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Flatbread Pizza makes a fantastic appetizer for a family night and a party alike! This homemade flatbread crust is topped with sweet caramelized onions, Gruyere cheese, and crispy bacon. This is the kind of recipe that makes the whole kitchen smell downright intoxicating as you make it, so expect to see some hungry eyes watching you as you cook!
This flatbread is great to serve along other appetizers like French Onion Dip, Parmesan Garlic Breadsticks, and Bruschetta.
Flatbread Pizza
This is one fantastic flatbread pizza! It’s pretty easy to make and always yields the most delicious results. After all, the combination of caramelized onions, crispy fried bacon, and Gruyere never makes for a bad bite, no matter how it’s served! In this recipe, that mouthwatering combination of bold ingredients is served on a warm, soft, homemade flatbread that can even be made ahead of time to make things quicker and easier for you.
This flatbread pizza makes for one seriously good weeknight dinner with the family. However, my favorite way to slice and serve this flatbread is at a party with friends. It can be served as an appetizer or main course. No matter which way you serve it, it’s definitely going to be a huge hit! Everyone loves bacon, and so far, I haven’t met anyone who doesn’t love my homemade flatbread. It’s a total win-win!
If you’re more of a novice home chef, two key ingredients here may be intimidating to you – the homemade flatbread dough and caramelized onions. Have no fear! This dough is pretty easy to make and only requires about an hour of rise time. Plus, it only needs to be kneaded a few times, so don’t worry about your hands getting sore.
As for the caramelized onions, patience is key! So long as you follow my slow and steady hassle-free steps, you’ll end up with perfectly soft, sweet onions.
How to Make Flatbread Pizza
Ingredients You’ll Need:
For the flatbread pizza dough:
- Warm Water – Use a thermometer to make sure it’s around 105-110°F.
- Flour – All-purpose flour will work well.
- Active Dry Yeast – This is the leavening agent that will help the dough rise. Make sure it is fresh and not passed it’s expiration date!
- Salt – Use coarse (or kosher) salt.
- Sugar – White granulated sugar is what you’ll need to give the dough a nice balance and help yeast bloom.
- Olive Oil – Try to use a good quality olive oil for the best flavor.
The toppings include:
- Gruyere Cheese – This is the best cheese to use on this flatbread pizza, and not just because it compliments the other ingredients so well. If you wish you change it to another cheese, you can use sharp white cheddar, Gouda, Swiss, and even Asiago. Make sure to get a block of cheese and grate it yourself!
- Bacon – I like to use pork bacon, but you can opt for turkey bacon or even a plant-based alternative if preferred.
- Onion – You can use one large onion or two smaller onions, whichever is more convenient for you.
- Sugar
- Salt
- Black Pepper
- Thyme – it’s best to use fresh but if you have to use dried, use half the amount listed.
How To Make Flatbread Crust:
Combine the active dry yeast and sugar in a bowl on an electric mixer. Then, stir in the warm water and let it bloom for about 5 minutes.
Start making the dough by setting your electric mixer on the “stir” setting. Carefully add in flour, salt, and olive oil to the mixture. Mix the dough together until it’s just combined.
Flour your work surface lightly, that way your dough won’t stick to the countertop! Sprinkle a little extra flour onto the slightly tacky dough, place it onto the floured surface, and knead it just a few times.
Rub a little olive oil all over the inside of a bowl before placing the dough inside of it. Then, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise for about an hour, making sure your bowl is in a warm, dry area.
Cooking Flatbread Toppings:
Cut the raw bacon into small pieces. Cook the chopped bacon in a large pan that’s been preheated with olive oil over medium heat. Reserve some of the bacon fat and set the bacon aside once it’s completely done cooking.
With the bacon grease in the pan, add the sliced onions and lower the heat to medium-low. Season the onions with a little salt and sugar and mix well.
Stir the onions every 5-10 minutes as they cook. You’ll notice them slowly turn a golden brown color, but don’t panic if it doesn’t happen as quickly as you’d like it to! This process should take you about 45 minutes overall. If you increase the heat, the onions will sear and burn as opposed to caramelize.
Once browned, set the onions aside. Keep in mind that while the onions cook, that’s a great time to grate the cheese.
Cooking Flatbread Pizza:
Preheat your oven to 500°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Divide the dough in half, then roll out each half into thin flatbreads. They should be about 1/4 inch thick. Place them onto the baking sheet.
Bake the flatbreads by themselves for about 7-9 minutes.
Divide the cheese, bacon, and onions evenly onto each of the flatbreads. Place the pizzas back into the oven and bake until the cheese is melted.
Slice and serve the flatbread pizzas immediately, and enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make the pizza dough ahead of time?
