used to go almost every single Tuesday night because it was buffet night and it was suuuuuuper cheap. Oh man….just the thought of the Pizza Hut buffet is enough to make me crave it right this very minute. So darn good.
I know you aren’t into the veggies and whatevs but the pizza hit salad bar?! So good! Like I remember actually eating salad as a kid bc of that place.
Haha… never tried the salad bar! I think I ate bacon bits off it though. Seriously.
Oooh great idea!! I used to beg my mum to take me to Pizza Hut all the time but we rarely went. She said that the lights were dim and this was because the restaurant was dirty. I didn’t even really care about the pizza – it was the ice cream sundae bar that I was after! I’d smother my soft serve with a bazillion Nerds and get sores in my mouth from the sourness but I didn’t care because it was so.freaking.delicious at the time.
But now… all I want is garlic bread pizza crust. ;)
Hahaha seriously… our one Pizza Hut that is a sit down restaurant here probably is pretty dirty. I think your mom was right!
Those darn Pizza Hut commercials are so catchy! I wonder if there’s some sort of subliminal advertising going on ;) And their prices make it harder to resist yet. You’re version looks amazing though. Garlic bread and pizza in one for the win!
I used to love pizza hut but have not had it in a loooong time. My husband actually never has so one day I’ll have to change that!
Mommy.
One time I made a Pizza Hut pizza that was EXACTLY like the pan pizza. I didn’t write down the recipe though and it’s never been quite the same. :/
Want.this.
can we talk for one second about the most motivational campaign of all time to promote children’s literacy?
Yes. “Book It”. I will straight up read as many books as you want me to just GIVEMETHATPIZZA!
ps this looks magical.
Perfect Friday food.
Uh, this looks WAAAAY better than Pizza Hut. If you would’ve asked me 20 years ago, I would’ve said I was in the “love Pizza Hut” camp but once they became mass produced and focused on take out than bringing families inside to eat, the taste changed drastically, at least in our area. I’m definitely making this crust!
Jess, this recipe looks amazing and I will be making it this weekend. There’s one thing I noticed that I am shocked you dont have. A pizza stone! How can you make that delicious sounding crust without one?? You need to get one asap, it will seriously change your pizza-making life.
Oh we do have one – I just always forget to use it. By the time I think about it my oven is already preheated and I’d have to turn it off an wait for it to cool down… I have no patience.
That first photo is amazing. You could’ve stopped with that one and I would already be convinced to try this recipe.
Yes, yes, yes! I remember the joys that were Pizza Hut buffet when I was younger. Nothing like finishing off a meal of pizza with dessert pizza!
I love this post. We are actually having the pizza box for our Friday night pizza night tonight. The kids have Book It coupons to use and we’ll have the box. Can’t beat that $10.00 dinner!!
Cravings are always funny like that!
This looks really delicious. What’s your favorite sauce to put on homemade pizza? Storebought or do you make one??
Well, I’m really not a tomato sauce fan at all, so ideally I prefer white pizzas with NO sauce. However my husband loves sauce. I usually use Mid’s tomato sauce: http://www.mids.cc/products_pizza.htm?isOn=1
O. M. G.
This NEEDS to be in my tummy by the end of the weekend.
I can’t believe I haven’t thought of garlic bread crust!
Cannot wait to try this!
(I realize I say that to pretty much every single thing you post but this isn’t dessert so I feel like I can justify it)
P.s. I love pizza hut too but alllll my family hates it. Wtf?
BOOK IT.
I will have to add this to my recipe list! A mix of garlic bread and pizza sounds heavenly to me!
Real talk- I pin like everything you post and I’m sure this pizza will be delicious when I make it (probably tomorrow) BUT the Pizza Hut dinner box? You will not be disappointed. It is AH ma zing.
I thought this morning before I came to work..I’m going to make pizza tonight..need to find a recipe for a crust! BINGO BANGO BOOM! Thank you!
Um i’m TOTALLY that person who has always loved pizza hut since my first 5 year old birthday party there and NO ONE ELSE shares this passion. I’m totally making this.
Well, now I know what we’re having for dinner tonight! This sounds ridiculous-good.
My fiancé and I ordered the Pizza Hut dinner box. The pizza was good, but it’s worth the extra dollar to upgrade normal breadsticks to cheesy bread (duh!) and the cinnamon sticks are only good fresh. Reheated cinnamon sticks taste and feel like death.
I didn’t even know you could do an upgrade! Thanks for the tip.
Shut. Up. This looks amazing! Also, I love your thoughts on LOVING food. There’s no shame in wanting every bite you put in your mouth to be amazing.
Garlic bread pizza crust? Sounds SO good – definitely going on my menu for next week! And I can totally relate to your story! I loved Domino’s so I made my family get that when they all liked the local restaurant’s pizza (which is so much better). Total brat.
Holy cannoli, that’s one fine looking pizza crust! Love the garlic butter you smeared on the edges. Great idea!
This pizza looks beyond amazing. I love all the extra garlic!
Lee hates Pizza Hut while I’m obsessed with it…and I always have been. The only time I get it anymore is if my mom and I pop in for the lunch buffet…which is the best.thing.ever.
I prefer Papa Johns pizza but your recipe sounds amazing, love ll tha garlic flavor!
looks beautiful!
I am a huge fan of Pizza Hut as well…I love me some of their thin crust pizza! It’s even better cold, for breakfast, the second day…or third, or 4th day I have it! O and the cinnasticks…hold the phone!
MANGIA!!!
Have you ever had the white sauce from Pizza Hut that they serve with their breadsticks? Only certain restaurants sell it – I’ve never met anyone who didn’t like it. Lick. The. Bowl. Clean. Delicious.
Ummmm NO! I feel so deprived now.