A's Sausage, Pesto, and Pepper Pizza

I like LOVE cheese, so the fact that a cheese-free pizza gets me so excited is a miracle! This recipe originates from the June 2012 issue of Every Day with Rachel Ray and was applauded by all who devoured it. I made some slight updates based on the ingredients I had on hand and to make it a little healthier, but I stayed pretty close to the recipe. It requires relatively little active cooking time (20-30 minutes), which is great for those of us who are super busy. And perhaps more importantly, the result is divine.

If you're not into meat, don't dismay. This recipe could easily be turned vegetarian/vegan by substituting well-seasoned tempeh or any other suitable substitute for the sausage.

 

Total time: 45 minutes. Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup packed basil leaves
• 3/4 cup sliced scallion greens
• 4 oz raw blanched slivered almonds
• 1 heaping teaspoon of minced garlic or two large cloves, peeled
• 4 tbsp EVOO 
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 lb plain turkey sausage (or spiced, in which case you can forgo the chili powder)
• About 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 large red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• 1 large green bell pepper (or yellow), cut into thin strips
• 1 very small onion, chopped
• 1 package of Pillsbury thin pizza dough

Prep steps:
Preheat the oven to the temperature listed on your pizza dough package.

Sausage:
Coarsely chop the sausage and toss it in the chili powder. You can use as much or as little chili powder as you would like.

Heat the sausage in a skillet or grill pan for five minutes (or until browned) over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Pesto:
Using a food processor, pulse the basil, scallions, almonds, salt, pepper, and garlic.

You want it finely chopped. Drizzle in the olive oil. I'd start with just a few tablespoons of oil and add more as you see fit. I ended up using 4 tablespoons. Pulse until well blended and you have the texture you want.

Peppers and onion:
Heat a skillet or grill pan and add the peppers and onion. Heat them until charred in spots, turning them as needed. This will take about 5 minutes. If the peppers or onion seem to be burning or sticking, add a small amount of oil and/or turn the heat down a little.

Assembly:
Unroll the pizza dough on a baking sheet. Bake the dough alone for five minutes and then remove it from the oven. Spread the pesto on top of the pizza dough.

Evenly disperse the sausage, peppers, and onions over the pizza. Place back in the oven and bake for another 10 minutes, or until the crust is slightly golden brown.

Cut it and serve it!

 Adam’s taste rating: 4 ladles
Alina's taste rating: 5 ladles
Healthy rating: 4 ladles
Ease of prep rating: 4 ladles
Overall average: 3.75 ladles