Dairy-Free White Pizza with Ricotta
A dairy-free white pizza with garlicky olive oil, dairy-free ricotta, a modest layer of dairy-free mozzarella-style shreds, and a crisp New York-style crust. It is creamy, savory, and balanced without tomato sauce or dairy cheese.
Recipe by Non Dairy Dude
Dude Note
This is the pizza I want when I am not trying to imitate delivery cheese pizza. White pizza should feel a little more deliberate: good dough, garlic oil, creamy ricotta, restraint with the shreds, and enough heat to make the crust do the talking.
This recipe uses: Creamy Dairy-Free Ricotta (Cashew & Tofu)
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 lbPizza dough, store-bought or cold-fermented New York-style homemade dough
- 2 tbspAll-purpose flour, for dusting
- 2 tbspCornmeal or semolina, for the peel or pan
Garlic Oil
- 3 tbspExtra-virgin olive oil
- 3 clovesGarlic cloves, finely grated or minced
- ½ tspDried oregano
- ¼ tspRed pepper flakes, optional
Seasoning
- ¾ tspFine salt, divided
Topping
- ¾ cupDairy-free ricotta
- 1 tspLemon zest
- ½ tspFreshly ground black pepper
- 1 cupDairy-free mozzarella-style shreds
- 2 tspOlive oil, for drizzling over the toppings
Finish
- ¼ cupFresh basil leaves, optional
- 1 cupArugula, optional
- ¼ tspFlaky salt, optional
Instructions
- 1
If the dough is refrigerated, let it sit at room temperature for 90 minutes to 2 hours, until relaxed and easy to stretch.
- 2
Place a pizza stone or steel on the middle rack and heat the oven to 500 F for at least 30 minutes. If using a sheet pan, place the pan in the oven while it heats.
- 3
Make the garlic oil. Stir together the olive oil, garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes if using, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Let it sit while the oven heats so the garlic can season the oil.
- 4
Season the dairy-free ricotta in a small bowl with the lemon zest, black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. If the ricotta is very thick, loosen it with 1 to 2 teaspoons olive oil or water so it dollops easily.
- 5
Divide the dough in half for two smaller pizzas, or keep it whole for one large sheet-pan pizza. On a lightly floured surface, stretch the dough gently from the center outward, leaving a slightly thicker rim.
- 6
Dust a pizza peel, inverted baking sheet, or hot sheet pan with cornmeal or semolina. Transfer the stretched dough to it and make sure it can slide before topping.
- 7
Brush the dough with a thin layer of garlic oil, leaving the rim mostly bare. Use just enough to coat the surface; too much oil can make the center heavy.
- 8
Scatter the dairy-free mozzarella-style shreds lightly over the dough. Add small spoonfuls of the seasoned dairy-free ricotta, leaving space between dollops so the pizza bakes instead of steaming. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil and sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.
- 9
Slide the pizza onto the hot stone or steel, or return the topped sheet pan to the oven. Bake for 8 to 12 minutes for small pizzas, or 13 to 16 minutes for one large sheet-pan pizza, until the crust is browned and the shreds are melted.
- 10
Let the pizza rest for 2 to 3 minutes. Finish with basil, arugula, flaky salt, or another light drizzle of olive oil if using, then slice and serve.
Dairy Substitutions Used
Traditional white pizza usually relies on ricotta, mozzarella, and sometimes Parmesan. This version uses dairy-free ricotta for creamy dollops, a restrained amount of dairy-free mozzarella-style shreds for melt, and garlic-infused olive oil for richness and flavor. Lemon zest and black pepper sharpen the ricotta so the pizza tastes finished without dairy cheese.
Tips & Variations
Use a good dough: Store-bought dough works, but this pizza is especially good with a cold-fermented New York-style dough made with bread flour, water, salt, instant yeast, olive oil, and a little sugar.
Keep the ricotta in dollops: Spreading dairy-free ricotta across the whole pizza can make the center heavy. Small spoonfuls give creamy pockets while letting the crust crisp.
Use less mozzarella than a dairy pizza: Dairy-free shreds melt best in a lighter layer. The ricotta carries the creaminess here, so the shreds only need to add stretch and coverage.
Season the ricotta: Lemon zest, salt, and black pepper keep the white pizza from tasting flat. If your ricotta is already salty, reduce the added salt.
Garlic oil, not raw garlic piles: Stirring the garlic into oil distributes the flavor and helps prevent harsh pockets of raw garlic.
Watch moisture: If your dairy-free ricotta looks watery, drain it briefly in a fine-mesh strainer or blot it before using.
Finish after baking: Basil and arugula are best added after the pizza comes out of the oven so they stay fresh instead of wilting into the cheese.
Sheet pan option: Press the full pound of dough into an oiled half sheet pan, top lightly, and bake until the bottom is browned and crisp.
Get new dairy-free comfort food recipes
New recipes, substitution tips, and classic dishes rebuilt without dairy.
