Description
A mouthwatering pizza topped with creamy ricotta, beef pepperoni, and sweet-hot honey for a delightful balance of flavors.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 ½ cups (360ml) warm water (105-115°F)
- 2 ¼ teaspoons (7g) active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 3 ½ – 4 cups (420-480g) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (plus more for oiling)
- 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1 (28-ounce/794g) can whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes, crushed
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- A pinch of sugar (optional)
- 1 cup (240g) whole milk ricotta cheese
- ¼ cup (60g) grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 4–6 ounces (113-170g) beef pepperoni, thinly sliced
- 8 ounces (227g) low-moisture, whole milk mozzarella cheese, freshly grated
- ¼ cup (30g) freshly grated Pecorino Romano cheese (optional)
- Fresh basil leaves, for garnish
- ½ cup (120ml) honey
- 1–2 tablespoons hot sauce
- Pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
Instructions
- Combine warm water, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Let it foam for 5-10 minutes.
- Add olive oil and salt, then gradually mix in flour until a shaggy dough forms.
- Knead the dough on a floured surface for 8-15 minutes until smooth and elastic.
- Oil a bowl, place the dough inside, cover, and let it rise for 1-1.5 hours until doubled in size.
- Punch down the dough, divide into two balls, and rest for 15-20 minutes.
- Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan, sauté garlic and red pepper flakes.
- Pour in crushed tomatoes, oregano, sugar, salt, and pepper; simmer for 20-30 minutes.
- Mix ricotta, Parmesan, egg yolk, parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper until smooth.
- Warm honey, hot sauce, and red pepper flakes to make the hot honey drizzle.
- Preheat oven to 500-550°F (260-290°C) with a pizza stone for 45 minutes.
- Layer the pizza: Spread sauce, sprinkle mozzarella, arrange pepperoni, add dollops of ricotta, and top with remaining mozzarella.
- Bake pizza for 8-12 minutes until crust is golden brown.
- Drizzle hot honey over pizza, garnish with basil, and let rest before slicing.
Notes
For a lighter option, replace ricotta with cottage cheese. To make pizza vegan, use plant-based cheese and flaxseed instead of egg.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 320
- Sugar: 15g
- Sodium: 600mg
- Fat: 16g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 30g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 14g
- Cholesterol: 45mg
Keywords: pizza, hot honey, beef pepperoni, ricotta, Italian cuisine