Gourmet Cranberry Sausage Pizza: A Unique Blend of Sweet, Savory, and Spicy Perfection
Prepare to elevate your pizza night with a culinary masterpiece that expertly balances contrasting flavors and delightful textures. This Cranberry Sausage Pizza is a truly gourmet experience, boasting a captivating combination of two rich cheeses, the bright tartness of cranberries, the robust kick of spicy sausage and a hint of jalapeño, all brought together by an irresistible, dreamy Dijon cream sauce. It’s a surprisingly easy recipe to create, promising a memorable and utterly delicious meal.
Tired of the same old pepperoni or plain cheese pizza? It’s time to break free from tradition and embark on a flavor adventure! This Cranberry Sausage Pizza recipe isn’t just another meal; it’s an experience. Imagine the rich, creamy notes mingling with a subtle heat, and then, a burst of tart fruitiness cutting through it all. This isn’t just pizza; it’s a conversation starter, a dish that will have your guests asking for the recipe long after the last slice is gone. It’s surprisingly sophisticated yet incredibly approachable for home cooks.
Why This Cranberry Sausage Pizza Will Become Your New Favorite
There are countless reasons to fall in love with unique pizza recipes, and this Cranberry Sausage Pizza stands out from the crowd. Here’s why it deserves a spot in your recipe rotation:
- **Gourmet Flavors Made Easy:** This pizza offers a truly elevated taste profile that rivals high-end pizzerias, yet it’s designed to be effortlessly achievable in your home kitchen. You don’t need to be a professional chef to create something extraordinary.
- **Surprisingly Simple Preparation:** Despite its impressive appearance and complex flavors, this recipe is incredibly straightforward. With a pre-made crust and a few simple steps, you can have this gourmet delight on your table in under an hour. It’s perfect for busy weeknights when you crave something special without the fuss.
- **The Unforgettable Duo: Sausage and Cranberries:** This seemingly unconventional pairing is nothing short of culinary genius. The savory, spicy notes of the sausage find their perfect counterpart in the vibrant, tart cranberries. It’s a harmonious balance that delights the palate and keeps you coming back for more.
- **Embrace Culinary Adventure:** Life is too short for boring meals! This recipe encourages you to step outside your comfort zone and explore exciting, “kinda-out-there” flavor combinations. It’s a testament to how wonderful unexpected ingredients can be when thoughtfully combined.
So, clear your schedule, gather your ingredients, and prepare for a pizza night that redefines delicious. This is more than just a meal; it’s an experience waiting to happen!
The Magic of Cranberries: Beyond the Holiday Table
My love for cranberries runs deep – it’s practically a birthright for a Boston girl! While they are a staple during the holiday season, cranberries are far too versatile and flavorful to be confined to just Thanksgiving or Christmas. Their distinct tartness makes them an exceptional ingredient in savory dishes, adding a bright, zesty counterpoint that cuts through richness beautifully.
In this Cranberry Sausage Pizza, the cranberries play a crucial role. They are the “OoOhhh” factor, providing a delightful zing that perfectly balances the heavier elements like the spicy sausage, the creamy Dijon sauce, and the generous layers of cheese. Without them, the pizza would still be tasty, but it wouldn’t have that surprising depth and vibrant edge that makes it truly special. They prevent the dish from feeling overly indulgent, creating a more balanced and exciting flavor profile.
Sourcing the Best: Cape Cod Select Premium Cranberries
For this recipe, I proudly used Cape Cod Select Premium Cranberries. If you haven’t yet discovered them, allow me to introduce you to a fantastic company. Cape Cod Select is a women-owned, small family business with a rich history spanning 75 years of growing cranberries. Their impressive 800-acre farm even boasts solar-powered facilities, showcasing a commitment to sustainability that I deeply admire. Their passion for quality is evident in every berry, offering a consistently fresh and vibrant product perfect for all your culinary endeavors. They generously supplied me with a bounty of cranberries, leading to a delicious “cranberry storm” in my kitchen this month, including other favorites like my Mini Sausage Party Tarts with Cranberry Mango Compote and my beloved Cranberry Chorizo Macaroni and Cheese. These recipes truly highlight how well cranberries pair with robust, savory ingredients.
Crafting Your Gourmet Pizza: The Components
The Foundation: A Perfect Crust
To keep things simple and efficient, I opted for a freezer thin crust, a staple in my kitchen that I’ve used successfully many times before for various pizza creations. A thin crust provides the ideal crisp base without overpowering the rich toppings. However, for those who enjoy the process of making pizza from scratch, feel free to use your favorite homemade dough. If you’re looking for an excellent recipe, I highly recommend checking out my Sam Adams Beer Pizza Dough for a truly unique flavor, or my Homemade Pizza Sauce with wine and garlic, which could be adapted if you prefer a tomato-based pizza sauce.
