This Mini Cranberry Pizza is an easy-to-make, tangy, creamy, delightful appetizer recipe for dinner parties and holidays. Topped with cranberries, cream cheese, peppers, and cheese, this is one of the quick winter and fall appetizers.
Mini Pizza With Cranberries
Individual pizza bites always make a delicious appetizer, right? This vegetarian pizza is perfect for your Thanksgiving or holiday party. Mini pizza dough is made with cranberry puree, and cream cheese and cranberries are added as toppings, making this pizza even more delicious.
Also, check out our award-winning cranberry pesto pasta and savory cranberry pull-apart bread for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner.
Ingredients
For the mini pizza dough
Cranberries: Fresh or frozen, both will work for this recipe.
Yeast: Active dry yeast is used
Flour: Regular all-purpose flour is sufficient.
For the topping
Your favorite marinara sauce, cheese, cream cheese, cranberries, jalapeno, colored bell peppers, and onions are added. Feel free to add toppings of your choice.
Check out the recipe card for the full list of the ingredients.
Step-by-step instructions
Make the pizza dough or base
- In a large bowl, add ½ cup warm water and sugar. Sprinkle yeast and leave it undisturbed for 5 to 10 minutes. Let the yeast activate.
- While the yeast is activating, grind or blend the cranberries with ½ cup of warm water to form a smooth puree.
- Add the cranberry puree, salt, and 1 cup flour to the yeast mixture and mix using a wooden spoon. Add the remaining flour and knead for 5 to 10 minutes to form a soft dough. Adjust the flour as needed.
- Cover it and let it rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Cut into small pizza and arrange toppings
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Dust the working surface and transfer the risen dough.
- Roll it into a large rectangle (not too thick or too thin). Using a pizza cutter, cut it into 14 mini rectangles and place them on a parchment-lined baking pan. Keep any scrap dough aside.
- Add marinara sauce and red chile or cayenne powder to a bowl and mix. The addition of chile powder is optional.
- Spread sauce on each crust and top it with cheese, followed by cranberries, cream cheese, and other desired toppings.
For the leftover pizza dough
If you have any scrap dough, you can roll it into mini pizzas. To make it a little differently, roll the scrap dough into rectangles, dump in any remaining sauce, cheese, and toppings, and tightly roll to seal them. Use a serrated knife to cut into pieces and place the cut side down on a parchment-lined baking pan. These will be like pizza pinwheels.
Bake the mini cranberry pizza bites.
- Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until the crusts are golden brown. The crust must be crisp and chewy.
- Serve and enjoy!
Tips
- Add any toppings of your choice.
- You can also use cranberry pesto instead of marinara sauce and skip cranberries in topping.
- You may have to adjust the amount of flour in the recipe based on the brand and weather conditions.
- Instead of pizza dough, naan bread dough can be made and used as a base to make this mini pizza.
More cranberry recipes
Recipe card
Mini Cranberry Pizza Recipe
Equipment
- Pizza pan
Ingredients
For the mini pizza dough crust
- 1 cup Warm water divided
- ¾ cup Cranberries: I have used frozen
- 1 teaspoon Sugar
- 2 /4 teaspoon Active dry yeast one packet
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 2 ¾ cup All purpose flour divided
- Olive oil to grease
Mini pizza topping, use any topping of your choice
- ¾ cup Marinara sauce pasta sauce
- ½ teaspoon Cayenne powder Red chile powder ( optional)
- 8 oz Pepper jack cheese grated mozzarella may be used
- 1/ cup Cranberries fresh or frozen
- 4 to 5 oz Cream cheese cut into cubes
- ⅓ cup Orange mini sweet peppers chopped
- ⅓ cup Yellow mini sweet peppers chopped
- 2 Jalapeno chopped
- ½ Red onions chopped
Instructions
Make the pizza dough or base
- In a large bowl, add ½ cup warm water and sugar. Sprinkle yeast and leave it undisturbed for 5 to 10 minutes. Let the yeast activate.1 cup Warm water, 1 teaspoon Sugar, 2 /4 teaspoon Active dry yeast
- While the yeast is activating, grind or blend the cranberries with ½ cup of warm water to form a smooth puree.¾ cup Cranberries: I have used frozen
- Add the cranberry puree, salt, and 1 cup flour to the yeast mixture and mix using a wooden spoon. Add the remaining flour and knead for 5 to 10 minutes to form a soft dough. Adjust the flour as needed.1 teaspoon Salt, 2 ¾ cup All purpose flour
- Cover it and let it rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.Olive oil
Cut into small pizza and arrange toppings
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Dust the working surface and transfer the risen dough.
- Roll it into a large rectangle (not too thick or too thin). Using a pizza cutter, cut it into 14 mini rectangles and place them on a parchment-lined baking pan. Keep any scrap dough aside.
- Add marinara sauce and red chile or cayenne powder to a bowl and mix. The addition of chile powder is optional.¾ cup Marinara sauce, ½ teaspoon Cayenne powder
- Spread sauce on each crust and top it with cheese, followed by cranberries, cream cheese, and other desired toppings.8 oz Pepper jack cheese, 1/ cup Cranberries, 4 to 5 oz Cream cheese, ⅓ cup Orange mini sweet peppers, ⅓ cup Yellow mini sweet peppers, 2 Jalapeno, ½ Red onions
For the leftover pizza dough
- If you have any scrap dough, you can roll it into mini pizzas. To make it a little differently, roll the scrap dough into rectangles, dump in any remaining sauce, cheese, and toppings, and tightly roll to seal them. Use a serrated knife to cut into pieces and place the cut side down on a parchment-lined baking pan. These will be like pizza pinwheels.
Bake the mini cranberry pizza bites.
- Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until the crusts are golden brown. The crust must be crisp and chewy.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Add any toppings of your choice.
- You can also use cranberry pesto instead of marinara sauce and skip cranberries in topping.
- You may have to adjust the amount of flour in the recipe based on the brand and weather conditions.
- Instead of pizza dough, naan bread dough can be made and used as a base to make this mini pizza.
Nutrition
Did you like this recipe? Please leave a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below and/or a review in the comments section. You can also stay in touch with us through social media by following us on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Note: We originally posted this holiday cranberry pizza recipe in July 2018. It has now been modified in July 2024 with Expert Chef Tips, FAQs, Storage Instructions, etc.
Jennifer
Sweet and savory is my favorite flavor combination, so these mini-pizzas sound absolutely amazing.
Kim
Mini pizzas are a great snack idea. We've never tried them with cranberries, but they look so appetizing. I'd love to give these a try!
Claire | The Simple, Sweet Life
Hold the phone... Cranberries and pizza?! I never would have thought to put those two together, but now I'm thoroughly intrigued. Definitely going to have to give this a try!
Mary Bostow
Oh my gosh I've never seen cranberries on pizza before. I bet that's delicious!
Edith Obando
Hi, Mini pizzas are a great snack idea. What an excellent treat for watching afternoon or evening sports. I will make it at my home hope, so my hubby and my kids also love it. Can you tell me which type of cutter do you use for the cut this? Thanks in advance for your answer.
Kushi
I used regular Pizza cutter. Do let me know how this turned out 🙂 Thank you so much.