One of my favorite things to do with food is twist up a classic, and this effort is a big-time winner! When my husband, Les, and I began talking about making our annual White Clam Pizza for New Year’s Eve (these conversations begin in October because we are obsessed that way), the gears of my foodie brain started spinning. What would happen, I wondered to myself, if we put all the incredible, decadent, special occasion flavors of Oysters Rockefeller—on a pizza?
Oysters Rockefeller has always been a favorite of mine, an appetizer dish that feels so classic and ritzy and special. So what about a crispy New York-style pizza crust with a creamy base, briny oysters, smoky cooked bacon, earthy spinach, pungent garlic and sharp salty cheeses—oh my goodness, yes—why wouldn’t this be a thing?
Unlike the white clam pie, which is cooked sans sauce, I felt that this one needed something creamy as a base. Tomato sauce won’t do, because that isn’t a flavor I associate with oysters. It had to be creamy, but not too cheesy. One thing I have learned about fish in general is that most “melty” cheeses do not pair well, but hard, salty cheeses such as Parmesan are perfect. We remembered how tasty the roasted garlic béchamel was on the creamy garlic and mushroom pizza I developed last year—so that’s where I started for the base. Next came some homework to discern the exact right flavors that make Oysters Rockefeller so exquisite. The bacon must be crisp, but not too crunchy. The cheese should be decadent and nutty, but not stringy or heavy the way mozzarella would be. Gruyere is common in the classic appetizer, so that’s a go, and Romano has that nice salty punch. Spinach—obviously a must, and I embellished the flavor of that with a splash of dry vermouth. Finally, a generous scattering of buttery, crunchy garlic panko crumbs when the pie emerged from the oven.
All the fancy flavors of Oysters Rockefeller, on a fun and casual pizza. Served with Caesar salad and champagne, of course.
This is how traditions are born, friends. Enjoy!
Ingredients
1 ball N.Y. pizza dough (or your favorite store-bought dough, about 11 oz.)
The béchamel base
1 Tbsp. salted butter
1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole milk
1 whole bulb roasted garlic
2 oz. gruyere cheese*
The cooked toppings
3 very thick slices uncured smoked bacon* (see notes)
1 small shallot, minced fine*
1 fat handful fresh baby spinach leaves
A pinch of ground cayenne pepper (optional)
2 Tbsp. dry white wine (or dry vermouth)
The cheese toppings
1/2 cup grated gruyere cheese
1/4 cup grated or shaved Pecorino-Romano cheese
A few tablespoons of our favorite parm-romano blend cheese
The garlic crumb topper
2 Tbsp. salted butter
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/3 cup panko bread crumbs
1 small handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
The oysters
1 dozen large Blue Point (or similar) oysters, shucked*
*Notes
Gruyere is a nutty, semi-hard cheese that is similar to Swiss cheese. It is a typical ingredient in the topping for Oysters Rockefeller, and I used it twice for this pizza—in the béchamel and also grated on top of the pie. Substitute with Swiss or mild white cheddar if you cannot get it.
The bacon we used was possibly the best bacon I’ve ever tasted. I wish I could give you a brand, but this was a locally produced, heritage pork we found at Whole Foods. It was uncured (nitrite-free, which is a standard in this house) and smoked with peach wood—wow. So, so good. You may not be able to find this exact kind of bacon, but substitute a good quality, thick-cut bacon with smoky flavor and not too much sweetness. This bacon was also hand-cut by the butcher and therefore very thick slices. Once cubed, it measured a total of about 1 1/2 dry cups.
The hand-cut bacon was quite thick, perfect for getting crispy edges without overcooking. 
The bacon pieces were roughly the size of sugar cubes.
Please remember that shallots are not the same as scallions, but more similar to red or sweet onion.
We agonized for weeks about the oysters, wondering whether we could purchase them fresh in the shell from a local restaurant that specializes in them, but we kept bumping into the same issue—for food safety reasons, no purveyor would sell them shucked but still in the shell. We had two options—either shuck them ourselves at cooking time (this is not for novices, which we are) or buying them already shucked, by the pint. We opted for the latter and they were fantastic. The container had more oysters than we needed for our creation, but don’t you worry—the extras will pop up on a salad or something very soon.
Instructions
I have learned (the hard way), when it comes to special recipes that I’ve never made before, that it is best to work ahead so that stress is minimized at cooking time. For this reason, I have broken the instructions down into segments, beginning with the béchamel base and the cooked toppings. It’s nice to have them done, out of the way and the kitchen cleaned up before the real cooking begins. The pictures tell most of the story, but keep scrolling for a downloadable PDF version of the instructions for your recipe files. I hope you’ll make it!
Béchamel and cooked toppings
This is the same base I made for the creamy garlic and mushroom pizza I introduced back in the summer. A béchamel is one of the simplest and most adaptable things you can make in the kitchen—master this, and you’ll find yourself whipping up all kinds of creations. I only needed a small amount for this Oysters Rockefeller pizza, and I ended up not using all of it. When cooled, the béchamel is somewhat thick and difficult to spread, so check the photos to see how I managed to get it evenly onto the dough.
Whisk the flour into the melted butter and cook until bubbly. 
Add milk all at once and whisk until smooth and thickened. 
Squeeze in the tender roasted garlic. 
I only used a small amount of gruyere in the bechamel. The flavor will be echoed in the cheese toppings later. 
Shred or cube the hard cheese and whisk into the sauce until smooth. 
The bechamel is rich with roasted garlic flavor, a perfect base for the other toppings. 
Cook the bacon until the edges are crispy, then drain them on paper towels. 
It was very tough to resist tasting the bits, they were so good! 
Shallots almost always grow in two parts. I only used the small side of this one, which amounted to about 2 tablespoons. 
Nothing complicated here. Cook the spinach until wilted and most of the moisture is cooked out. 
For a tiny kick, I sprinkled a pinch of cayenne onto the spinach. 
Deglaze the skillet with a splash of dry white wine or dry vermouth. Cook until all liquid is evaporated. 
Cook the garlic briefly in the butter, taking care not to burn it. 
Add the panko crumbs and toss until butter is absorbed. 
Add chopped parsley to the mix and toss to combine. 
Set this mixture aside at room temp until the pizza comes out of the oven.
If you’d like, you can make the béchamel and cooked toppings a couple of days ahead. Be sure to bring all ingredients to room temperature when you’re ready to build the pizza.
Ready to assemble this masterpiece?
There’s a downloadable PDF at the bottom of this post, but I always think the pictures are more interesting. 🙂
The bechamel is quite thick when cool, so I spooned it into a zip-top bag for piping onto the dough. Worked like a charm! 
For tips on shaping fresh pizza dough, see my post for N.Y. Pizza Dough. 
My dough was very relaxed, so I was able to spread it across the entire peel. Be sure to flour the peel for easy transfer to the oven. 
The thick béchamel could never have been spread onto the dough, but my piping bag did the job. 
I sprinkled a bit of parm-romano onto the dough along with the cooked shallots, then arranged the oysters all over. 
I was glad to have a generous amount of bacon. The smoky flavor was a terrific balance to the briny, juicy oysters. 
For no particular reason, I grated the gruyere but used a potato peeler to shave the pecorino-romano. 
One last sprinkle of parm-romano, and this masterpiece is ready for baking. 
Into the 550 F oven for about 6 minutes. 
Scatter all of the seasoned panko crumbs onto the pizza as soon as it emerges from the oven. 
Comfort du Jour 
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