Recipe Overview
Why you’ll love it: You’ll love the fall flavors of this ricotta flatbread: warmly spiced ricotta, crisp bacon, roasted squash and mushrooms, diced apple, and maple candied pepitas. This flatbread is so colorful and delicious!
How long it takes: less than a half hour
Equipment you’ll need: baking sheet
Servings: 3
I didn’t hold back with the fall toppings on this flatbread pizza. Squash! Bacon! Apples! Mushrooms! Pepitas! I even spiced up the ricotta with sage, nutmeg and a touch of cayenne. I guess you could say I went a little crazy…
Oh my gosh, every time I look at that picture I want to run my fall-loving self back to the kitchen and make this ricotta flatbread recipe!
Ricotta Flatbread Pizza
The flatbread is a very easy crust. This recipe really comes together quickly and easily, I like to use Flatout Artisan Thin Pizza Crusts, or something similar. Any pre-baked crust will work, as well as pita bread rounds.
The toppings are healthy. Butternut squash, mushrooms, apples, and pumpkin seeds are all nutrient-packed foods. The ricotta is lowfat and high in protein. You really can pile this flatbread up with all the fall toppings your heart desires.
Flatbread pizza is perfect for a quick dinner or lunch. If you prep all the toppings in advance, you could have dinner ready in less than 10 minutes. Even if you don’t have the toppings prepped, you can have this ricotta flatbread ready in less than a half hour. (Be sure to try my elote flatbread and pita flatbread with asparagus and ricotta, too!)
Recipe Variations
It’s easy to mix and match the toppings. If you don’t care for something or don’t happen to have it, leave it out or substitute something you like better. Here are a few suggestions but feel free to make this ricotta flatbread your own.
- Sub in a different type of cheese. A spreadable cream cheese or boursin are good substitutes. (If you choose a flavored cheese, you probably won’t want to add the spices). Shredded cheese is another option.
- Choose different vegetables. Pretty much any roasted vegetable would work on the flatbreads. You can also roast the apples with the squash and mushrooms, if you like.
- Make it vegetarian. You can easily skip the bacon!
- Try a different fruit. Apples fit into the fall theme but thinly sliced pears, peaches, mangos, or figs are great, or, if you prefer, omit the fruit.
- Drizzle on a dressing. Balsamic reduction, pomegranate molasses, or hot honey come to mind but feel free to experiment! The flatbreads should be baked before adding any dressing.
You can easily prep the toppings for this ricotta flatbread to get a head start on this recipe. If you have the toppings prepped, you can enjoy this ricotta flatbread all week for lunch. Pile on the toppings and pop one into your toaster oven or air fryer for a few minutes to heat.
Butternut squash: Raw squash, peeled and cubed, will keep for up to a week in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Cut up a whole butternut squash when you have extra time; it will be ready to use for a variety of recipes. Try my butternut squash curry, Moroccan stew with butternut squash and chickpeas, or farro salad with butternut squash.
Roasted vegetables: Roasted vegetables will also keep in the fridge for up to a week. You can roast the squash and mushrooms for this recipe. Roast the rest of the squash to serve as a side dish, in salads, or meal bowls.
Ricotta cheese: The ricotta cheese can be prepped up to a week ahead. You can have a ricotta flatbread every day if you like. The cheese spread is also good on toast or crackers.
Bacon: I always cook up the whole package of bacon at once. Baked bacon is the way to go. It’s so easy, turns out perfectly every time, and with no messy stove. Air fryer bacon is another quick way to cook bacon, especially if you’re only doing a few strips. You can store cooked bacon in the the refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for up to a month.
Pepitas: The candied pepitas can be made a day or two ahead. Cool completely and store in an airtight container. I wouldn’t make them too much in advance. They’re addictively delicious and they just might disappear before you have a chance to use them for your ricotta flatbread!
Free Meal Plan
Interested in a weekly meal plan that includes this recipe? Take a look at my Meal Plan #35. You’ll find a wholesome recipe for each weekday plus a categorized grocery list. Let me do the planning for you this week!
More Fall Recipes
Ricotta Flatbread with Bacon, Squash, Apples and Maple Pepitas
Ingredients
For Vegetables:
- 2 ½ cups peeled and diced butternut squash (it's best if the pieces are fairly small, no more than ½-inch)
- 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, washed and sliced ¼ inch thick (white mushrooms are fine, too)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
For Ricotta:
- 1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese (or whole milk ricotta)
- ½ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground sage
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg (or freshly grated)
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne
For Pepitas:
- 1 teaspoon butter
- ¼ cup pepitas (raw shelled pumpkin seeds)
- 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup
Other Ingredients:
- 4 flatbreads (see note)
- 4 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
- ½ cup finely diced apple
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- On a rimmed sheet pan, toss squash and mushrooms with oil, salt and pepper. Roast for 15 minutes, stir, and roast for 2 to 5 more minutes, or until squash is fork tender and mushrooms are golden brown. If you prefer, the apples can be roasted with the mushrooms and squash.2 ½ cups peeled and diced butternut squash, 8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, washed and sliced ¼ inch thick, 1 tablespoon olive oil, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine ricotta, pepper, sage, nutmeg, and cayenne. Stir until smooth and combined.1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese, ½ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper, ½ teaspoon ground sage, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ⅛ teaspoon cayenne
- In a small frying pan, heat butter and pepitas over medium heat until pepitas begin to turn golden brown. Add maple syrup (it will bubble!) and cook for one more minute. Pour onto a parchment paper-lined plate and set aside to harden (you can speed this up by placing in refrigerator). The pepitas can be toasted ahead of time, cooled completely and stored in an airtight container.1 teaspoon butter, ¼ cup pepitas , 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup
- When vegetables are done roasting, remove from oven and decrease oven temperature to 375°F. Place flatbreads on a baking sheet and pre-bake for 2 minutes.4 flatbreads
- Remove the flatbreads from the oven, and carefully spread ricotta mixture onto each pizza. Top with butternut squash and mushrooms (you may not need them all) and bacon. Bake for 4 more minutes or until ricotta is heated.4 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
- Top with apples and pepitas, and slice. Serve immediately.½ cup finely diced apple
Notes
- Flatbread: I like Flatout Artisan Thin pizza crusts. Any type of flatbread, pita rounds, or prebaked pizza crust will work. If you prefer, make your own pizza crust or flatbreads.
- Variations: It’s easy to make these ricotta flatbread pizzas your own. Any roasted vegetable is delicious; try different kinds of cheese, either spreadable or shredded; skip the bacon for a vegetarian flatbread; substitute another fruit for the apple or simply omit it if you like.
- Make ahead: The vegetables and bacon can be cooked ahead of time and refrigerated. If all of the toppings are chilled, add a couple minutes to the baking time. The pepitas can be toasted ahead, too, or buy pepitas that are already roasted.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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