Mega Meatball Pizza with Homemade Tomato Sauce
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes + 1 hour to 2 days ferment time
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Italian, Pizza
- Cuisine: Dinner
Description
I’ve mentioned before how my son loves burger night. He wants Friday night burger night once a week, but we’ve negotiated every other week. We’ve started making pizza in the between weeks, and I’ve been having fun coming up with new and delicious pizzas. There is so much you can do!
This mega meatball pizza stemmed from a desire to have meatballs and Caesar salad, and, if you checked out last Sunday’s post, you’ll know I made a batch of those bad boys. We had three leftover meatballs, so I set them aside with the plan to make this pizza. However, I have included the meatball recipe I made the other day, only halved because you only need three or four to top your pie!
I’ve talked about how all of my pasta tomato sauces start with oven roasted tomatoes, so I did the same thing to make the pizza sauce. There is nothing better than sauce made from scratch. There are so many more flavors than jarred sauces!
The other thing I’ve said before and I will probably say every time I post a pizza… 2 day old dough is the only way to go. Seriously. Letting the dough sit in the fridge for two days lets the dough ferment and get a much stronger flavor profile. When you pop the lid off the bowl and take a good whiff, you’ll know what I mean! Also, letting the dough sit for two days makes the dough just a little firmer, which let’s it hold the weight of the meatballs without doing a sad little droop.
I find cooking on baking pans easier than working with a paddle and pizza stone. Heavier pizzas, I find, are harder to transfer to the stone without messing the pizza up. And when the pizza gets messed up going in, I get cranky. I want my pizza perfect!
Super easy recipe, super delicious, and great for a cool fall evening. It warms up your belly just right!
Enjoy!
Ingredients
Pizza Dough
1 1/4 cups warm water ~110°
1 packet of yeast (2 1/4 tsps)
2 TB honey
1 TB olive oil
3 cups (470 g) flour
1/2 TB salt
Tomato Sauce
10 vine-ripened tomatoes, cut in half
10 garlic cloves
½ cup fresh basil
⅓ cup red wine
½ TB balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
Meatballs
½ lb ground beef, pork, veal mix, or ½ lb ground veal
½ lb hot italian sausages, removed from casings
1 large egg white
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ TB fresh oregano, chopped
½ TB fresh thyme, chopped
1 TB Dijon mustard
1 TB Worcestershire sauce
1 TB tomato paste
½ cup bread crumbs
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 tsp paprika
pinch of salt and pepper
Toppings
¼ cup fresh basil
16 oz mozzarella, sliced or torn
5 oz fresh shredded Asiago
To Serve
freshly grated Parmesan, if desired
red pepper flakes, if desired
Instructions
Pizza Dough
Combine the water, yeast, and honey and whisk to combine. Let sit for about 5 minutes, or until frothy. Add the olive oil and whisk to dissolve the yeast.
In a standing mixer with the bread hook or a blender with a pizza disc, blend the flour and salt. Slowly add in the water mixture. Mix until a ball forms and separates from the bottom and sides cleanly.
In a lightly oiled bowl, transfer the ball of dough and roll to lightly coat in oil. Seal tightly with a lid or plastic wrap. Let sit for about an hour, or until doubled in size.
If following the 48 hour ferment, transfer the bowl to the refrigerator. Leave alone for 2 days.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator, leaving the lid on, about 4 hours before you are ready to cook.
Tomato sauce
Preheat your oven to 375°
Arrange the tomatoes on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper. Scatter garlic cloves and basil on top. Bake for 60 minutes.
Remove from the oven and scoop the ingredients into a blender or food processor. Add the red wine and balsamic vinegar and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Process until smooth. Set aside.
Make the meatballs
In a large bowl, add all of the meatball ingredients. Using your hand, thoroughly mix everything. This should take a couple of minutes to ensure everything is well mixed.
Form into 4 large meatballs.
Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat. When hot, add the meatballs. Turn the meatballs every few minutes until they are darkly browned on each side. Remove from the pan and let cool until you can handle them. They may not be fully cooked. That’s okay; they’ll finish cooking in the oven.
Slice the meatballs into about ¼” to ½” slices.
Prepare the Pizza
Preheat your oven to 550° (or your highest setting). Lightly flour two baking sheets.
Generously flour your working surface. Pull the dough from the bowl and roll into a ball. Cut in half. Place one half back in the bowl. With the other half, lightly sprinkle with flour and roll out until it’s about 12 inches in diameter. It does not need to be a perfect circle! Use more flour if the dough is sticking to your roller.
Transfer to one of the prepared baking sheets. Spread a generous amount of tomato sauce around the pizza, leaving about an inch free around the edge. Place half of the sliced meatballs evenly on the dough. Spread half of the basil on top. Take about half of the mozzarella and spread evenly around the pizza. Sprinkle half of the Asiago on top.
Repeat with the second pizza.
When the oven is ready, cook one tray at a time, 11 to 12 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.
Repeat with the second tray.
Transfer the pizzas to a cutting board to cut and serve.
Enjoy!
Keywords: Meatball Pizza, Pizza with Meatballs, Pizza Night
