Cracked Pepper Cottage Cheese Pizza with Prosciutto and Arugula

Cottage cheese and pizza are a match made in heaven! This Cracked Pepper Cottage Cheese Pizza with Prosciutto and Arugula makes a delicious anytime dinner, but can also be served as a party appetizer.

Thank you to Hood Cottage Cheese for sponsoring this post. As always, all opinions are my own!

I have to admit that I spent much of my life thus far believing that I didn't like cottage cheese. Though I consider myself a very adventurous eater (and a huge cheese lover), for some reason, I had it in my head that cottage cheese just wasn't my thing.

Until a few years ago when I tried it on a whim and realized that it's pretty fantastic and that I wasted so many years of my life not eating it. How had I been so wrong for so long?? Hood Cottage Cheese is high in protein, making it the perfect snacking option!

I'm lucky that my local grocery stores always have plenty of Hood Cottage Cheese on hand, but I went through serious withdrawals when I was only doing online grocery ordering for a few months this year. My mom and I tried several other brands of cottage cheese since we couldn't get Hood and each week, we lamented to each other about how much we missed Hood Cottage Cheese. None of the others were nearly as creamy or flavorful.

So, I'm super excited to be working with Hood Cottage Cheese today to tell you all about how awesome they are and to share with you my Cracked Pepper Cottage Cheese Pizza with Prosciutto and Arugula... A recipe that will convince you cottage cheese belongs on pizza. Always.

Hood cottage cheese flavors

One of my favorite things about Hood Cottage Cheese is all the flavors it comes in. I've always been a fan of savory flavors like Chive and Cracked Pepper, but this is the first time I've tried the sweet flavors like Blueberry and Strawberry.

While I generally eat the savory cottage cheese flavors with dippers like pita chips and tortilla chips or spread on toast, the sweet flavors convinced me to start eating it right out of a bowl! Sometimes with a little fruit added on top and sometimes just as is. I also love blending them into smoothies.

Of course, the Hood Country Style Cottage Cheese is also a great blank palate for all sorts of toppings or as an addition to so many types of recipes.

Hood Cottage Cheese is sold in an assortment of sizes from single-serve to sharable!

👩‍🍳 Can you bake cottage cheese?

My husband kept asking me this question when he learned I was adding cottage cheese to my pizza. And the answer is most definitely yes!

Cottage cheese is added to all kinds of dishes that go in the oven, like pastas, dips, egg bakes, and so much more and it can help add a lot of creaminess AND extra protein. I sometimes make biscuits with cottage cheese and find that it adds a ton of extra moistness, too.

I figured the cottage cheese would have a bit of a ricotta-like effect on pizza when baked. And I was right, except the result was even creamier and, in my opinion, more flavorful. Success!

I used Hood Cottage Cheese with Cracked Pepper for my cottage cheese pizza and also added cracked black pepper into the pizza dough.

🍕 How to make cracked pepper cottage cheese pizza with prosciutto and arugula

Like I mentioned, my husband kept questioning me while I was making this cottage cheese pizza. He's a long-time cottage cheese lover, but was very skeptical of me putting it on pizza.

He was hovering over my shoulder saying things like "this is what we're going to have for dinner??" and "you're just going to spoon it on the pizza and put it in the oven??" Yes to both!

You'll start by making the cracked pepper dough, though if you're short on time you can buy pre-made dough from your grocery store and just knead in some cracked black pepper.

For homemade dough, mix yeast and water in a large bowl and let rest for 2 minutes. Then stir in salt, extra-virgin olive oil, and honey. With a wooden spoon, mix the flour and cracked black pepper into the mixture. 

Cover bowl with a kitchen towel and let rest in a warm spot for about 2 hours until dough has risen.

Roll dough out into a large round and place on a round baking pan with a little bit of cornmeal sprinkled on the bottom (this helps prevent the pizza from sticking).

Then it's time for the pizza toppings! After lightly brushing the dough with olive oil, add shredded mozzarella cheese and prosciutto. Then add spoonfuls of cottage cheese all around.

And bake at 450 degrees for 10-14 minutes, until pizza is getting nice and golden.

Top with arugula. I love topping my pizzas and flatbreads with arugula as I think it adds the perfect little bite.

Slice and serve your pizza.

And wow and amaze your friends and family that you made a fabulously delicious pizza topped with cottage cheese.

Seriously though, when my husband took his first bite of this cottage cheese pizza, he immediately looked at me and said, "you're right; it works." Hooray! I mean, I knew I was going to be right, but it certainly helps to hear the critics agree (lol!).

Of course, I have to give a lot of credit to the fact that Hood Cottage Cheese is bursting with creamy flavor. I've found other cottage cheese to be much more watery and so I may not be able to vouch for every brand of cottage cheese on pizza, but know that Hood Cottage Cheese makes the perfect pizza!

I love my recipe for anchovy pizza, but I also think anchovies would be delicious on this cottage cheese pizza!

With the cracked black pepper in the cottage cheese AND the pizza dough, plus the arugula on top, this pizza has the perfect bite to it.

It has a nice crispy crust, but a rich and creamy topping. And of course, I love that I'm getting a little extra protein boost thanks to the cottage cheese.

What’s your favorite way to enjoy cottage cheese?

For more information on Hood Cottage Cheese and to find out where you can buy it around you, check out their website!

📖 Recipe