My Cast-Iron Skillet Pull-Apart Stuffed Pizza is a perfect dish to eat when watching football. I serve it with a side of Marinara sauce for dipping. Served hot or at room temperature, these pull-apart pizza bites can be individually customized. You could get creative and make them with a variety of fillings. All you need is a cast-iron skillet.

Let’s start with the filling.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 52 minutes (this includes the filling)
Total Time: 1 hour 2 minutes
Yields: 6 servings
Equipment: 1 (12-inch) cast-iron skillet, rolling pin, 1 (12-inch) sauté pan, 2 rimmed baking sheet pans, parchment paper, mini food processor, pastry brush, 1 small mixing bowl, 1 (4-inch) mini tart pan

Ingredients:
1 pound of store-bought pizza dough, room temperature (rolled out and cut into circles, 4 inches in diameter, need 24 circles)
1 pound of sweet or hot Italian sausage, casings removed
2 tablespoons of Canola oil (add oil to a paper towel and thoroughly grease the cast iron skillet)
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1/2 a Poblano pepper, seeded and diced (substitute green bell pepper)
1/2 yellow bell pepper, seeded and diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 (14.5-ounce) can of fire-roasted tomatoes, drained
2 tablespoons of dried oregano
1 tablespoon of kosher salt
1 teaspoon of black pepper, freshly-ground
1 cup of mozzarella cheese, freshly-grated
1/2 cup of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, freshly-grated
2 tablespoons of Italian flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1 tablespoon of fresh oregano leaves, finely chopped

Ingredients for the Seasoned Butter:
1/2 stick of melted butter, unsalted
1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon of Italian seasoning

Sauce for Dipping:
2 cups of Marinara sauce for dipping (substitute store-bought pizza sauce)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Preheat a large sautèpan over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and sausage. Using the back of a wooden spoon, break up the sausage. Cook, moving the sausage around, until brown and no longer pink, about 10-12 minutes.

In the same sauté pan, add all the veggies, along with kosher salt, fresh-ground black pepper, and dried oregano, and stir to combine. Cook, stirring frequently until veggies soften, about 3-5 minutes. Add the drained fire-roasted tomatoes, reduce the heat to medium-low, stirring occasionally, and simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Finish by adding fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley and fresh oregano, and mix to combine.

Using a slotted spoon to drain any excess grease, transfer the pizza filling to a large mixing bowl to cool. Once cooled, add the shredded Mozzarella and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and stir to combine. Move on to rolling out the pizza dough.

Start by rolling out the pizza dough to about 1/4-inch thick. Using the bottom of a mini tart pan, cut out 24 (4-inch) circles and lay them out onto two rimmed baking sheet pans lined with parchment paper. Add Canola oil to a piece of paper towel and wipe down the cast-iron skillet.

Start adding 1 tablespoon of the filling to the circles of pizza dough, then fold them into a crescent shape. Next, place them in a circular pattern starting at the outside of the skillet and working your way inwards.

Bake on the bottom rack for about 25 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Be sure to keep your eye on it while it’s baking.

Instructions for the Seasoned Butter:
In a small bowl, melt butter. Add garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Stir to combine. While the pizza is still hot, brush the top with the seasoned butter. Serve with a side of marinara or pizza sauce.

There you have it, my Cast-Iron Skillet Pull-Apart Stuffed Pizza.

Note:
1) Linda Lou Hamel is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value are important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through a preferred online nutritional calculator of your choice. Calories and values can vary depending on the brands you choose.

https://lindalouhamel.com/2019/07/10/summer-time-flowers-and-herbs/