Kale, meet bacon. Bacon, meet kale.
Now that everyone has been introduced, I can let you in on a little secret. Those crispy kale chips piled on the pizza dough up above are tossed in bacon fat. I repeat: bacon fat.
It all happened so quickly. There was kale. And there was leftover bacon grease. And there was no question in my mind what was happening next. I straight up Les Miserables’d this pizza. I dreamed a dream and that dream was bacon fat kale chips and that dream just came true.
This pizza is many things, but saucy it is not. This is a sauce-free zone. No one misses marinara when you’re feasting on the trifecta of bacon, mozzarella and garlic. And bonus points to anyone who can guess what the crust is brushed with…
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Ingredients
- 1 pound store-bought or homemade pizza dough
- Cornmeal, for dusting baking sheet
- 4 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
- 2 1/2 cups curly kale leaves, torn into 1-inch pieces
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 6 ounces mozzarella, thinly sliced
- 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onions
- Shredded Parmesan cheese, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 500ºF.
- Roll out the pizza dough on a lightly floured surface until it is roughly 12 inches wide and 1/4-inch thick. (See Kelly's Notes.)
- Invert a baking sheet and sprinkle it liberally with cornmeal. Transfer the dough to the baking sheet.
- Cook the diced bacon in a medium sauté pan set over medium-low heat until a majority of the fat has rendered. Remove the bacon pieces with a slotted spoon to a large bowl, along with 2 teaspoons of the bacon drippings. Add the kale, olive oil and garlic to the bowl, tossing to combine.
- Arrange the mozzarella slices in a single layer on the pizza dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edges. Evenly scatter the kale-bacon mixture on top of the cheese then top the kale with the sliced red onions. Brush the border of the pizza dough with the reserved bacon drippings.
- Bake the pizza for 10 to 12 minutes, rotating it half-way through, until the crust is fully baked and golden brown. Remove the pizza from the oven to a cutting board, sprinkle it with Parmesan cheese, and slice and serve.
Kelly's Notes:
- The pizza dough can be rolled into any desired shape, including round, rectangular or free-form, for a more rustic look.
- You can use a pizza stone in place of the inverted baking sheet.
- Oven temperatures and positions may vary, so make sure you are baking your pizza on the middle rack and check it frequently.
- The kale leaves must be well coated in the bacon drippings and olive oil or they will burn before the dough is fully baked. And it may seem like a large amount of kale, but pile it high atop the dough, as it'll cook down significantly once baked.
- ★ Did you make this recipe? Don't forget to give it a star rating below!
Nutrition
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Recipe by Kelly Senyei of Just a Taste. Please do not reprint this recipe without my permission. If you'd like to feature this recipe on your site, please rewrite the method of preparation and link to this post as the original source.
Loved this! Added some lemon wedges for serving, which gave an outstanding tart contrast to the deep flavours of the kale and bacon. Will definitely make again!
Yay! I’m so thrilled you enjoyed the recipe!
We make a different pizza just about every Friday, last week we made a white clam pizza that was fantastic, did not think it could be topped, but your garlicky-kale pizza won out, it was fantastic, we have a lot of kale in the garden and a lot just sits there unused, It was awesome!!
WOW! Love hearing this, Rich! I’m thrilled you enjoyed the recipe :)
Oh my this is amazing. So many fantastic things were happening in my mouth all at once. We made a pizza dough that was self rising flour with Greek yogurt and I added thinly sliced tomatoes to the pizza. It was amazing. Oh I also brushed the dough with some of the oil/grease/garlic juice before placing toppings on. Amazing. Will be making a lot. Wow. Thank you for sharing this!
Woohoo! Love hearing this, Molly!
This is one of my favorite pizza recipes. I started making it when I just didn’t know what to make with kale. It is really seriously delicious.
Love reading this, Helen! I’m thrilled you’ve been enjoying the recipe!
Made this today for some stay at home mom girlfriends! Super good, and an excellent way to burn off some kale from the fall garden!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Angela!
This is a great idea!
I’ll definitely make this healthier version of the typical pizza at home.
I am always trying to venture out and add a twist to my pizza. Garlic and bacon??? I’m convinced :)
I’m making this pizza for the 3rd time tonight…..it is AWESOME!! Unbelievably full of flavor and one of our new favorites for pizza night. Thank you!!
Woohoo! This is what I like to hear, Michele :)
You’re killing me, Kelly! I’m such a big pizza lover. Garlicky is the best. Couldn’t kiss the boyfriend after that though. LOL.
This pizza was amazing!! My husband and I just adored it!! Thank you so much for this recipe!
Awesome! So glad you guys enjoyed it, Sylvie!
GIRL. yes yes yes.
I just made this for dinner tonight and it turned out amazing! It was also very quick and easy to make. I used a store bought (locally made) gluten free pizza crust and added just a sprinkle of olive tapenade on top. Will definitely be making this often!!!! Thanks!
Love the addition of the tapenade, Jamie!
I definitely won’t miss the red sauce here! This looks incredible, especially with all that garlic!
Most beautiful pizza ever!!! Seriously, I saw this on Pinterest before I even knew whose it was, and was in awe of the gorgeous colors (and bacon). Sounds and looks amazing!
This looks absolutely amazing – a must try for this week’s pizza night!
ohmygosh. This pizza sounds perfect! Plus its so pretty. But ahh garlic and bacon. on pizza. It’s a trifecta of my favorites!
This is TOO good looking!! Love these flavors and the gorgeous colors!
When I make pizza I just buy ready-made crust at the store. I would love to try making homemade dough, this would probably taste a lot better.
This is one gorgeous pizza! Always love your beautiful photos!!
This looks amazing! I can even try it on a gluten-free crust.
Dannggg that looks incredible, fantastic job!
Happy Blogging!
Happy Valley Chow
okay – I would not be able to stop myself from dunking this into some spicy arrabiata sauce (sorrrry!), but seriously this looks AMAZE.
Okay, I was trying to see how you got the crust to look so shiny…brush the border with bacon drippings…OMgeeee! This looks so good!
My favorite!
OMG, this is such a perfect pizza pairing I can’t even take it. I totally want to roast some garlic and throw it on there. Perfection. Need to make this (and proceed to devour the entire thing by myself). Pinned!
Love the idea for the roasted garlic, Rachel!
I’m so glad you introduced kale and bacon! :) This looks amazing!
Looks really yummy! But personally, I love sauce. If not adding sauce on the pizza before baking, I can imagine myself dipping it in sauce as I eat it lol.