Pizza with zucchini: Zucchini cream as a base

You buy a pack of zucchini at Spar because they are on sale. Sounds like pizza. And then this happens: zucchini on top, oven, 90 seconds — and the crust turns into a soggy mess.

I used to do that too. And I’ve seen it in every workshop. Raw zucchini on the dough, everything ends in a puddle of water. The problem isn’t the zucchini. The problem is the water — a zucchini is almost 95% water. Put it raw on the dough, and all of it ends up directly in the crust.

That’s why today I’m showing you three ways to put zucchini on pizza correctly. Plus a zucchini cream as a base instead of tomato sauce. And at the end, a tip with zucchini blossoms that briefly brings summer to your pizza.

Zucchini on pizza: raw or fried?

You have three options. All three work — depending on what you have on hand.

Option 1: Paper-thin with a mandoline

If you have a mandoline and can slice the zucchini really paper-thin — under 1mm — then you can put it on directly. No need to fry it first. At this thickness, there’s so little water that it’s not a problem.

But: This only works on a Pizza Bianca — without tomato sauce. With tomato sauce, the crust is already moist, and then adding paper-thin zucchini on top is too much. The crust then gets moisture from two sides — that won’t end well. More on this in the article about why less topping is actually better.

Option 2: Fry slices beforehand

Slice them 3–4mm thick, briefly fry them in olive oil until they have some color. The water evaporates in the pan, the flavor concentrates. Then put them on the pizza. This also works with tomato sauce because the water is gone before it gets to the dough.

Option 3: Zucchini cream as a base

This is my favorite. You turn the zucchini into a cream — grate it, squeeze it, sauté it, purée it — and use it like tomato sauce. The crust stays dry, the flavor is intense, and you have both the base and the topping in one. Add a few fried slices on top if you like.

The Zucchini Cream — Recipe

2 medium zucchini (about 300g) are enough for 4 pizzas. 15 minutes of work, keeps for 3 days in the fridge. I often make it the day before when I’m already in the kitchen.

Ingredients

• 450g zucchini (approx. 2 pieces)
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Salt, white pepper
• Optional: 1 tbsp grated Parmigiano + 1 tbsp Ricotta

Preparation

1. Grate zucchini coarsely
2. Put in a kitchen towel and squeeze really hard — until no more liquid comes out. This is the most important step. People often skimp here and then wonder why the crust is wet.
3. Olive oil in the pan, briefly sauté garlic (30 sec.), add zucchini
4. Stir over medium heat for 5–6 minutes until soft
5. Let cool briefly, then mash coarsely with a fork or briefly purée with an immersion blender
6. Season with salt and pepper

The consistency is thick and spreadable — similar to ricotta. If you add Parmigiano while sautéing, it becomes more flavorful; with ricotta, it’s milder. Both at the same time is also allowed.

The Dough for the Zucchini Pizza

Uncomplicated 24h cold-fermented dough. Make it Friday evening, take it out Saturday afternoon, pizza Saturday evening. That’s how I do it. Why cold fermentation? More flavor, better digestibility — I explain the exact difference here.

Dough Recipe (4 dough balls à approx. 210g)

In summer, I use 66% hydration. In winter, I go up to 70–71% — when it’s warm, the dough works faster, so a little less water is more comfortable for stretching. Everything about hydration in detail here.

Preparation

1. Mix flour and water, let rest for 20 minutes (autolyse — the flour absorbs the water, the gluten network starts to build itself)
2. Incorporate salt and yeast, knead for 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic
3. 2–3 rounds of stretch & fold at 30-minute intervals (= stretch and fold)
4. Divide into dough balls (approx. 210g each), shape, and place in a dough ball box
5. 24h cold fermentation at 5–6°C — a normal household refrigerator is sufficient
6. Take out 2 hours before baking and let it acclimatize to room temperature

When spreading: use semola on the work surface, not Tipo 00. And wet hands instead of flour on your hands — I’ve explained this in every workshop and will continue to explain it in every workshop.

Topping and Assembly

Less is more — the lesson from every workshop. If you pile on too much, you’ll get a pizza that sticks to the peel and is wet underneath. This is especially critical with zucchini.

• Zucchini cream as a base
• 200g Fior di Latte for 4 pizzas, torn into pieces
• Optional: a few fried zucchini slices on top
• After baking: fresh basil, Parmigiano, a thin drizzle of olive oil

Why Fior di Latte and not buffalo mozzarella? Buffalo mozzarella releases more water during baking. With a zucchini base, the risk is too great. Fior di Latte remains more stable.

Zucchini blossoms — summer on a pizza

If you get zucchini blossoms at the market or in your garden: definitely get them. The season is short — June to August — and the blossoms on pizza are simply amazing.

The simplest version: fill the blossoms with ricotta cream. Mix ricotta with a little lemon zest, salt, a hint of pepper, and fresh herbs (basil, thyme). Carefully fill the blossoms with the cream — not too much, so the blossoms can still close. Then place them on the stretched-out pizza just before putting it in the oven. The blossoms cook through in the oven and the ricotta cream firms up slightly.

