Kale Pesto Pizza
This kale pesto pizza recipe is a perfect weeknight meal! Kale lovers will appreciate the crispy kale on top, too. You can add any toppings you'd like!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on September 2, 2024
Attention kale lovers! I have a pizza for you. Everyone else, please shield your eyes and forgive me for the very green pizza on your screen.
I’ve had this idea for a while now—kale pesto pizza with golden mozzarella and crispy kale on top—and it is finally reality. A very tasty reality, of which I am looking forward to eating again for lunch.
As any good vegetarian blogger should be, I am obsessed with pesto, and basil is awfully expensive this time of year. I say “this time of year” like it’s nothing, but it’s snowy, icy, below freezing and gray outside. I’m currently questioning what I’m doing with my life and daydreaming about beach vacations.
As I was saying, kale pesto is a great, affordable option this time of year. I made mine with pecans and I love the subtle, sweet pecan flavor in every bite.
You could also use walnuts in your pesto, or pepitas for a nut-free option. This vegan pesto would be fantastic on pasta if you need to warm up with a bowl of warm pasta.
More Green Pizzas to Make
- Arugula-Almond Pesto Pizza
- Broccolini Almond Pizza
- Brussels Sprouts Pizza with Balsamic Red Onions
- Butternut Ribbon Goat Cheese Pizza
- Strawberry, Basil and Balsamic Pizza
Kale Pesto Pizza
This kale pesto pizza recipe is a perfect weeknight meal! Kale lovers will appreciate the crispy kale on top, too. You can change up the toppings if you’d prefer, though! Recipe yields one large, 12-inch pizza or two smaller, 9-inch pizzas.
Ingredients
Pizza
- 1 batch easy whole wheat pizza dough or 1 pound store-bought pizza dough (I used Trader Joe’s)
- 2 cups (8 ounces) grated low-moisture part-skim mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup lightly packed kale, chopped into small, bite-sized pieces
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- Optional garnishes: red pepper flakes
Kale pesto (yields about 1 ½ cups, which will probably leave you with extra)
- 3 cups packed kale, preferably the Tuscan/lacinato variety, thick ribs removed and roughly chopped (about 1 small bunch)
- ¾ cup pecans or walnuts
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice (about 1 small lemon)
- 2 to 3 cloves garlic, depending on their size
- ¾ teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ cup olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit with a rack in the upper third of the oven. If you’re using a baking stone or baking steel, place it in the oven on the top rack. If you’re using my dough recipe, prepare dough through step 4. If you’re using store-bought dough, check the instructions of the package. It might need to rest at room temperature while you work on the pesto.
- Make the pesto: In a food processor, add the kale, pecans, lemon juice, garlic, salt and several twists of freshly ground black pepper. Turn on the food processor and drizzle in the oil. Process until the pesto reaches your desired consistency, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Taste and add more lemon juice, salt or pepper if necessary.
- Prepare the pizza dough as directed. If you’re using my pizza dough recipe, I’d make two pizzas. If you’re using store-bought dough like me, I’d roll it out into one large pizza. I like to roll out the dough on pieces of parchment paper for easy transfer to the oven. For best results, roll the dough out as thin as reasonably possible while maintaining an even surface level.
- Top pizza(s) with an even layer of pesto (you may end up with extra pesto, which would be great on pasta or as a sandwich spread, etc.). Sprinkle cheese over the top. Lastly, in a small bowl, toss 1 cup chopped kale with 1 teaspoon olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Rub the oil into the kale so it’s covered with a light, even layer. Distribute the kale evenly over the top of the pizza.
- Transfer one pizza to the oven, either on a baking sheet or onto your preheated baking stone. Bake until the crust is golden and the cheese on top is bubbly (about 10 to 12 minutes on a baking sheet, or as few as 5 minutes on a baking stone). Repeat with remaining pizza, if necessary. If desired, top pizza with a light sprinkle of red pepper flakes. Slice and serve.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my Super Kale, Hemp and Flaxseed Oil Pesto and Arugula-Almond Pesto Pizza.
Make it nut free: Substitute pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) for the pecans.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
All Hail to the Kale, I love a good Kale pizza and adding pesto to the mix takes it to another level. This one will be on my favorite’s list.
Oh my goodness…..fabulous. Just fabulous.
As always, this was amazing. We make individual naan pizza so everyone can choose their own toppings. I used pepitas and cashews because that’s what I had. I will be using the leftover pesto as dip to snack on. Thanks again. We use your recipes daily and let me tell you the weight loss journey and increased energy levels are real for both me and hubby.
