Sunday brunch. It's become a thing, right? Take the initiative — invite your crew over, ply them with coffee, and then...slide out this super crispy, joyfully easy breakfast pizza. Perfectly cooked runny eggs perform as pizza sauce for this brunch pizza recipe all loved up with caramelized onions and salty bacon. Oh.. and some greens (spinach!) in there for contrast and balance. My friend, this is the Sunday brunch recipe to beat all brunch recipes.
You might be scratching your head (like some people in my family) thinking "Italian breakfast pizza? Come on!"
Eggs on pizza backstory
Quick story...I studied abroad my junior year college way back in 19XX. Our first night, about 15 of us (I'm sure the restaurant loooved us), went to a restaurant where I ordered pizza. Hellooo...this Italian girl was closer to Italy so she was getting pizza.
What came was beautiful cheese pizza topped with a runny, perfectly cooked egg right in the middle. And this was on a savory cheese pizza!
Clearly, I couldn't understand or read the menu because I never had seen or expected egg on pizza. But I sure did like it. And never forgot it.
Living in Chicago, we do a lot of carry-out and homemade pizza eating in our house. I'm guessing if you've stopped by my little site for a visit, you probably do too. Or would like to do some more.
So let's chat about all things breakfast pizza. And how your brunch life is going to change forever.
Breakfast pizza...your new favorite brunch recipe
Pizza connects people. It's sharable. Brunch connects people in that it's a day part. So bringing the two together is brunch recipe kismet. Share your breakfast pizza or keep the whole thing for yourself. I'm totally on board.
And, like an omelet, serving Italian breakfast pizza for brunch also allows people to customize their brunch pizza to their taste.
⇢ Other easy brunch recipes you'll ♥️: Italian egg bake, butternut squash and ricotta crostata, and the chunkiest vanilla almond granola. Or give my pesto eggs in a hole a try...so good!
We'll get to all the ways you can prepare your eggs and top this crispy breakfast pizza in a minute!
A very flexible ingredient list
If you choose to make the pizza crust at home, chances are you already have everything you need to whip up a breakfast pizza. Your crew is gonna love you.
Here's the ingredient rundown:
No breakfast pizza sauce here
Nope! We are keeping things simple! The perfectly cooked runny eggs fill in for the sauce. Trust me —you won't miss it!
Must-have homemade pizza making tools
Large mixing bowls. One of my favorite kitchen tools from my days working at Williams-Sonoma is this 10 piece set of glass mixing bowls. Great for rising pizza dough. (Talk about a great bridal or wedding gift too!)
Pizza peel. When it comes to pizza peels, one is great and 2 is better, especially when making multiple pizzas like you will for breakfast pizza. I use both this wooden pizza peel (similar to the one linked) and this Epicurean pizza peel in tandem. So good!
Stone or steel. I use these Emile Henry ceramic pizza stones and they help make the BEST crispy pizza crust ever! You preheat them at 500˚ for 20 minutes or so and pop your pizza on them using a peel. Crispy pizza (even in the center) in 10 minutes!
Pizza cutter. I have a Cutco pizza cutter that is a gem but also love these long rocker pizza cutters that come in different versions.
"00" flour. While "00" flour isn't necessarily a tool, it makes the best homemade pizza dough. This post on homemade ravioli dough shares more info on "00" flour.
Nice to have
Stand mixer. A stand mixer is a pizza maker's dream helping with mixing and kneading leaving you time to work on the toppings. My 7qt. KitchenAid Mixer is my go-to but I'm also a fan of any size!
How to make an easy breakfast pizza
Ok, let's get down to some brunch pizza making.
YIELD: 2-12" pizzas from 1 lb. homemade pizza dough (or store-bought)
- Start by heating your oven to 500˚ or according to the directions for your brand of pizza stone.
- Cut a 1 lb ball of pizza dough in half. Form the dough into a ball and gently pat it into a circle on a clean, floured countertop or a cutting board.Keep working your way around pushing the dough from the center out, leaving about a 1" rim.
- Transfer the dough to a pizza peel generously dusted with cornmeal.
- Top with a mix of of fontina sharp cheddar cheese and then tear fresh mozzarella and lay on top.
Assemble the pizza
- Place the first toppings in the following arrangement:
- tear on pieces of fresh mozzarella
- spread out golden caramelized onions
- tuck in roughly chopped spinach leaves (these help make little walls that hold the eggs in place if you're making them sunny side up).
- Carefully slide the pizza dough to the baking stone using the pizza peel with a shimmy back and forth.
- Top with a heavy crumbling of crispy bacon and your favorite egg preparation (see below) and bake!
