Cheese doesn't reach the edges, leaving bald patches

Ask yourself

• Was cheese added from the centre outward, or scattered across the whole surface including near the edge?
• Is this happening consistently at the same point in your topping routine?

Likely causes

1. #1

   Cheese added centrally and not spread all the way to the intended edge

   Generally accepted

   The same central-pile habit that causes general unevenness disproportionately affects cheese, since it's usually added in fewer, larger handfuls than other toppings.

2. #2

   Deliberately leaving a bare rim border but also leaving cheese short of where it should end

   Supported, with regional variation

   A bare rim border for a raised-rim style is intentional and correct; cheese falling short of that border rather than reaching right up to it is not the same thing and is usually just under-coverage.

Rescue it now

Add a final light scatter of cheese specifically toward the edges before baking

Prevent it next time

Cover the surface up to the intended border deliberately, checking the edge specifically rather than relying on cheese spreading itself during the bake

Go deeper

Guides that treat this as an outcome to improve, an environment to work with, or a flavour to understand, rather than only a problem to fix.

Related problems at this stage