Yes! You can prepare the pizza dough and the store it in the refrigerator for a couple of days. It’s important to let it rise first though, so prepare the dough and still give it an hour for the initial rise to activate the yeast. Once the dough is ready, you can divide it into two pieces or store it in one piece. Gently rub the dough with some olive oil and either place it into a bowl and cover it airtight with plastic wrap, or place it into a zip-top gallon bag. Either container you use, make sure it is airtight!
Stored properly, the dough will stay fresh in the refrigerator for about 2 days. The exact time will depend on the type of yeast, but I don’t like to prepare it more than 2 days ahead. When you’re ready to cook, take the dough out of the refrigerator and place it into a bowl to warm it up for about 30 minutes.
Can I Make Caramelized Onions Ahead?
Yes, absolutely! As a matter of fact, I often make an extra batch of caramelized onions to use through the week. Once the onions are cooked, make sure to cool them completely and then store in a food storage container with an air-tight lid. Store it in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Storing Flatbread Leftovers:
Once cooked, this flatbread pizza will stay good in an airtight container in the fridge for about 3 days. Just make sure it’s totally cooled to room temperature prior to storing it!
Caramelized Onion, Bacon, Gruyere Flatbread Pizza
Caramelized Onion Bacon Gruyere Flatbread Pizza
Homemade flatbread is topped with sweet caramelized onions, Gruyere cheese, and crispy bacon. This is the kind of recipe that makes the whole kitchen smell downright intoxicating.
Servings: 4
Calories: 1033kcal
Ingredients
Homemade Flatbread Pizza Dough:
- 1/2 cup warm water about 105°-110°
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tsp coarse salt
- 1 1/2 tsp white granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- little extra flour for work surface
Toppings:
- 8 oz Gruyere cheese
- 1 lb bacon diced
- 1 large onion or 2 smaller, sliced
- pinch white granulated sugar
- pinch coarse salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- coarse salt
- black pepper
- 1 tsp fresh thyme
Instructions
Prepare the dough:
-
Place the active dry yeast and sugar in a bowl of an electric mixer (or a large bowl) and give it a little stir to mix. Add warm water, stir well, and let it bloom for about 5 minutes.
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Start the mixer or “stir” setting and add flour, salt, and olive oil. Mix the dough, still on stir, setting just until combined.
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Lightly flour the work surface and take the dough out of the bowl and onto the work surface. The dough will still be slightly tacky. Sprinkle a little bit more flour over the top and knead the dough with your hand just a few times.
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Rub some olive oil all over the inside of the bowl and place the dough into it. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and then a clean kitchen towel. Place the bowl into a warm, dry area and let it rise for an hour.
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Note: you can make flatbread dough ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator. Make sure let it rise for an hour first, before refrigerating. See storing instructions in recipe notes.
Caramelized onions and cook bacon:
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While the dough is rising, that’s a good time to prepare the toppings.
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For bacon, cut raw bacon into small pieces. Preheat a large cooking pan over medium heat and add a little bit of olive oil. Cook bacon pieces until completely done. Strain off the fat (save a couple of tablespoons to cook onions) and set bacon bits aside.
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Add a couple of tablespoons of bacon grease back into the pan and add sliced onion. Lower the heat to medium-low, season the onions with some salt and sugar, and mix well.
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Stir onions every 5-10 minutes as they cook and slowly get golden brown. The total time will take about 45 minutes. Don’t try to rush it or raise the heat because the onions will sear instead of caramelizing. Wait for them to naturally caramelize and brown. Once browned, set aside.
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Grate the cheese and set it aside.
Prepare the flatbread pizza:
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Preheat the oven to 500° and line a large (or two smaller) baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Divide the dough in half and roll out each half into thin flatbreads, about 1/4 inch thick.
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Place them onto the prepared baking sheet and give it a little space in between.
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Prebake the flatbreads for about 7-9 minutes, until the dough is golden.
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Take the dough out and divide the grated Gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, and bacon bits among the two flatbreads. Make sure to spread the toppings evenly.
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Place it back in the oven until the cheese is melted.
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Take the flatbread out, slice, and serve.
Notes
Preparing the dough ahead or time: You can prepare the pizza dough and the store it in the refrigerator for a couple of days. It’s important to let it rise first though, so prepare the dough and still give it an hour for the initial rise to activate the yeast. Once the dough is ready, you can divide it into two pieces or store it in one piece. Gently rub the dough with some olive oil and either place it into a bowl and cover it airtight with plastic wrap, or place it into a lightly greased zip-top gallon bag. Either container you use, make sure it is airtight! Stored properly, the dough will stay fresh in the refrigerator for about 2 days.
Nutrition
Calories: 1033kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 78g | Saturated Fat: 28g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 10g | Monounsaturated Fat: 36g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 137mg | Sodium: 1743mg | Potassium: 407mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 604IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 596mg | Iron: 3mg
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