This apple Nutella dessert pizza is the type of dessert that just WORKS. It has a homemade pizza dough that is topped with apples coated in an apple cider sauce and a cinnamon oat crumble. This pizza is also topped with a Nutella ganache. The cinnamon, apples, and Nutella blend together so well and creates quite a dessert showstopper.
Easy Homemade Pizza Dough
This pizza dough is a staple for when I make savory pizza at home. It creates a soft pizza dough that gets crispy in the oven.
For this recipe, I used a stand mixer with a dough hook. Look below for instructions on making it by hand.
Start by sifting the bread flour and salt together. This will get rid of any flour lumps.
Then, mix the yeast, sugar, water, and oil together in the mixing bowl. The most important part here is to make sure the water is warmed to 110F. Use a thermometer to make sure it is at the right temperature. Too warm or too cold water will prevent the yeast from rising.
Next, add in the flour and mix on low until the dough starts to form. Then, turn the mixer to medium and let it knead for 5 minutes. This helps to form the gluten. Halfway through, if the dough looks too sticky, add an extra ⅛ cup of bread flour at a time. The dough should be slightly tacky, but not stick to your hands.
Place the dough ball into a bowl that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Cover with a dish towel and let it rise for 30 minutes.
Bread Flour VS All-purpose Flour
Bread flour has a much higher amount of gluten compared to all-purpose flour. This will create a much softer bread-like consistency in the bread dough.
If you can't find bread flour in your local grocery store, you can use all-purpose flour. However, it will create a dough that doesn't rise as much, and the crust will be a little tougher.
Making The Dough By Hand.
To make the dough by hand, sift the bread flour and salt in a separate bowl. In a large mixing bowl, mix the yeast, sugar, water, and oil with a whisk. Add all of the flour into the large mixing bowl.
Next, switch to a rubber spatula and fold in the flour until a dough starts to form. Then, place the dough on a lightly floured surface.
Knead with your hands for 10 minutes to form the gluten properly. At this point, if the dough is too sticky, then add in ⅛ cup of bread flour at a time.
Once kneaded, follow the rest of the instructions
Making A Perfectly Round Pizza
Since you are making this pizza from scratch, you want to make sure it is round! You don't want an awkward oval/rectangle shape.
First, place a large parchment paper with a light sprinkle of flour on the counter. Shape your risen dough in an even ball, then place it on the parchment paper.
Use your fingers to knead and spread the dough into an even circle. Once it starts to shrink back and won't spread anymore, grab the dough by the edges.
Lift the dough up slightly to allow the gravity to stretch it. Go along all the sides. Then, use your fingers to shape it back into a circle.
Cinnamon Oat Crumble
The cinnamon oat crumble needs to be chilled in the fridge while you make the apple Nutella dessert pizza. So make this right after you make the dough.
First, use a fork and mix the flour, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon, and melted butter together. Once it is all wet, stick it in the fridge for the butter to solidify again.
Steps To Make Apple Cider Apple Filling
- Strain the apples- Mix the sugar and lemon juice with the peeled and sliced apples. Strain them the entire time the dough is rising. This gets rid of any excess liquid.
- Mix butter and flour together- Melt the butter first, then add in the flour. Whisk vigorously for 1 minute. This will create a thick sauce.
- Immediately add in the apple cider- Add in the apple cider right after the flour mixture cooks for 1 minute. Whisk until an apple sauce mixture forms.
- Add in sugar spices- Add the sugar spices into the apple sauce mixture. Use a whisk and stir fast. It will become pretty dry at first. Then, as the sugar cooks, it will form an almost liquid consistency. Immediately take it off the heat.
- Fold in apple cider sauce- Fold the sauce into the strained apples. Then, add in the vanilla and mix again. The apples should be completely coated.
What Type Of Apples To Use
I recipe tested this pizza with granny smith apples and thought they were way too tart with the Nutella. This recipe needs Gala apples because they are a pretty sweet apple. These should be easily found at your local grocery store.
Bake The Pizza
First lay out the apple cider apples in a swirl pattern on top of the pizza dough. Start with the edges and place each apple carefully. Then move into the middle. It should be a thin layer.
Next, top with the oat crumble. You can use as much as you would like!
While you make the pizza, the oven should be preheating. While it is preheating, the pizza stone should also be in the oven. Using an actual stone will create a crispy crust. Also, a hotter pizza stone helps with the crispier crust.
Next, place the pizza with the parchment paper onto the hot pizza stone. An easy way to transfer the pizza is placing it on a large cutting board before sliding it onto the pizza stone.
Bake the pizza for 10-13 minutes. The crust should be lightly golden brown.
After it is done baking, transfer the pizza to a cutting board. Then, remove the parchment circle.
Easy Nutella Ganache
While the pizza is baking, start the Nutella ganache.
First, spread the Nutella on the bottom of a small bowl. The idea is to spread it evenly for the cream to cover it. Dice up the butter and spread it on top of the Nutella.
Next, heat the heavy cream and corn syrup in a saucepan. Heat until the cream is hot. Pour the hot cream over the Nutella. Use a rubber spatula to make sure the cream is coated evenly.
Top the bowl tightly with cling wrap. Let it sit for 5 minutes for the cream to melt the butter and Nutella. Next, stir the Nutella with a rubber spatula. If there are any butter flecks left in the Nutella, heat it in the microwave for 10 seconds. Then, stir again.
Decorating The Nutella Dessert Pizza
Right when the pizza is done baking, drizzle the pizza with the Nutella ganache. You can use a squeeze bottle, piping bag, or a spoon to drizzle the ganache on top.
