Essence Eats

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Summer
  • Recipes
  • How-to
  • About
  • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Summer
    • Recipes
    • How-to
    • About
    • Contact
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×
    Home » Dinner

    Spicy Sopressata Pizza with Hot Honey

    Published: Oct 28, 2020 Modified: Jul 18, 2023 by Emma Essence This post may contain affiliate links.

    23 shares
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Email

    This is my ALL TIME FAVORITE PIZZA. I know how obnoxious all capital letters are, but that was intentional because that is how good this pizza is! I want to yell it from the rooftops! It is a sweet and spicy twist on a traditional pizza. On top of a fluffy Sicilian style crust is a thick herby tomato sauce, topped with heaps of fresh mozzarella, spicy sopressata, and fragrant basil. But the true love story begins when pizza met.... hot honey! If you have never tried hot honey, be ready to be mind blown. It's spicy and sweet; it is like candy with a kick.

    My first job was at Barros Pizza! I mostly worked there to fund my ranch addiction (they have the best ranch in the whole entire world). After working the cash register for a while, I would always peek through the window to the kitchen to see pizza tossing in the air. It didn't take long for my curiosity to strike. After shifts, we would experiment with pizza toppings and flavors. Countless combinations! One night, we even made a cinnamon apple dessert pizza! If only I had discovered hot honey back then... maybe I would have consumed less ranch.

    Spicy Sopressata Pizza with Hot Honey

    Emma Essence
    Fluffy Sicilian style crust pizza topped with spicy sopressata, fresh mozzarella, and fragrant basil drizzled in hot honey.
    5 from 3 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 40 minutes mins
    Cook Time 20 minutes mins
    Dough Resting Time 5 hours hrs
    Course Dinner
    Cuisine American
    Servings 1 16-inch pizza

    Equipment

    • 16-inch Pizza Pan

    Ingredients
      

    Pizza Crust

    • 2 teaspoons instant dry yeast
    • 1 tablespoon sugar
    • 1 ½ teaspoons salt
    • 1 ¾ cups warm water
    • ⅓ cup olive oil
    • 5 cups all purpose flour
    • 4 tablespoons butter melted, to brush crust before and after baking

    Pizza Sauce

    • 6 ounces tomato paste
    • 15 ounces tomato sauce
    • 2 tablespoons oregano
    • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
    • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
    • ½ teaspoon onion powder
    • ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
    • ¼ teaspoon salt

    Hot Honey

    • 1 cup honey
    • 6 dried chili peppers chopped

    Pizza Toppings

    • 12 ounces fresh mozzarella drained and torn into rough chunks
    • 6-10 ounces hot sopressata
    • 10-15 fresh basil leaves
    • fresh parmesan optional

    Instructions
     

    Pizza Dough

    • In a bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl, combine yeast, sugar, salt, water, olive oil, and flour.
    • Knead on low or hand knead until dough starts to come together. Continue kneading until the dough forms a soft ball, and all sides of the bowl are clean. Add more flour if needed to achieve this texture.
    • Dust a sheet pan with flour and set the dough on it. Lay a hand towel on top of the dough and rest for 5 hours.

    Pizza Sauce

    • In a medium-sized bowl, mix tomato paste and tomato sauce together until smooth.
    • Add the oregano, fresh parsley, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper and mix again.
    • Set aside.

    Hot Honey

    • Add honey and chopped dried chiles to the saucepan. Heat over low-medium heat to a bare simmer. Do not boil!
    • Just as the mixture starts to simmer, turn the heat down to low. Cover and cook for about 30 minutes to infuse the chiles.
    • Remove from heat and strain mixture into an airtight container.

    Put it all together

    • Preheat the oven to 550F.
    • On a 16-inch pizza pan, place your dough. Gently stretch dough the size of the pan, about ¼ inch thick. Make edges of pizza dough a little thicker to form the crust.
    • Spread a layer of pizza sauce around the pizza, leaving a 1-inch border around the edge. Brush melted butter on the crust edges and sprinkle garlic powder and dried parsley.
    • Grab the fresh mozzarella, rip chunks with your hands, and place them evenly dispersed over the pizza. Followed by the spicy sopressata, and followed by the basil leaves.
    • Transfer pizza to the oven and cook for approximately 16-20 minutes or until the crust is golden and toppings are bubbly.
    • Cool for 5 minutes before serving. Brush crust with remaining melted butter. Drizzle hot honey on top and fresh parmesan.
    Keyword Honey, Hot, Pizza, Sopressata, Spicy

