Prosciutto Arugula Pizza is a homemade white pizza topped with ricotta cheese, arugula, prosciutto, and lemon zest. Make it for an easy pizza night at home!


Prosciutto Arugula Pizza on a pizza pan with pizza cutter

You’d think as a food blogger, making dinner would be the easiest part of my life.

The actual cooking is easy, but the planning is not.

What am I going to eat one week from now? What ingredients are going to expire? What am I in the mood for? Will the weather be too hot to turn on my oven? Or will it be too cold to eat a salad?

And considering we’re having a heat wave this week and I don’t want to turn on my oven, my menu bounces around a lot.

When I’m stuck for ideas, I think about meals I’ve ordered at restaurants in the past.

A few years ago I had a freelance project for a local gas station shooting their menu items. Since I was there all day most days, I ordered lunch from their menu. My go-to order was their arugula pizza topped with ricotta and lemon zest.

I lost track of how many times I ordered it, so when the job was over I made my own version at home with this Prosciutto Arugula Pizza recipe – a homemade white pizza topped with ricotta cheese, arugula, and prosciutto.

It’s not meant to be a copycat recipe because I added prosciutto and Parmesan. In fact, dare I say mine is even better.

Calling it a white pizza means instead of a red tomato sauce, it uses white cheese. Because there’s a garlic ricotta mixture with mozzarella and Parmesan, it’s still creamy like a sauce.

To finish it off, I topped it with arugula, prosciutto, shaved Parmesan cheese, and lemon zest. It’s kinda like a mini salad on top of your pizza!


Package of Volpi Traditional Prosciutto

What is prosciutto?

Prosciutto is Italian dry-cured ham with an earthy, nutty flavor that has a melt-in-your-mouth texture.

It’s often served on a charcuterie board for two alongside some Cranberry Baked Brie, but you can definitely make dinner with it like I did with my prosciutto and arugula pizza.

For my pizza, I used Volpi’s award-winning prosciutto which is made using ancient European dry-cured techniques with no shortcuts or artificial processes.

Volpi is a 4th generation family-owned and operated cured meat brand who’s been making specialty cured meats for the last 120 years. They definitely know their prosciutto!

Their products are also sustainably produced through their Raised Responsibly™ program, meaning they source their product from trusted, local Midwest family farms that adhere to their animal wellness standards.

For more information and a store locator, please visit the Volpi Foods website.


Close up of Arugula Prosciutto Pizza

Ingredients for Prosciutto Arugula Pizza

To make your arugula prosciutto pizza, you’ll need the following ingredients:

  • Pizza dough: You can use any pizza dough you’d like, whether it’s homemade (like my shrimp scampi pizza), thin crust pizza dough , or store bought.
  • Ricotta: For the “sauce” I made a ricotta cheese mixture, similar to my Brussels Sprouts Flatbread Pizza.
  • Mozzarella cheese: Using several types of cheeses help add depth to the ricotta mixture.
  • Garlic: Being an Italian American myself, every pizza needs garlic.
  • Lemon: Use a fresh lemon as you’ll need both the zest and the juice. It may seem like a lot of juice, but the extra acidity really balances the fat from the cheese and prosciutto.
  • Parmesan cheese: Since you’ll need both shredded and shaved, I highly recommend buying a wedge and shredding/shaving yourself.
  • Prosciutto: Prosciutto is best served cold, so I added it to my pizza after cooking.
  • Arugula: Arugula is a leafy vegetable with a peppery taste, adding some spiciness to the pizza.
  • Red onion: I felt my pizza was missing one more ingredient, so I added cooked red onion to help bring everything together.


Slice cut out of prosciutto arugula pizza

How To Make Prosciutto and Arugula Pizza

First, prep your pizza dough to fit your pizza pan then preheat your oven to 450F.

While the oven is warming up, mix together your ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, garlic, and lemon juice. Spread it evenly onto your pizza dough.

Next, add your red onion on top then bake until golden brown and crispy. Depending on the type of crust you’re making, it can range anywhere from 10-15 minutes.

Once your pizza is done, top with prosciutto, arugula, shaved Parmesan, and lemon zest.


Slice of prosciutto pizza on a white plate

Can you reheat pizza with arugula?

Can you? Technically yes. Do you want to? Probably not because it’ll wilt after cooking.

The good news is you can eat your leftover pizza with prosciutto and arugula cold as the ricotta sauce works well both cold and hot.

If you still want to rewarm your pizza, pick off the fresh arugula, heat your slice, then re-add before eating.


Prosciutto Arugula Pizza on a pizza pan with pizza cutter

What To Serve With Your Prosciutto Arugula Pizza

To make your arugula and prosciutto pizza a full meal, serve it with the following recipes:

Prosciutto Arugula Pizza on a pizza pan with pizza cutter

Prosciutto Arugula Pizza

Yield: 6-8 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Prosciutto Arugula Pizza is a homemade white pizza topped with ricotta cheese, arugula, prosciutto, and lemon zest. Make it for pizza night at home!

Ingredients

  • 1 prepared pizza dough (homemade or store-bought)
  • 1 cup full-fat ricotta cheese
  • 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 + 1/2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup sliced red onion
  • 2 cups arugula
  • 1/4 cup chopped Volpi traditional prosciutto
  • 1/4 cup shaved Parmesan cheese
  • Lemon zest, for garnish

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 450F. Lightly grease a 12 inch pizza pan.
  2. On a lightly floured surface, roll out your pizza dough to roughly a 10-12 inch circle then transfer to the pan.
  3. In a large bowl, mix together the ricotta, mozzarella, shredded Parmesan, garlic, and 1 + 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice.
  4. Spread the ricotta mixture evenly on the pizza then top with red onion.
  5. Bake until crust is golden brown and crispy to your liking, about 10-15 minutes.
  6. Toss the arugula with the remaining 2 teaspoons lemon juice then add to the pizza along with the prosciutto and shaved Parmesan. Gently press down so it sticks to the cheese. Garnish with lemon zest.

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Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Volpi Foods. Thank you for supporting me and the companies I work with as sponsored posts help pay for website hosting and groceries.