Next, top the pizza with mini chocolate chips.
Slice the apple Nutella dessert pizza into eighths and serve immediately. Use a sharp knife rather than a pizza wheel for best results. The pizza is best straight from the oven.
Storing The Pizza
This apple Nutella dessert pizza is best straight from the oven. If you have any leftovers, wrap the pizza in foil.
To reheat, preheat heat the oven to 350F. Place the pizza on a cookie sheet and bake for 5-10 minutes. Bake until the pizza is hot again.
I recommend not using a microwave. It doesn't reheat as well in the microwave.
Other Recipes To Try
Make sure to tag me on Instagram @stephaniesweettreats and leave me a review below if you made this dessert pizza. I hope you loved it! To get more ideas follow me on Pinterest.
Apple Nutella Dessert Pizza
Ingredients
Pizza Dough
- 2 cups Bread flour up to 2 ¼ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon White granulated sugar
- 2 ¼ teaspoon Fast rise yeast a whole packet
- ¾ cup Warm water warmed up to 110°F
- 1 tablespoon Oil Canola or vegetable
Cinnamon Oat Crumble
- ⅛ cup All-purpose flour
- ⅛ cup Brown sugar packed light or dark
- ¼ cup Quick oats
- 1 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- 2 tablespoon Unsalted butter melted
Apple Filling
- 2 Gala apples cored, peeled, and thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoon Lemon juice
- 3 tsp White granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoon Unsalted butter melted
- 1 ½ tablespoon All-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon Apple cider
- 2 tablespoon White granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoon Brown sugar packed light or dark
- 1 tsp Ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon Pure vanilla extract
Nutella Ganache
- ¼ cup Nutella
- 1 ½ tablespoon Unsalted butter room temperature
- 3 tablespoon Heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon Light corn syrup
- Mini chocolate chips for garnish
Instructions
Cinnamon Oat Crumble
- Before making the dough, combine flour, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon, salt, and butter in small bowl using a fork. All of it should be wet. Place in the fridge to solidify while making the dough
Pizza Dough
- In a large bowl, sift the flour and salt together. Set aside.
- Using a mixer with a bread hook (see post for by hand instructions) mix the yeast, sugar, warm water, and oil together. Add in all of the flour. Mix on low until a dough starts to form. Then, turn to medium and let it mix for 5 minutes
- Halfway through mixing, if the dough is super soft and sticky, add an extra ⅛ cup of flour at a time. Let it combine and see if that helps. Add another ⅛ cup until dough is only slightly tacky.
- Spray a large mixing bowl with non-stick spray. Place dough in the bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Let it rise for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 475° and place the pizza stone in the oven. It needs to heat up the entire time to dough is rising. A hot stone is crucial to pizza baking.
Apple Filling
- Right after making the dough, core, peel, and slice the apples and place in a mixing bowl. Toss with lemon juice and sugar. Place the apples in a strainer to separate the juices while the dough rises.
- Halfway through the dough rising, mix together the sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Once the butter is melted add in the flour. Use a whisk and vigorously whisk and blend in the flour. Let it cook for 1 minute. Then, add in the apple cider immediately. Whisk right away. It will look like applesauce.
- Add in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Whisk vigorously. It will appear dry at first. Then, as it cooks it will appear almost liquid. Cook it for about a minute. Take off the heat immediately.
- Place drained apples in a mixing bowl. Pour the apple cider mixture over the apples and pour in vanilla. Use a rubber spatula to mix it together.
Making The Pizza
- Prepare a piece of parchment paper (12X15 inches) and sprinkle a little bit of flour over it. Grab the pizza dough and use your fingers to knead the dough into a small circle. Once it can't spread any more by hand (at some point it will only spring back) lift up the dough by the edges and let the gravity stretch the dough. Go around all the edges.
- Use your hands to form dough back into a circle. Then, grab the apples and place apples in a spiral pattern. Start with the edges and work your way in. Place all apples on pizza. If there is any thick apple cider mixture, sprinkle it over the apples, but leave any juices in the bowl.
- Grab the oat crumble from the fridge. Sprinkle as much as your want over the apples.
- Take pizza stone out of the oven. Place parchment paper with the pizza on a large cutting board and transfer to the pizza stone (include the parchment paper). Bake for 10-13 minutes. The pizza crust should be golden brown.
Nutella Ganache
- While the pizza is in the oven, start the ganache. In a small bowl spread the Nutella on the bottom evenly. Cut the butter into small chunks and spread evenly on top of the Nutella.
- In a saucepan over medium-low heat, heat the heavy cream and corn syrup until hot and steaming. Pour over the Nutella. Make sure it is spread evenly. Cover the bowl with cling wrap. Let it sit for 5 minutes.
- Then, use a rubber spatula and stir the ganache. It should be smooth. If there are any butter pieces remaining, heat in the microwave for 10 seconds and stir again.
- Once the pizza is done baking, transfer back to the cutting board and remove parchment paper. Top with mini chocolate chips and drizzle the Nutella ganache. Serve immediately.
Jean says
My daughter really wanted to try a "Dessert pizza" but due to her orthodontics, lots of foods are off limits. The ingredients here all worked, and while the flavor combination sounded suspect, I totally agree with you -somehow, "this just works". Wow, it was like I was eating pizza texture wise, but it was dessert pizza. It was REALLY good. I made my own crust as I can't eat gluten (I used the Loraine's gluten free pizza crust mix) which I had to parbake first (gluten free is tricky) but wow is all I can say. Great texture, great flavor, it was dessert pizza! I'll be making this again, possibly for our block party tomorrow. Thank you!