Sausage Spinach Pizza Recipes

Steps:

• Make the pizza: Place an inverted baking sheet or pizza stone on the lowest oven rack; preheat to 475 degrees F. Stretch the pizza dough into an 11-by-15-inch rectangle on a floured piece of parchment paper; trim any excess paper around the dough. Transfer the dough (on the parchment) to a pizza peel or another inverted baking sheet and slide the dough and parchment onto the hot baking sheet. Bake until browned in spots, 10 to 12 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up into pieces with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink, about 4 minutes.
• Remove the crust from the oven. Spread the ricotta on top, leaving a 1-inch border. Sprinkle with the mozzarella, provolone and parmesan; top with the sausage and garlic. Return the pizza to the oven and bake until the cheese is bubbling, 8 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle with the oregano.
• Meanwhile, make the salad: Soak the red onion in ice water for 10 minutes, then drain. Toss the spinach, fennel, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts and red onion in a large bowl with the vinegar and olive oil; season with salt and pepper.
• Top the pizza with the salad and cut into pieces. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes.

Steps:

• Place your stone on the lowest shelf of your oven, then turn your oven to its highest temperature. Most ovens go to 500°F (260°C) and some to 550°F (287°C). Heat your stone for at least one hour before baking.
• If you're taking your dough out of the fridge, give it about 15 minutes or so to warm up a bit so it will be easier to work with. It should have doubled in size in the fridge. If it hasn't, let it sit at room temperature, covered with a slightly damp towel, until it does.
• Lightly flour your counter and your hands. Flip the dough into the flour bowl so the top side of the dough ball gets dusted first. Flip it once more, making sure that the dough is completely coated. Press the dough down into the flour, then pick it up and place it on the floured countertop.
• Pressing your fingers firmly into the dough, start by flattening the center and work your way out toward the edge to make it wider, until it's about 7 to 9 inches (17 to 23 cm) wide. Pushing down on the dough will release some of the gas and actually begin opening up the dough. Be careful not to disturb the outermost lip. This will eventually become your crust.
• The next step is a bit tricky. Your goal is to take this disc of dough and carefully stretch it to about 14 to 16 inches (35.5 to 40.5 cm) without tearing it or creating a hole. I pick it up with floured hands and begin to gently stretch it over my fists, letting gravity do most of the work.
• Once you've stretched it enough, put the dough back on the counter, making sure there is a generous dusting of flour underneath. Take a few generous pinches of semolina flour and dust your pizza peel. Make sure it's coated evenly. Gently lift and transfer your dough to the peel. Make sure both your hands and the peel are well-floured. You are now ready to dress your pie.
• Start by adding both mozzarellas to the dough, followed by the spinach and garlic. Add the sausage. Top with the cream and season with salt. Transfer to the oven. Bake for 3 minutes, then open the oven, pull out the rack with the baking stone, crack the eggs into the center of the pizza, and season them with salt and pepper. Push the rack back into the oven, close the door, and finish baking.
• The crust will rise significantly. Then change the oven setting from bake to broil, cooking the pizza from the top down until the crust begins to blister. The residual heat of the stone will continue to cook the bottom. (If your broiler is at the bottom of your oven, skip this step and continue to bake the pizza as described.) I cook all my pizzas until they're well done, which could take up to 10 minutes total (sometimes less). Just keep checking so you don't burn it. Look for the cheese to color and the crust to turn deep brown. It may blacken in spots, and that's okay.
• When the pizza is done, remove it from the oven and finish with the chives, a pinch or two of crushed red pepper flakes, a drizzle of olive oil, and the grated hard cheese.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375°F. Spray large cookie sheet with cooking spray, or line with cooking parchment paper.
• In 10-inch nonstick skillet, cook Italian sausage 6 to 8 minutes over medium heat, until no longer pink; drain. Stir in mushrooms; cook 4 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are lightly browned and tender. Stir in spinach leaves; cook until just starting to wilt. Remove from heat; stir in pizza sauce.
• Unroll dough on cookie sheet to 13x8-inch rectangle. Sprinkle 1/2 cup of the cheese in 3 1/2-inch-wide strip lengthwise down center of dough all the way to ends; top cheese with sausage mixture. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese.
• Make cuts 1 inch apart on each side of rectangle just to edge of filling. Alternating from side to side, fold cut strips of dough at an angle halfway across filling, slightly overlapping ends.
• In small microwavable bowl, microwave butter uncovered on High 20 to 30 seconds or until melted; stir in Italian seasoning. Brush butter mixture on top of braided crescent dough.
• Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until deep golden brown. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Serve with additional pizza sauce, if desired.

Steps:

• In a large skillet, cook pancetta over medium heat until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, remove to paper towels to drain. Saute garlic in drippings for 1 minute. Add spinach; cook just until wilted. Drain spinach mixture on paper towels., In the same skillet, saute mushrooms in oil until tender; add the pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Transfer to a small bowl and let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in the mascarpone cheese, olives and pancetta. , Place crust on an ungreased pizza pan. Spread mushroom mixture over crust; layer with spinach mixture, provolone and Romano. , Bake at 450° for 10-12 minutes or until cheese is melted.