Grilled Sourdough Margherita Pizza Toast

Pizza Margherita is a typical Naples-style pizza made with tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, fresh basil and olive oil. While simple – considering the array of toppings you could decorate a base with – it’s true pizza perfection. Just ask your tastebuds!

These grilled pizza toasts are what happens when the classic melted cheese on toast marries pizza Margherita – a slightly fancier ‘adult’ grilled cheese with a legendary flavour combination.

With only ten minutes needed to whip up, it’s a quick vegetarian meal idea that works for brekkie, as well as lunch or dinner.

Ingredients Needed

• Wholegrain sourdough toast. This naturally leavened bread forms your ‘pizza’ base. Pizza sauce has a high water content, so to help deter from soggy bread (boo!), semi-toast your slice before loading it with toppings. This will make it nice and crunchy too👌. Note: you could sub sourdough for whatever toast tickles your fancy.
• Olive oil. Brush this over the toast before spreading with pizza sauce. It builds on the yummy Mediterranean flavours and, once again, helps stop the bread from getting soggy.
• Pizza sauce. I use a generic one from the supermarket. You could make your own by mixing tomato paste, crushed garlic, oregano and salt!
• Mozzarella cheese. This is a soft cheese first made in Italy, usually prepared from buffalo or cow’s milk. Make sure to thinly slice – this will encourage a nice balance of flavour, and some excellent melting in the short time that your toast is under the grill!
• Fresh basil. It wouldn’t be Margherita Pizza without fresh fragrant basil! Add as little or as much as you want – it’ll brighten the dish and packs a great flavour punch.

Nutrition Information

• Wholegrain sourdough bread is a good source of energy, fibre and b-vitamins. It’s lower phytate levels (an anti-nutrient often present in grains!) may make it easier to digest. For a deeper dive, check out my sourdough nutrition blog!
• Mozzarella cheese generally has a similar protein to fat ratio, whereas many soft cheese tend to favour more fat – so, basically you get more protein bang-for-buck here! It’s also a rich source of calcium to support healthy, strong bones.
• Olive oil is a concentrated source of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats and anti-inflammatory antioxidants.

Serving Suggestion

Serve immediately once out of the oven – if kept waiting for mouth-to-stomach action, the bread goes a bit soggy and the cheese rubbery.

If having for lunch or dinner, add veggie sticks or a simple salad on the side. This will encourage more of a balanced meal, with a wider intake of nutrients from the different food groups.

Thanks for reading! Looking for more easy speedy lunch ideas? Try this Greek-Style Tuna and White Bean Salad🥗🐟