The pecans in that pesto sound amazing! I love the look of this beauty!
You’re speaking my language. ;) Another reason I need to work on a gluten-free pizza dough! This looks awesome, friend!!
We had a bumper crop of pecans this Fall, and this pizza looks like a yummy way to use them! Next on my dinner list.
Would you say that the kale pesto tastes enough like regular pesto to fool non-kale converts? Or is it a totally different animal?
I was going to ask the same thing. My husband is NOT a fan of the kale, though he loves most other greens. I also wondered if a different green, such as spinach, could be a worthy substitute. I know there are spinach pesto recipes out there. I love the idea of using pecans as the nuts!
I used spinach, kale, cilantro and parsley. it tastes amazing. I recently bought a cilantro and sunflower seed pesto. I think with all the lemon and garlic and oil etc the greens become not as significant
Arugula would definitely work great! I have never made pesto with spinach, but that’s probably worth a shot, too.
I wouldn’t use spinach because it contains a ton of water and would surely make your pizza soggy. I think the kale pesto masks the kale taste. It’s topped with kale as well though, maybe leave that out and top with another veggie he does like. The kale pesto was great- I used pecans to make it and loved it!
This looks incredible. I’ve already decided to pick up kale on my way home so I can eat this for dinner. As always, your pictures are stunning. Thank you for creating a pizza with pesto for sauce! I love vegetarian pizzas and this one is sure to be phenomenal.
Ooh YES!!! Always looking to add to our pizza recipe repertoire!
This pizza is making me super hungry! Thanks for the dinner inspo:)
I just made a version of this with your recipe, but using puff-pastry instead of pizza dough (because that’s what I had in).
I found the pesto to be a little bitter before I put it on the pizza (or tart in this case) but once it had cooked for 12 mins this bitterness was gone – I don’t know if this was due to the cooking or due to the addition of mozerella and pecorino cheese? Anyway, it was delicious and I especially loved the crispy kale on top of the pizza – next time I’ll make more of that!
Note: I don’t recommend making this with puff-pastry – it was mostly pretty soggy. I’ll try the proper recipe another time with pizza dough.
Thanks again for another great recipe Kate.
You have done it this time. That is a fantastic recipe!! I love, love, love kale and cannot wait to get my hands on some good organic kale to try this. Thanks a bunch!!!
I think I nearly cried when I saw this recipe. It looks amazing! I cannot wait to try it!
Update: Totally made this today. It. Was. Phenomenal. SO DELICIOUS!! Who knew Kale could taste so amazing on PIZZA??? Thanks Kate! You’ve done it again!
Yay, thanks Erin!!
Pesto pizza is one of my favorites!
Looks great, really want to give it a try, can you recommend an easy way to remove the thick ‘ribs’ from the kale?
Pecan in pesto?? My goodness are you creative! I can’t wait to try this out!
Mamma MIA, Kate! I love this pizza recipe, not just because of the kale either! Great way to sneak in more vegetables in a creative and delicious way!
Well isn’t this a pretty pizza??! And it just so happens, I love kale…
This looks delicious – can’t wait to give it a try!
Kate I am exactly your kind of people! Life has to include both kale and pizza! And when the two come together, well, that’s a special kind of magic! I’m sorry but we are having perfect, sweltering summer weather here at the moment, and basil is growing in abundance, but you can be sure this pizza will be just as welcome while we are sticking close to the A/C loungeroom this weekend!
As a kale lover I can’t wait to make this.
Need this is my life!! Kale pesto is the best!
This pesto was excellent the next day on toasted ciabatta slices, sprinkled with grated pecorino and broiled! I can’t wait to try it on pasta!
Do you think broccoli rabe would be a good substitute for the kale in this pesto? I’ve got more than I know what to do with!
You know, I think it would!
I did it and it was delicious! Thank you for the inspiration!
Yay!
I made this last night and it was delicious and really easy. I used wholewheat flatbreads and cooked them at 425F for 8 minutes. I added sliced mushrooms and sage to one of the pizzas which was great too. Another winner!
We really liked this a lot. Thanks for the recipe, Kate! The crunchy, salty kale on top was just excellent.
Our adaptations:
Spelt flour instead of whole wheat for the crust (all we had)
Sliced fresh mozzarella
Chili-infused oil for the crunchy kale topping’s marinade, to ensure a spicy kick
I love the idea of eating three slices of pizza while also consuming a healthy serving of nutrient-rich kale. This is winning all around!
