Italian Sausage Pizza

This sheet pan pizza uses a hot roll mix as a shortcut for the dough, giving you a yeast-risen crust without measuring flour or proofing yeast separately. The clever trick here is dissolving the yeast in warm tomato sauce instead of plain water, so the crust itself picks up tomato flavor from the inside out.

Italian sausage browned with onions and green peppers makes up the topping, and it gets cooked before it goes on the pizza so the crust stays crisp instead of getting soggy from raw meat juices. Mushrooms go in with the sausage mixture for an earthy depth.

Monterey Jack cheese melts into a gooey, stretchy blanket that’s milder and creamier than mozzarella. It goes down before the sausage and vegetables so it acts as a barrier between the wet sauce and the toppings, keeping the layers distinct.

Pro Tips

• Remove the sausage casing and crumble the meat into small pieces while browning so every slice gets sausage
• Drain the browned sausage mixture thoroughly. Excess grease on the pizza will pool and make the crust soggy
• Press the dough with greased fingers and form a raised rim around the edge to contain the sauce and toppings
• The pizza is done when the crust edge turns golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes

Variations

• Use hot Italian sausage instead of mild and add red pepper flakes for a spicier pie
• Swap Monterey Jack for a blend of mozzarella and provolone for a more traditional Italian cheese pull
• Add sliced black olives and pepperoni along with the sausage for a supreme-style loaded pizza