Best on the zucchini cream base — the flavor profile matches perfectly. Add a few paper-thin, raw zucchini slices (mandoline) on top as a complement, and you have a pizza that’s as good as it gets in June.

Baking Pizza with Zucchini

The zucchini cream hardly changes the baking time — it behaves like any other white base. More on topping cooking times: what really cooks in 90 seconds.

• Gas or wood-fired oven (Gozney Arc XL, Witt ETNA, Everdure KILN): 450–500°C, 60–90 seconds
• Electric oven (Effeuno P134H, Witt eGNITE): 450°C, about 2–2:30 minutes
• Household oven: 250–300°C top/bottom heat, on a preheated pizza stone or steel, approx. 6–8 minutes

The cornicione should be golden brown to lightly browned. The cream underneath will become matte and firm — that’s correct. Zucchini blossoms will become slightly transparent in the oven and lightly crispy at the edges — that’s exactly how it should be. After baking, immediately add basil, grate Parmigiano, drizzle olive oil. Then slice.

Further Variations

• Zucchini + Feta: Sprinkle cubes on top after baking. Salty contrast, it works.
• Zucchini + Arugula: Add fresh arugula on top after baking. Summer classic.
• Zucchini + Pancetta: Put the bacon in the oven during the last minute — it will get crispy.
• Vegan: Zucchini cream + toasted pine nuts + basil. No cheese needed.
• Zucchini chips from the microwave: Slice zucchini thinly, place on paper towels, 3–4 minutes at 600W — no fat, no oil, and you have a crispy topping that adds a nice crunch to the pizza. Simply sprinkle on after baking.

Frequently Asked Questions

Try it out — and write in the comments which of the three methods you tried. And whether you actually squeezed the zucchini as hard as I described. I already know the answer.

Pizza mit Zucchini – Zucchinicreme als Basis

Zucchinicreme statt Tomatensauce — und der Boden bleibt trocken. Mit echtem Teigrezept, Mandoline-Tipp und Zucchiniblüten-Variation. Das Sommerrezept.

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Prep Time 25 minutes mins

Cook Time 2 minutes mins

Kaltgare 1 day d

Course Pizza

Cuisine Italian

Servings 4 Pizzen

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

Zucchinicreme

• 300 g Zucchini ca. 2 Stück
• 1 Knoblauchzehe fein gehackt
• 2 EL Olivenöl extra vergine
• Salz und weißer Pfeffer
• 1 EL Parmigiano gerieben optional
• 1 EL Ricotta optional

Pizzateig (für 4 Teiglinge à 210g)

• 500 g Molino Dallagiovanna La Napoletana Tipo 00
• 330 ml Wasser kalt, 66% Hydration
• 10 g Salz
• 3 g frische Germ für 24h Kaltgare

Belag

• 200 g Fior di Latte für 4 Pizzen, in Stücke gerissen
• frisches Basilikum nach dem Backen
• Parmigiano nach dem Backen
• Olivenöl extra vergine nach dem Backen

Instructions

 

Zucchinicreme

• Zucchini grob raspeln.
• In ein Küchentuch geben und wirklich fest ausdrücken — so lange bis keine Flüssigkeit mehr kommt. Das ist der wichtigste Schritt.
  
• Olivenöl in der Pfanne erhitzen, Knoblauch 30 Sekunden anschwitzen, Zucchini dazu. 5–6 Minuten bei mittlerer Hitze rühren bis sie weich sind.
• Kurz abkühlen lassen, dann mit der Gabel stampfen oder kurz mit dem Stabmixer pürieren. Mit Salz und Pfeffer abschmecken.
  

Teig (24h vorher)

• Mehl und Wasser mischen, 20 Minuten rasten lassen (Autolyse).
• Salz und Germ einarbeiten, 5 Minuten kneten bis der Teig glatt und elastisch ist.
• 2–3 Runden Stretch & Fold im Abstand von 30 Minuten.
• Teiglinge abstechen (à ca. 210g), schleifen, in Teigballenboxen legen. 24h Kaltgare bei 5–6°C im Kühlschrank.
• 2 Stunden vor dem Backen herausnehmen und auf Raumtemperatur akklimatisieren lassen.

Belegen und Backen

• Teig auf Semola ausbreiten. Zucchinicreme dünn auftragen (ca. 2cl pro Pizza). Fior di Latte verteilen.
• Bei 450–500°C backen: Gasofen 60–90 Sek., Elektroofen ca. 2 Min., Haushaltsbackofen 250–300°C ca. 6–8 Min.
• Nach dem Backen: Basilikum, Parmigiano reiben, Olivenöl. Dann schneiden.
  

Notes

Zucchiniblüten: Mit Ricottacreme füllen (Ricotta + Zitronenabrieb + Kräuter) und kurz vor dem Einschießen auf die Pizza legen. Zucchini-Chips: Zucchini in dünne Scheiben schneiden, auf Küchenpapier legen, 3–4 Min. in der Mikrowelle bei 600W — knusprig, kein Fett, perfektes Topping für Crunch.

Rezept probiert?Lass uns wissen wie es war?