It’s been said that all pizza is good pizza, and while I mostly tend to agree, pizza that really nails the cheese element is, in my mind, what separates good pizza from great pizza. I will entertain arguments here on both sauce and crust, but this is a cheese site, after all. (Other toppings are great, like pineapple, for instance, but they do not define a pizza.) While nothing beats fresh pizza straight from a volcanic oven to your table, even the most dedicated cheese professionals, myself included, turn to frozen pizzas in a pinch. And if a frozen pizza manages to nail the cheese element? I tip my hat to whomever is involved.
Talia di Napoli is an honest-to-goodness, Neapolitan pizza company whose pies have been making waves among aficionados for managing to evoke straight-out-of-the-pizza-oven flavor, even in frozen form. (Due to their unique freezing process, the company refers to them as “sleeping pizzas.” Respect.) CEO and co-founder Edouard Freda explains why frozen pizza is so often disappointing, “The biggest challenge we face is ensuring ‘fresh out of the oven’ pizza,” he says. “Most companies use water for freezing their pizzas, but we use a cryogenic freezing chamber and freeze with liquid nitrogen to lock in that freshness and maintain our premium quality level with no preservatives needed.”
With Talia di Napoli leading the pack, having tasted it myself, I rounded up other frozen pie suggestions from quesophiles and experts, looking for the cheesiest selections, and especially those that showcased a unique cheese among the usual pizza suspects. With that, here are 6 great frozen pizzas for cheese lovers.
Talia di Napoli Four Cheese Pizza
Quattro formaggi, or “four cheese” pizza, is fairly ubiquitous among both fresh and frozen pizzas, but the four cheeses included are in no way set in stone. These do tend to be white Italian classics: mozzarella, Parmigiano, pecorino, etc., but Talia di Napoli flips the script by not only including a blue cheese in the mix — in this case Italian gorgonzola — but also a Swiss cheese in addition to mozzarella and Parmigiano. (If it’s good enough for actual Italians to put on pizza…) With the gorgonzola and Emmental, the pie is both deeply aromatic and umami. For the cheese-loving pizza purists, however, Talia di Napoli also offers a simple, double cheese margherita pie.
Genio Della Bianca Pizza
Genio Della’s founder, Anthony Mangieri, who is also founder and owner of one of the best pizzerias in the U.S. Una Pizza Napoletana and self described pioneer of Neapolitan-style pizza, went where too few frozen pizza companies dare to go—buffalo mozzarella. (I mean, his last name translates to “eater,” so something’s in the DNA.) Buffalo mozzarella is both richer in butterfat, and tangier than cow’s milk mozzarella, and is a welcome addition to any pizza. In a bianca or “white” pizza, which forgoes tomato sauce in favor of some extra garlic and a layer of ricotta, (another cheese lover move,) this tang is especially important for bringing balance to what can otherwise sometimes be a sleeper pizza, and Genio Della’s white pie handily delivers on that.
Baozza Cheesy Spinach
A mashup of “bao” with “pizza,” these frozen dumplings aren’t a traditional frozen pie, but this cheesy spinach number still gets a vote from me, a bona fide cheese lover and lifelong pizza devotee. With the inclusion of cream cheese beside the traditional mozzarella, the molten interior, encapsulated by a soft dumpling dough, takes on a slightly tangy, almost oniony, and especially oozy quality, all of which are highly desirable. Plus, you can say you got a serving of vegetables with your pizza.
Screamin’ Sicilian Bessie’s Revenge
Bessie, one presumes, is a cow, taking her revenge by upping the typical dairy impact of a traditional pizza, involving cheddar alongside the mozzarella and parmesan. Ask not why you would put cheddar cheese on a pizza, ask why wouldn’t you put cheddar cheese on a pizza? This is obviously the work of America’s dairy state, as Screamin’ Sicilian hails from Wisconsin, (care of a Sicilian immigrant,) which I trust with these sorts of decisions. As with Emmental in the Talia di Napoli pizza above, cheddar also brings a richer flavor than mozzarella can on its own, with a deep hint of allium. This Wisconsin-based pizza also utilizes butter in the crust, because, bless them.
Whole Foods Italian Cheeseboard
Leave it to Whole Foods to find an appealing euphemism to differentiate itself from the sea of “4 cheese” pizzas out there. Their Italian Cheeseboard pie does several things I can get on board with; first, as a white pizza it uses a mixed cheese sauce base instead of the traditional tomato. Second, it gives cheese-on-cheese action by topping the cheese base with 3 more cheeses, including asiago and gorgonzola. Third, it offers a serving suggestion of cracked black pepper and a fig and apricot drizzle, also included in the package, which is obviously the work of a knowing cheese person behind the scenes.
Freschetta Five Cheese Pizza
Sometimes the most dedicated cheese lovers can’t be bothered with pizza crust, so here’s a thin crust option with cheese all the way to the edge to satisfy those of you who can relate. (I cannot, but to each their own.) Also, what’s better than a 4-cheese pizza? A 5-cheese pizza! For a conventional frozen pizza that may be found at the likes of your typical grocery store, I admire that Freschetta includes 2 cheeses that are not necessarily for the faint of curd: fontina and provolone, both of which offer a particular, Italian sting.