Sausage Recipe

Prep dough

Remove pizza dough from refrigerator at least 30 minutes before baking so it comes to room temperature. Preheat your oven with a pizza stone or steel to 500–550°F (260–290°C) for at least 45 minutes.

Lightly dust a pizza peel or work surface with semolina or flour. Stretch or roll the dough into a 10–12 inch round, leaving a slightly thicker rim for the crust. Brush the surface of the dough lightly with 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil to help resist sogginess from the sauce.

Make quick sauce

In a small bowl, combine 1 cup crushed tomatoes, 1 tsp olive oil, 1 minced garlic clove, 1 tsp dried oregano, 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp black pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning. The sauce should be bright and slightly under-seasoned because ricotta will mellow it on the finished pizza. Use about 3/4 cup of this sauce for one 10–12 inch pizza.

Cook sausage

Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Crumble 8 oz house-made Italian sausage into the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and cooked through, about 6–8 minutes. Break into small bite-size pieces. Transfer to a paper towel–lined plate to drain excess fat.

Prepare broccoli rabe

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Trim tough ends from 6 oz broccoli rabe and blanch in boiling water for 1–2 minutes until bright green and just tender. Immediately transfer to an ice bath to stop cooking, then drain and squeeze out excess water. Roughly chop into 1-inch pieces. Optionally sauté chopped rabe in the sausage skillet with a teaspoon of oil for 1–2 minutes to marry flavors, then remove and drain any excess oil.

Prepare ricotta

Stir the 1 cup ricotta to loosen its texture. Taste and season lightly with a pinch of salt if desired. Spoon ricotta into a piping bag or small spoon for easier dolloping on the pizza.

Spread about 3/4 cup of the prepared tomato sauce over the oiled dough, leaving a 1/2 inch rim.

Distribute the cooked sausage evenly over the sauced surface in small chunks.

Scatter the chopped broccoli rabe over the sausage, distributing evenly so each bite gets greens.

Dot the pizza with spoonfuls of ricotta (about 6–8 dollops, roughly 2 tbsp each) so the cheese melts in pockets rather than a uniform layer.

Sprinkle 1 tsp fennel pollen evenly over the pizza, followed by a light dusting of the optional 2 tbsp grated Pecorino/Parmesan if using.

Slide the pizza onto the preheated stone/steel and bake at 500–550°F (260–290°C) for 7–9 minutes, or until the crust is blistered and golden and toppings are bubbling. Baking times vary with oven and temperature—watch closely after 6 minutes.

Remove pizza from oven. Drizzle 1 tsp chili oil in a light spiral or dots across the pie and finish with 1 tsp coarse salt sprinkled over the rim and toppings to taste.

Let rest 2 minutes, then slice and serve hot.