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The Best Summer Corn and Tomato Pizza Recipe
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This Summer Corn and Tomato Pizza from the Pizza Party Card Deck is loaded with roasted corn, fresh basil, and sun-ripened cherry tomatoes. It’s basically California summer on a crust.
Some pizza nights are about convenience. This one is about produce. Specifically, the kind of California cherry tomatoes and sweet corn that are so good right now they barely need help — just high heat, good cheese, and an excuse to turn on the oven.
This Corn and Tomato Pizza comes straight from the Pizza Party Card Deck by Jennifer Abernathy of Food by Jenn, and it is the definition of summer on a crust.
Fresh, Simple, and Straight from California
Jennifer says, “Living in California has completely changed the way I think about cooking. When you’re surrounded by incredible produce year-round, it naturally inspires recipes that feel fresh, vibrant, and simple in the best way possible. This Corn and Tomato Pizza was inspired by some of my favorite California-grown ingredients and the kind of meals that feel perfect for warm evenings, backyard gatherings, and casual pizza nights with friends and family.”
“California is known for producing over 90% of the nation’s processing tomatoes, and fresh tomatoes are a huge part of the state’s food culture. Sweet corn is also one of California’s most anticipated summer crops, showing up at farmers markets and roadside stands throughout the season. Roasting the fresh corn brings out its natural sweetness while the juicy tomatoes, basil, garlic, and oregano create a pizza that tastes like summer in the Golden State.”
“One of my favorite parts about living in California is how easy it is to shop seasonally and cook with ingredients that were grown nearby. Whether it’s picking up fresh produce at a local market or building recipes around what’s currently in season, those ingredients always seem to make meals feel a little more special — and this pizza is the perfect example of that.”
The Pizza Party Card Deck Is Worth Knowing About
Jennifer built a following of over one million across social media by making cooking feel like something worth gathering around. The Pizza Party Card Deck is that philosophy in physical form. More than 40 unique pizza recipes packed into a single deck — Mediterranean, Chicken Shawarma, Thai Shrimp, Tikka Masala, and plenty more — designed so that anyone can shuffle, pick a card, and make something genuinely delicious.
It’s not a cookbook. It’s a kitchen activity that ends with dinner. And this Corn and Tomato Pizza is one of the recipes that makes the whole concept click. Fresh ingredients, minimal fuss, a little technique. That’s it.
Here’s Why California is King When it Comes to Tomatoes
You’ve eaten California tomatoes your whole life, probably without realizing it. California’s Central Valley produces 95% of the processed tomato products consumed in the United States — that’s your standard pizza sauce, pasta sauce, and canned tomatoes sitting in your pantry right now. The state’s combination of long sunny days, fertile valley soil, and generations of farming expertise produces tomatoes with a sweetness and depth that’s hard to replicate anywhere else.
That flavor translates directly to fresh tomatoes, too. Cherry tomatoes from California farmers markets and summer produce stands are a different experience than what you find out of season. Sweeter. More concentrated. The kind that burst when they hit a hot oven and basically sauce themselves. That’s exactly what’s happening on this pizza.
Tips for Getting This Right
Fresh sweet corn off the cob makes a real difference here. Canned corn won’t roast the same way, and you’ll miss the slight char that makes the topping interesting. The same goes for the tomatoes — ripe cherry tomatoes at peak season are the whole point of this recipe. Don’t swap in anything pale or out of season.
Jenn also recommends finishing with freshly grated Parmesan right before serving. It’s a small thing that adds a salty, nutty layer, pulling everything together.
The dough is flexible. Store-bought works perfectly here. The toppings are doing enough heavy lifting that you don’t need to stress the base.
Make Pizza Night an Event
The Pizza Party Card Deck was designed around one idea: food is better when everyone’s involved. Shuffle the deck, each person picks a card, and suddenly, pizza night has stakes. Kids are into it. Dinner parties love it. Pick up the Pizza Party Card Deck and start building your own pizza-night traditions.
Need a new soundtrack for your kitchen? Check out this CA GROWN Spotify playlist:
What is your favorite way to top a pizza? We’d love to hear about it! Share your photos with us by tagging #CAGROWN on social media.
Don’t stop here! Follow us on Pinterest for more fresh and fabulous recipe inspiration. Dive into the world of CA GROWN goodness, and let’s make every meal a celebration of the Golden State’s bounty.
Summer Corn and Tomato Pizza
Ingredients
- 2 ears fresh corn roasted and kernels removed
- 1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes halved
- ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
- 2-3 TBSP garlic minced
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- 2 TBSP Dijon mustard optional
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- Olive oil for drizzling
- 1 store-bought pizza dough stretched and formed into a 12-inch round.
Instructions
To roast the corn:
- Roast the corn until lightly charred.Grill Method: Grill corn over medium-high heat for 8–10 minutes, rotating occasionally.Oven Method: Roast at 425℉ (220℃) for 20–25 minutes.
- Once cool enough to handle, slice the kernels off the cob.
To make this pizza:
- Preheat oven to 450℉ (230℃).
- In a bowl, combine roasted corn, cherry tomatoes, basil, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper.
- Spread Dijon mustard over your pizza dough. If not using mustard, drizzle dough lightly with olive oil instead.
- Sprinkle mozzarella cheese evenly over the dough.
- Top with the roasted corn and tomato mixture.
- Bake for 12–14 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted and bubbly.
- Finish with extra fresh basil, flaky salt, or a drizzle of olive oil if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Learn More About Other CA GROWN Ingredients You’ll Find In This Recipe Below:
A Word About California Extra Virgin Olive Oil:
Want to be sure your olive oil is fresh, the highest quality, and the real deal? Look for the COOC seal on bottles of California Extra Virgin Olive Oil to make sure you’re getting delicious 100% Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Certified California EVOO uses stricter standards than international requirements, requiring the oil to pass chemical testing and a sensory analysis by a group of experts, called an organoleptic panel evaluation.
Look for the Real California Milk seal!
Every product stamped with the Real California Milk Seal is made with wholesome dairy from the Golden State, where 99% of dairy farms are family-owned. Plus, California dairies are worldwide leaders in sustainability efforts, sharing best practices, innovations, and technologies such as methane digesters with other states and nations.
Got your Real CA Dairy in hand? Whip up Ricotta Toast with Warm Peaches + Blueberries or Frozen Yogurt Snack Bites.