Can I just start by saying kale pesto is everything this time of year! My house smells SO good right now as my pizza is coming out of the oven right now! Thank you for another easy and delicious recipe. Love and light cookie and kate
My roomie, her dog and I all rate this pizza as 5 stars!
Hooray!
Hooray!!!
I made the pesto from this and it was fantastic! I did a pasta with some mushrooms and cherry tomatoes and added in the pesto. It was so good! I am going to try a little today mixed into a chickpea and wild rice soup. This is going to be a new to go in my kitchen.
Happy to hear it, Sarah!
I love this..kale pizza two ways…and also dreaming of beach vacations!
Oh, so good!!!
There’s something about crispy kale on pizza…can’t wait to try your version!
That’s one way to get the toddler to eat kale! Looks great.
Yes – made this tonight and it was very good. You really wouldn’t know there were 4 cups of kale in this recipe. I liked it!
Thank you, Jane!
Delicious. Even my husband liked it. Mine turned out just like the picture. Kate, you never disappoint!
Thank you, Ruth! :D
Hi Kate,
I am making this today. Haven’t read all the entries…. do you ever put parmesan in the pesto or is purposefully without cheese?
thank you,
Mary
Hi Mary, I left the Parmesan out of this pesto because I didn’t feel it was necessary with all the mozzarella on top. Feel free to add some if you’d like!
Made this today on a very snowy day with my boyfriend. It was so easy and so fun to make. He isn’t a huge kale fan, and this was a great way to introduce him to it. The pizza was delicious, Kate. You’ve helped me cut out almost all meat from my diet because of your endlessly creative blog with such delicious recipes.
Thank you so much, Chloe! Happy to hear it. :)
We made this last night and all I kept saying was ‘how good is this pizza!’ I’m not a big pizza fan at all, but this ticked all the boxes for me. Another great recipe Kate. Thank you.
Hooray! Thank you, Naomi!
This recipe is so creative! I can’t wait to try it.
Loving these flavors in the pesto! This is one pizza recipe I need to make!
This sounds so delicious. I LOVE kale and pesto so this seems like a marriage made in heaven – add in pizza and what’s not to love?
I need to try this asap!
Made this tonight. SO deliciously incredible. Thank you!
Thank you, Sally! :)
This was amazing. My husband raved about it, which is great for a non-veggie lover. Thanks for the fantastic inspiration!
Awesome! Thank you, Jessica!
Carnivore approved! My husband LOVED this pizza. The pesto is delicious as well as the crispy top layer of scattered kale. This recipe is a keeper!
Thank you, Juniper! Happy to hear it!
Made this with a gluten free pizza crust in a pastry pan it was amazing. Thanks for the great recipe ideas! I made this with baby kale and baby spinach for kale beginners.
Thank you, Dan! So glad you liked it!
Wish I could give this recipe more than 5 stars, it was so DELICIOUS!! Made it tonight with the addition of some grilled / chopped shrimp and sliced mushrooms. My husband and I could not stop raving about how fabulous it was as we devoured the entire pizza! YUM!! Definitely adding this to our regular pizza rotation!
Hooray!!! Thank you, Tracy!
With two vegiterian daughters I make pizza almost once a week. This was there favorite of any pizza I have made for them !!! Thank you !!
Woohoo, thanks Mark!
I love the kale on kale! Kale is one of my fave pizza toppings (along with cripsy brussels!) and such a wonderful idea to layer with a kale pesto. Those layers of green are beautiful!
I give your recipe a thumbs up! I’m not a fan of kale, but the kale-pesto sauce was great on the pizza I made tonight!
Thank you, RK! Happy to hear it!
You rock at developing recipes that are not only nutritious but absolutely delicious too! I’m going to serve this pizza at my Super Bowl party. I think I will slice it into easy to pick up bite size squares. Please post Super Bowl party recipes! I love your style:)
I’m so glad you suggested Super Bowl recipes, Anya! Roundup coming Wednesday. :)
Oh my! This looks amazing. What a brilliant idea. I made chard pesto last year but will definitely try kale pesto! And on pizza too..yum!
I tried this and loved it! We made a couple changes. I didn’t have mozza so we used Jarlsberg. Amazing! And we did a white flour pizza crust. We will make this many times I think! Thank you for the wonderful recipes, Kate!
Thank you, Kerridwen! Glad to hear you enjoyed the pizza.