Tips for the best caramelized onions
Heat a skillet over medium heat with equal amounts of butter and oil (about 1 T each). Add thinly sliced onions, season with salt and pepper and stir to combine. Lower heat and stir frequently until the onions caramelize about 30 minutes or so (or as long as you like!)
How to transfer pizza from a pizza peel to a stone in the oven
1. Test to make sure there is enough cornmeal between the pizza crust and the pizza peel so that the pizza can slide on the pizza peel. Add more underneath as needed.
2. Line the front edge of the pizza peel with far edge of the pizza stone and pull in about 1". Lift the handle of the peel up and start shimmying the pizza on to the hot stone while pulling the peel towards you until the whole pizza is on the stone.
How would you like your eggs on pizza?
The Easiest Method
Sunny-side up. About 3 minutes into baking the pizza, crack 2 or 3 eggs into individual small ramekins or cups. Carefully pour each egg into the center of the pizza and finish according to the recipe below.
More time consuming
Poached/Jammy eggs. My favorite way to eat eggs is using this foolproof method for poaching eggs (but it also requires another pan which means more clean-up). For a breakfast pizza, top the cooked pizza with the poached eggs right before serving.
Scrambled. In a separate pan, scramble your eggs so that they're softer and looser and add to the pizza the last two minutes of baking.
Over-easy. Again, in a separate pan, crack an egg into a heated and buttered pan. Cook for about 2-3 minutes before turning over and to slightly cook the yolk and crisp up the edges. Slide on fully cooked pizza before serving.
Insider tips for breakfast pizza success
Make it a brunch pizza party!
Here are some topping suggestions to turn this breakfast pizza into a pizza party:
- Have a bounty in the garden? Oven roasted tomatoes would be so good on breakfast pizza along with some fresh basil.
- Use raw or roasted vegetables like mushrooms or peppers.
- A drizzle of balsamic glaze adds a little zesty zing to breakfast pizza.
Made this recipe?
I'd love it if you'd share your review and leave a star rating and comment!
📖 Recipe
Easy Breakfast Pizza with Caramelized Onions and Bacon
Equipment
Ingredients
- cornmeal , for sprinkling on pizza stone
- 1 homemade pizza crust, can use store bought
For Caramelized Onions
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- ½ large onion, thinly sliced
Pizza Toppings
- ½ cup white cheddar cheese, grated
- ½ cup fontina cheese, grated
- 3 slices, fresh mozzarella
- 1 cup fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped
- 3-4 slices bacon, cooked and thickly diced
- 2 eggs, can use 3
- fresh basil, minced
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Olive oil for drizzling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 500˚ and place a pizza stone in the oven to heat for about 20 minutes.
To caramelize onions
- Heat butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat until butter is melted. Add the sliced onions and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Lower the heat to medium-low and cook,stirring frequently, as the onions caramelize for about 15-20 minutes. Keep an eye on them. You can cook them as long as you like but the thinner they're sliced, the faster they'll caramelize!1 Tablespoon butter, 1 Tablespoon olive oil, ½ large onion
To assemble pizza
- To a large pizza peel, generously sprinkle on cornmeal.cornmeal
- Pat out the crust to approximately 13” round on the pizza peel. Sprinkle on white cheddar, torn up fresh mozzarella, fontina cheese. Fill in with caramelized onions. Use the baby spinach to make little walls for the sunny side up eggs.1 homemade pizza crust, ½ cup white cheddar cheese, ½ cup fontina cheese, 3 slices, 1 cup fresh baby spinach
For sunny side up eggs
- Line the forward edge of the pizza peel with the back of the stone and shimmy the pizza on to the pizza stone in oven. Cook for 3 minutes.
- Open the oven and carefully either crack 2-3 eggs directly on the pizza (you can also crack the eggs into small ramekins and pour on to the center of the pizza in 2-3 sections created by the spinach. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.2 eggs, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, Olive oil for drizzling
- Place the pizza in the hot oven and cook for about 6 minutes. Add the cooked bacon pieces on top during the last 2 minutes of cooking. Finish cooking for another minute or two until eggs are cooked as you like and the pizza crust is crisp.3-4 slices bacon, fresh basil, kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, Olive oil for drizzling
Notes
About Lori Murphy
Lori has over 30 years in the food industry as a marketing strategist, culinary instructor and chef for three kids with discerning palates. As the chief content creator at Josie + Nina, Lori is dedicated to helping home cooks create food memories through fresh ingredients and Italian flavors.
Surprisingly so so delicious. The cheeses, caramelized onion, bacon combo made you go back for yet another bite.
Thanks Sheila!! It's become a favorite here too! Glad you found it as irresistible as my hubby did!😊