    Comments

    1. Lydie says

      January 03, 2021 at 3:03 pm

      5 stars
      Oh my gosh this was the best pizza I’ve ever made. The flavors were so good you would have thought it was made at a restaurant. The hot honey was the best sweet addition. I made this for my friends and they loved it! Overall it was a very easy recipe which I liked! I ended up marking two 14” pizzas with this exact recipe. My oven was refusing to heat to 550 so I got impatient and it ended up baking between 425-475 for 20 minutes so the crust ‘crunch’ wasn’t as good as it would be if my oven weren’t stubborn. My crust really stuck to the pan which could have been avoided if I had added some flour the pan while forming the crust. I will 100% be making this again, and now want to try infusing more honey!

      Reply
      • Emma Essence says

        January 06, 2021 at 3:31 am

        Thank you so much for such a thorough review! I am so glad you love the hot honey as much as I do! It is fun to make and can be added to so many things for additional flavor and spice. I appreciate the feedback and review!

        Reply
    2. Samantha Cote says

      February 14, 2021 at 8:00 pm

      5 stars
      I made this pizza and it is SO GOOD. I had never had hot honey before, let alone on pizza, and it was hands down the best topping I've ever had. I will never look at pizzas the same after this one. Recipe was very clear and easy to follow. My oven only went up to 500 degrees so I let it bake for around 22 minutes and it was perfect! 10/10 recommend!

      Reply
      • Emma Essence says

        February 18, 2021 at 6:59 pm

        RIGHT! Hot Honey is life changing. I am trying to figure out all the different ways I can use it now. I am glad to hear the pizza came out perfect at 500 degrees for 22 minutes. Thanks for the review!

        Reply
    3. ashok says

      March 24, 2021 at 6:06 am

      5 stars
      My Family Loved it. I am definitely sharing Guys, Thanks For sharing this Great Recipe. this recipe and this website with my friend. Hope they also love it. Thank you again for sharing such a great recipe.

      Reply
      • Emma Essence says

        March 24, 2021 at 5:47 pm

        Thanks so much for the review Ashok! I am so glad to hear you and your family loved the pizza.

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    About Me Square Image

    hi there, i'm emma essence!

    I'm Emma & welcome to Essence Eats! Here you will find creative takes on classic comfort food recipes! From decadent desserts to warming soups, these recipes will give you all the cozy feelings.

    more about me →

    fall recipes

    • Bowl of broccoli brie soup with chunks of brie
      Creamy Broccoli and Brie Soup
    • a cropped version of a pumpkin espresso martini with lit candles around it
      Pumpkin Espresso Martini (with Homemade Pumpkin Spice Syrup)
    • A oatmeal chocolate chip cookie surrounded by other cookies and milk
      Chewy Almond Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
    • Bowl of butternut squash tomato soup with a spoon in it
      Creamy Butternut Squash Tomato Soup
    • Phyllo dough brie bite cut in half oozing cheese
      Air Fryer Brie Bites with Cranberry Sauce
    • Orange Chocolate Fudge Loaf Cake slice surrounded by oranges
      Orange Chocolate Fudge Loaf Cake

    popular recipes

    • Pile of cookies with a bite taken out
      Soft Bakery Style Salted Caramel Cookies
    • large chicken wing on a platter of other chicken wings with a side of ranch drenched in hot honey lemon pepper sauce
      Hot Honey Lemon Pepper Wings
    • Bowl of broccoli brie soup with chunks of brie
      Creamy Broccoli and Brie Soup
    • An apple hand pie with puff pastry surrounded by apples and floral
      Easy Apple Hand Pies with Puff Pastry
    • Goat Cheese Balls
      Fried Goat Cheese Balls
    • Close up shot of cheesy pull of french onion fries on a fork
      French Onion Fries

    Share your creation!

    Did you try one of my recipes? I can't wait to see it!

    Tag @essenceeats and #essenceeater on Instagram!

    featured in

    • Pinterest
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • TikTok
    • Mail
    • Spotify

    Footer

    back to top ⬆

    Read our Terms

    • privacy policy
    • accessibility policy

    Keep in Touch

    • Sign up for emails and updates
    • find us on instagram
    • find us on facebook
    • find us on pinterest

    About

    • about me
    • contact me

    AS AN AFFILIATE PARTNER, I EARN A SMALL COMMISSION FROM QUALIFYING PURCHASES, AT NO COST TO YOU. I ONLY RECOMMEND PRODUCTS I REALLY USE AND LOVE.

    copyright © 2022 Essence Eats LLC