Grandma-Style Pizza features a chewy, focaccia-like crust topped with fresh tomato sauce and tons of melty cheese. Best of all, there are no special ingredients or fancy cooking techniques required! Anyone can make this insanely easy grandma pizza that feeds a big crowd!
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What Is Grandma Pizza, Anyway?
Grandma-style pizza is essentially a sheet pan pizza with an airy, chewy crust (kind of like focaccia bread) and crispy edges.
It originated in Long Island, NY. An Italian immigrant named Umberto Corteo created a home-style pan pizza to feed his restaurant workers that was reminiscent of the pizza his grandma would make back in Naples. Most homes did not have a pizza oven, so women would often make pizza on a baking sheet in the oven using simple, readily available ingredients. This style of pizza was so popular that Umberto eventually put it on the menu. The rest is history!
The hallmark of grandma pizza is that it’s EASY. My recipe calls for a quick rise time, and rather than rolling out or tossing the dough it’s gently stretched in the oiled pan to preserve all of the delicate air bubbles trapped in the dough. It’s a simple pizza recipe that feeds a crowd with little to no effort on your part!
Required Equipment
Grab These Ingredients
You can find the full list of ingredients, quantities & method in the recipe card at the end of the page.
- All-purpose *and* bread flour. I like using the combination of both to create the best chewy texture in the dough. If you only have all-purpose, you can use that.
- Active dry yeast. Active dry yeast is a crucial ingredient for pizza dough. This type of yeast needs to be mixed with warm water to activate it before combining with the other ingredients.
- Olive oil. Similar to focaccia, grandma-style pizza dough needs olive oil in the dough and the pan to create the crispy edges and bottom.
- Pizza sauce. You can use store-bought sauce, but I love making my own. I use whole San Marzano tomatoes that I crush by hand and season with sautéed garlic, red pepper flakes, and dried oregano. That’s it!
- Cheese. A classic grandma pie is just cheese and tomato sauce, so make sure you use good cheese that you grate by hand. Don’t buy pre-shredded!
How to Make Grandma-Style Pizza (+ Tips!)
- Make the pizza dough. Combine the warm water and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer and wait 5 minutes until the yeast is foamy. Add the flour, salt, and olive oil, and mix on medium-low for about 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and starts to pull away from the bowl.
Jenny’s Tip: If your yeast doesn’t foam, it’s likely too old to use and you may need to purchase new yeast.
- Let the dough rise until doubled in size. This will take anywhere between 1 to 2 hours depending on the temperature of your kitchen. For this style of pizza dough, you’ll want to transfer it to an oiled bowl (to prevent a skin from forming) and cover it tightly with plastic wrap (to trap the heat and encourage lots of air bubbles).
- Stretch the pizza dough in your greased pan. You want to be fairly gentle when stretching out the dough; if you overwork it, you’ll knock out the air bubbles and your grandma pizza slices won’t be as chewy.
Pro Tip from Jenny: If the dough keeps springing back, cover lightly with plastic wrap and wait 10 minutes before trying again.
- Let rise again. This time, you’re looking for the dough to puff up and become super bubbly.
- Meanwhile, make the pizza sauce. It’s made by sautéing grated garlic cloves in a little oil, then seasoning with red pepper flakes and oregano. After the crushed tomatoes are added, let the sauce simmer for about 20 minutes to thicken. (PS. Grated garlic is basically a paste and really melds into the sauce perfectly. You get a wonderful garlic flavor without chunks of garlic floating in your sauce!)
- Bake at a high temperature. I’m talking as hot as your oven will go! I cranked mine up to 500ºF and baked my pizza for around 20 minutes.
Jenny’s Tip: The high heat combined with the relatively short bake time is what creates those crispy, chewy edges and airy middle.
The Best Type of Pan to Use
I am using a 12×12-inch square dark metal pizza pan for this recipe. Dark metal conducts heat differently than an aluminum pan and results in a more deeply browned crispy crust.
If you don’t have a 12×12-inch metal pan and don’t want to purchase one, here are some more common pan sizes you can use:
- 9×13-inch pan: multiply the recipe by .8.
- 18×13-inch (half sheet) pan: multiply the recipe by 1.5.
Sides to Serve with This Pizza
If you do give this recipe a try, I love hearing about it! Leave a comment with a star rating below. Be sure to subscribe to my weekly newsletter and never miss a new recipe! You can also snap a photo & tag @JENNYGOYCOCHEA on Instagram.
More Homemade Pizza Recipes
- Vodka Sauce Pizza
- French Bread Pizza
- White Pizza (Pizza Bianca)
- Cast Iron Skillet Pizza
- 72-Hour Pizza Dough
- Same-Day Pizza Dough
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Grandma-Style Pizza Recipe
Ingredients
Pizza Dough
- 300 g warm water, between 90-100ºF (about 1 1/4 cups)
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 300 g all-purpose flour* (about 2 packed cups)
- 150 g bread flour (about 1 packed cup)
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for the pizza pan
Toppings
- 4 oz whole milk mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 4 oz fontina cheese, shredded
- Fresh basil leaves
- 1 recipe homemade pizza sauce
Instructions
- Make the dough. Combine the warm water and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer and wait 5 minutes for the yeast to get foamy. Add the flour, salt, and olive oil, and mix on medium-low with the dough hook until the dough is smooth and starts to pull away from the bowl, about 10 minutes.
- First rise. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours depending on the temperature of your kitchen.
- Stretch the dough. Drizzle 3 tablespoons of olive oil into a 12×12" grandma-style pizza pan. Transfer the dough to the pan and gently stretch the dough to the edges of the pan. If the dough springs back, lightly cover the dough for 10 minutes before stretching again.
- Second rise. Lightly cover with plastic wrap and let the dough proof for about an hour, until puffy and bubbly.
- Make the sauce. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a saucepan. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring often, until fragrant. Add the oregano and crushed red pepper and cook for 1 minute. Once fragrant, add the hand-crushed tomatoes and reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 20-25 minutes, until thickened. Season to taste with salt and pepper and cool to room temperature.
- Bake. Preheat an oven to 500ºF. Dot the dough with the tomato sauce and top with the shredded cheese to the edges of the pan. Dot with more tomato sauce. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until the top is lightly browned and the cheese is bubbly. Remove from the oven and top with fresh basil. Cool slightly before cutting the pizza into squares.
Notes
- 9×13-inch pan — multiply the recipe by .8.
- 18×13-inch (half sheet) pan — multiply the recipe by 1.5.
Nutrition
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Rate & Review This Recipe
Fantastic!!
I actually topped it with thinly sliced mushrooms and some frozen, quartered Chef Jon’s meatballs, and it was delightful! Came out a little more like Foccacia pizza, (thicker) but still freaking amazing. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Love the additions! So happy you enjoyed the recipe.