Cotechino isn’t a traditional Italian pizza topping. This Emilian-originated sausage made with pork, lard, pork rind (the name comes from the Italian “cotica” for pork rind) and spices is usually simmered for a few hours and served with lentils on New Year’s Eve. (Eating cotechino con lenticchie is thought to be a good omen — wealth and good luck — for the year ahead). But we are talking about sausage, one of pizza’s most popular toppings, so we couldn’t stop wondering about a pizza homage to this Italian New Year’s tradition. To determine the best approach, we turned to two of our favorite Italian recipe developers, Vincenzo Viscusi and Antonio Malati, who couldn’t resist the challenge.

The toppings are simple but do require a bit of prep. After a bit of experimentation, Viscusi and Malati reinterpreted the lentils as a loose purée for a flavourful base. They opted for fior di latte for a creaminess to complement this pizza’s rich flavor. As cotechino tends to run soft after cooking it for several hours, they found that a sprinkling of tender, unblended lentils and scatterings of roasted potatoes and chopped walnuts added a nice contrasting texture. As the duo note in their video this isn’t something you’ll likely find at your local pizzeria, but it is a rich and delicious riff on the classic dish.

Notes: Cotechino is an Italian sausage that you can find fresh or pre-cooked but that may not be available at your local supermarket. We recommend Italian specialty stores or buying it in advance online. If you can’t find it, you can substitute it with your favourite sausage, finely crumbled and gently par-cooked.

This recipe makes enough dough and toppings for 6x pizzas, but you can halve quantities for a smaller serving, or reserve the dough and toppings for a later date. The toppings will keep for up to 3 days in a sealed container in the refrigerator.