Spider Pizza With Black Olive Spiders
This spider pizza turns a cheesy homemade pizza into a fun Halloween dinner with spooky black olive spiders crawling across the top. It is an easy way to bring Halloween to the dinner table and the perfect festive addition to all of your spooky celebrations.
Put spiders on pizza for Halloween
I make this creepy-crawly spider pizza every year when Halloween season arrives. It’s so easy to make, and it’s always a big hit. Serve it before you head out trick-or-treating for the night, or make it part of a spooky party food spread. One year, I hosted a Halloween movie night and made mini versions of this dish to keep bellies from rumbling and disturbing the film.
You can use store-bought crust and sauce to put this pizza together, and it’ll be on the table in no time. But if you know me, you know I have to make it from scratch. It’s just what I do — and it makes it that much better, too. The crust and sauce can both be made ahead, so you can still get your spider pizza on the table quickly, leaving plenty of time to enjoy the celebrations.
If you’re looking for other great holiday-themed recipes to make your celebration table festive, my savory pumpkin cheese ball and homemade peanut butter candy apples are sure to fit right in.
Recipe ingredients
- Pizza crust: Use your favorite homemade or store-bought pizza crust as the base for this recipe. I like making the crust from scratch, and my garlic focaccia from scratch makes a thick, garlicky base that works particularly well for this pizza.
- Pizza sauce: Use a good-quality prepared sauce or make homemade pizza sauce. A well-seasoned tomato sauce brings the classic pizza flavor and complements the rich, melted cheese.
- Muenster cheese: I like Muenster because it has great flavor, melts beautifully, and adds an orange hue to the top of the pizza that is perfect for the Halloween theme. You can substitute your favorite pizza cheese if you prefer.
- American cheese: American cheese is a surprisingly good choice for pizza because of its smooth melt and creamy flavor. It was once served on every local bar pizza where I’m from, which is where I learned just how well it works on pizza. It complements the Muenster perfectly, but you can use any one of your favorite cheeses.
- Black olives: Choose extra-large pitted black olives for making the spiders. Their larger size makes it easier to cut the olives into distinct bodies and thin legs, while their black color stands out clearly against the melted cheese.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make spider pizza
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C), or to the temperature recommended for the pizza crust you are using. Place the crust on a baking sheet, pizza pan, or other baking surface appropriate for that crust.
Step 2: Spread the pizza sauce evenly over the crust, leaving a border around the edge.
Step 3: Cover the sauce evenly with the Muenster and American cheeses. Distribute the cheeses across the sauced portion of the pizza so there is cheese in every slice.
Step 4: Position the prepared black olive spiders (see below) over the cheese, leaving enough space between them to keep each spider distinct. Think about where the pizza will be sliced as you arrange them so you can keep as many spiders intact when serving the slices as possible.
Step 5: Bake for 10 to 20 minutes, or until the crust is fully baked and the cheese is melted and bubbling. The exact baking time will vary depending on the type and thickness of the crust.
Step 6: Let the pizza rest for a few minutes after baking so the cheese can set slightly, then slice and serve warm.
Would you like to save this post for later?
We'll email it to you, so you can come back to it whenever you like!
Cutting black olive spiders
- Make the spider body: Cut one black olive in half lengthwise. Place one half cut-side down on the pizza to create the spider’s body.
- Make the spider legs: Place the other half cut-side down on the cutting board, then slice it widthwise into six thin strips. This gives you six curved pieces for the legs.
- Shape the spider: Place three olive strips along each side of the body. Position the curved pieces so they angle slightly away from the body rather than lining them up straight. This gives the spider a more recognizable shape.
- Repeat as needed: Continue cutting the olives and assembling spiders until you have enough to space across the pizza.
Top tips
- Grate the cheese from a block: Freshly grated cheese generally melts more smoothly than pre-shredded cheese, which often contains anti-caking ingredients that can affect the way it melts.
- Use a sharp knife for the olives: A small, sharp paring knife gives you better control when cutting the thin curved strips for the spider legs and helps prevent the olives from being crushed.
- Rotate the pizza while baking: If your oven has noticeable hot spots, rotate the pizza once during baking so the crust and cheese cook more evenly.
- Use a good-quality pizza cutter: A sturdy pizza cutter with a sharp wheel cuts cleanly through the crust and toppings without requiring repeated passes that can drag the melted cheese out of place.
Serve
Pair spider pizza with a crisp Caesar salad, garden salad, or crunchy vegetable sticks for something fresh alongside all that melted cheese. For something a little heartier, my homemade grilled buffalo chicken salad brings smoky grilled chicken and Buffalo flavor to the table. It’s a full-size dinner salad, but dividing it into smaller individual portions makes it a really great pizza-night side. Garlic knots or breadsticks are good additions when you’re feeding a hungry crowd.
Don’t forget the dips for the crust! Put out classic buffalo sauce for a spicy kick, easy ranch dressing from scratch for cool, creamy dipping, or creamy salsa ranch dressing when you want a creamy choice with a little kick. Garlic butter is always a winner for dipping too, and if you want a little extra flavor, my savory garlic butter medallions can be melted for an easy warm garlic butter dip.
For drinks, a cold pitcher of old fashioned fresh squeezed lemonade adds a bright, citrusy option, while homemade iced tea is an easy classic choice.
Other recipes you’ll love
If you loved this from scratch spider pizza recipe, give these other great recipes a try too!
Pumpkin Crumb Muffins
Apple and Pork Tenderloin with Maple Dijon Sauce
Pumpkin Spice Pancakes
Maple Walnut Scones
Sweet Potato Quesadilla
Cinnamon Roll Scones
Spider Pizza
Ingredients
- 1 large pizza crust
- 3/4 – 1 cup pizza sauce
- 2 cups shredded muenster cheese
- 1 1/2 cups shredded American cheese
- 6 – 8 extra large black olives
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C), or to the temperature recommended for the pizza crust you are using.
- Place the large pizza crust on an appropriate baking surface. Spread the pizza sauce evenly over the crust, leaving a border around the edge. Top evenly with the Muenster and American cheeses.
- Cut a black olive in half lengthwise. Use one half for the spider body. Place the other half cut-side down and slice it widthwise into 6 thin, curved strips for the legs.
- Place the olive body cut-side down on the cheese and arrange 3 olive legs along each side. Repeat to make additional black olive spiders, spacing them evenly across the pizza.
- Bake for 10–20 minutes, or until the crust is baked and the cheese is fully melted. Adjust the baking time as needed for the type and thickness of crust you are using.
- Let the spider pizza rest for a few minutes before slicing. Serve warm.
Notes
- Use extra-large pitted black olives for the spiders. Their larger size makes it easier to cut distinct bodies and curved legs.
- Muenster and American cheese give this spider pizza a generous, creamy melted cheese layer, but any cheese variety you enjoy on pizza can be substituted.
- Freshly grated cheese melts more evenly than pre-shredded cheese, which often contains anti-caking ingredients.
- For the cleanest slices, use a sharp, good-quality pizza cutter and let the pizza rest for a few minutes before cutting.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
