Skip the take and bake and make some homemade pizza from scratch! It’s a lot easier than you think and this spicy chicken sausage pizza recipe is a great place to start 😉
The dough and sauce can be make ahead of time, which means less time in the kitchen. And another great thing about this pizza is that you bake it in a sheet pan! No fancy pizza pan needed!
You can improvise with your toppings if you’re not into this spicy chicken sausage pizza combo, but I promise it’s good. If you’re not a huge spicy fan, cut back on the red pepper flakes in the sauce and skip the jalapenos. But, trust me, you’ll want to have a slice of this guy and I know that because my parents ate the whole thing 😉
Here’s what you’ll need to make your own:
For the Dough –
- 2 Cups Bread Flour
- 1 Tsp. Instant Yeast
- 1 1/2 Tsp. Salt
- Slightly Less than 1 Cup Water
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
For the Sauce –
- 2 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 Cloves Garlic, Minced
- 2 Tbsp. Dried Oregano
- 1 (28 ounce) Can Crushed Tomatoes
- 1 Tsp. Garlic Powder
- 1 Tsp. Onion Powder
- 1 Tbsp. Sugar
- Dash of Red Pepper Flakes
- Salt (to taste)
Toppings –
- 1 lb. Spicy Chicken Sausage
- 1 Large Fresh Portobello Mushroom Cap
- 1-2 Fresh Jalapenos, Sliced
- Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, Sliced
- Pepper-Jack Cheese, Sliced Thinly
- Fresh Basil Leaves
To Make the Dough –
Combine the flour, yeast, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer.
Using the dough hook attachment, stir to combine, then add the water.
Mix on low speed until the dough forms a small ball, then turn off the mixer and allow the dough to rest for 10 minutes.
Once the dough has rested, continue to mix at a medium-low speed until the dough forms a smooth ball. (About another 10 minutes).
Remove the dough hook attachment, and form the dough into a tight ball. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in the mixing ball. Set in a warm place to rise for about 2 hours, until the dough has doubled in volume.
(If mixing the dough by hand, follow the same directions above, but after the dough has rested for 10 minutes, knead on a counter top until the dough forms a smooth ball, then allow to rise following the same directions above).
*You can make the dough a day in advance. Just wrap it in plastic wrap and store in the fridge until ready to use.
To Make the Sauce –
In a medium saucepan, heat 2 tbsp. of olive oil until shimmering (you don’t want it to smoke).
Add the garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes to the pan, stirring until you can smell them (about 30 seconds or so). *If you want spicier sauce, add more red pepper flakes.
Add the tomatoes, garlic powder, onion powder, and sugar.
Bring to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes.
Season to taste with salt.
To Make the Pizza –
Add some olive oil to the bottom of a sheet pan (make sure your sheet pan has edges) and spread along the bottom and sides.
Put the dough into the pan, and turn over to coat it in oil.
Press down on the dough and spread it towards the edges of the pan. You can also pick the dough up and gently pull to expand the dough. Be very careful not to tear holes into the dough. You won’t be able to stretch the dough enough to read the pan edges the first time around, so pull/spread it as much as possible and then cover the sheet pan with plastic wrap and allow it to sit for 30 minutes to rest.
Once rested, begin to stretch it out again to fit the pan. It should reach the edges this time around! Set it aside.
Next, in a medium saucepan over medium/low heat, brown your spicy chicken sausage and cook through. (If your sausage came in a casing, remove the meat from the casing to cook). Drain the grease from the meat and set aside.
Place your oven rack to the lowest position in the over and then preheat it to it’s highest setting (mine was set at 480 degrees).
Once you have your dough stretched to fit your pan, add the sauce to cover the dough. I prefer a lighter amount of sauce on my pizza, but add as much as you want. (There will be leftover sauce, so save it for a second spicy chicken sausage pizza or some pasta!)
Sprinkle the cooked sausage over the pizza sauce, covering the surface of the pizza.
Wash and slice up the portobello mushroom cap and add the slices to the top of the pizza throughout. (I chose to keep my mushrooms in long, thin strips, but you can cut them as small or large as you like).
Add the sliced mozzarella cheese, covering the pizza dough well. The cheese will melt and spread slightly, but you definitely want the pizza to be cheeeesey! After adding the fresh mozzarella slices, I added some additional sliced pepper jack cheese for an extra little kick.
Top with sliced, fresh jalapenos, and basil leaves.
Cook the pizza in the oven, for about 30 minutes, checking to ensure the crust isn’t burning. You want to cheese to be melted and browning slightly on top.
Remove from the oven and allow the pizza to cool for about 5 minutes before slicing.
Serve this spicy chicken sausage pizza immediately.
Invite a few friends over, or include the family in the homemade pizza making process! It’s a fun activity to do as a group and who doesn’t like pizza?! (If you don’t, we can’t be friends. Kidding…maybe).
Let me know if you make this spicy chicken sausage pizza!
