Spicy Italian Pizza Pie
People often ask me, how do I make my pizzas at home? Do I have a fancy pizza stone or oven? With years of practice, I can tell you I make my delicious and gorgeous homemade pizzas just with my handy oven and a baking sheet! It’s really that simple, friends. A screaming hot oven, room temperature pizza dough, generous drizzles of olive oil and sprinkles of good sea salt or Kosher salt are really the key to making perfect pizzas at home. No fancy equipment necessary!
With these tricks up my sleeve, I’m always ready to throw down for an epic at-home pizza night. Not that I need an excuse to have an at-home pizza night, but this time of year is especially perfect for at-home pizza nights, if you ask me! All you need is a bottle of your favorite wine, a cozy fire, your favorite tunes and you’re ready for a perfect pizza pie night in the comfort of your own home.
When a true homemade pizza night craving strikes, I know I want something classic for my pizza topping combination. This is no time for fancy flatbreads or Hawaiian pizzas. No no, I want something meaty, cheesy and spicy. And for me, there’s no better pizza combination than mozzarella, ricotta, sweet Italian sausage and spicy pickled peppers AKA my spicy Italian pizza pie.
By all means, try out any of my tasty pizza recipes I’ve tried over the years. But I would 1000% recommend this spicy Italian pizza pie as a true classic that will always hit the spot.
Spicy Italian Pizza Pie
Ingredients
1 store-bought pizza dough (Trader Joe’s is the best!)
Extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage
1 cup Rao’s marinara sauce (of course you can use any marinara but once you go with Rao’s, you can’t go back!)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup ricotta
1/4 cup Mama Lil’s peppers, roughly chopped (these are also a must for the recipe!)
Directions
Set pizza dough on the counter to get to room temperature for at least 30 minutes prior to cooking. Meanwhile, cook your sausage in a skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up into small pieces. Cook until crispy and brown, drain off excess fat and set aside in a small bowl.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Drizzle olive oil on a baking sheet and roll pizza dough around to coat and begin stretching to fit most of the baking sheet. Drizzle with a touch more olive oil and sprinkle with Kosher salt, especially around the crust. Bake for 10-12 minutes until slightly golden brown.
Spread marinara evenly across dough leaving room for a crust. Evenly spread mozzarella cheese, followed by sausage crumbles, globs of ricotta and Mama Lil’s. Bake for another 10-15 minutes until cheese is melty and crust is golden brown and crisp.
Let cool for 5-10 minutes, slice and serve!