The Creamy Heart: Dijon Cream Sauce
The secret to this pizza’s extraordinary taste lies in its creamy Dijon sauce. This luscious base is similar to the one I created for my popular Chicken Cordon Bleu Pizza. It’s incredibly easy to make, requiring just a few simple ingredients to create a rich, tangy, and savory foundation that binds all the flavors together beautifully. The Dijon mustard provides a subtle yet distinct sharpness that complements the other ingredients without being overwhelming.
The Savory & Spicy Stars: Sausage, Jalapeño, and Cheese
The choice of hot sausage in this recipe is intentional, designed to deliver a delightful kick that perfectly harmonizes with the sweet and tart cranberries. The spice level was just right for us, especially when balanced by the fresh white onion, mushrooms, and the sweetness of the cranberries. However, if you prefer a milder pizza or are cooking for children, simply substitute regular or mild Italian sausage. The flavor profile will still be incredible, just without the added heat. Two types of cheese – shredded mozzarella and Havarti – create a melty, bubbly, and incredibly flavorful topping. Mozzarella offers that classic pizza stretch and mild flavor, while Havarti adds a buttery richness and a slightly tangy note that elevates the cheese blend.
The thinly sliced fresh jalapeño, especially if it’s from your garden, adds a fresh, vibrant heat that is quite different from the dried spice in the sausage. It’s a layer of flavor that truly makes this pizza unique.
Assembling and Baking Your Culinary Creation
Once your Dijon cream sauce is prepared and your ingredients are prepped, assembly is a breeze. Begin by spreading the creamy Dijon sauce evenly over your chosen pizza crust. Then, layer on the cooked and crumbled hot sausage, thinly sliced white onion, mushrooms, slivered almonds for a subtle crunch, and the roughly chopped Cape Cod Select Premium Cranberries. Finally, generously top with both shredded mozzarella and Havarti cheeses, along with those delicate slices of jalapeño and a finishing sprinkle of fresh cracked pepper.
Baking this pizza on a preheated pizza stone in a hot oven (450°F initially, then reduced to 400°F) ensures a perfectly crispy crust and beautifully melted, golden cheese. The aromas that will fill your kitchen as this pizza bakes are simply divine, promising an exciting meal ahead. The goal is to achieve a bubbly, golden-brown top and a perfectly cooked crust, indicating all those incredible flavors have melded together.
A Flavor Combination You Won’t Forget
This Cranberry Sausage Pizza is more than just a meal; it’s a delightful journey for your taste buds. The initial bite offers the rich creaminess of the sauce and melted cheese, quickly followed by the savory depth of the sausage. Then, the tart burst of cranberry cuts through, refreshing the palate and making you crave the next bite. The subtle heat from the sausage and jalapeño adds a dynamic warmth, creating a truly complex and satisfying experience. It’s the kind of gourmet pizza that makes every pizza night feel like a special occasion.
In conclusion, this fun gourmet pizza, with its fantastic and unique flavor combination, is an absolute winner. It’s easy to make, surprisingly sophisticated, and even better to eat! Give this Cranberry Sausage Pizza a try, and prepare to be amazed by how well these seemingly disparate ingredients come together to create something truly exceptional.
Cranberry Sausage Pizza
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Equipment
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pizza stone
Ingredients
For the Dijon Cream Sauce:
- 1 cup cream
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- ½ tsp kosher salt
For the Pizza:
- 1 precooked thin crust pizza crust
- ¼ lb hot sausage cooked and crumbled, fat drained (see Notes)
- ¼ cup white onion thinly sliced
- 4 oz sliced white button mushrooms
- scant 1/4 cup slivered almonds
- ¼ cup Cape Cod Select Premium Cranberries rough chop
- 1-1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¾ cup shredded Havarti cheese
- 1 jalapeno very thinly sliced
- fresh cracked pepper
Instructions
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In a medium, nonstick skillet, heat the cream. Once at a simmer, reduce heat and cook gently, stirring regularly, until reduced by half. Add the Dijon and salt and set aside. This creates your luscious and tangy Dijon cream sauce.
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Preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C) with your pizza stone (if using) placed inside. This ensures a perfectly crispy crust from the start.
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Carefully remove the preheated stone from the oven (use oven mitts!). Now, it’s time to assemble your beautiful pizza. Start with the pre-cooked crust, then spread an even layer of the prepared Dijon Cream Sauce. Next, distribute the cooked and crumbled sausage, thinly sliced onion, mushrooms, and slivered almonds. Scatter the rough-chopped Cape Cod Select Premium Cranberries generously across the pizza. Finally, top with the shredded mozzarella and Havarti cheeses, along with the very thinly sliced jalapeño and a dash of fresh cracked pepper. Bake at 450°F (230°C) for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 400°F (200°C) and continue baking until the cheese is all bubbly and golden, and the crust is perfectly browned. This typically takes an additional 5-10 minutes. Serve immediately and enjoy! Yields: 3 generous servings.
Notes
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