Sausage, Pepper, and Onion Pizza

These pizzas make a quick, fun weeknight meal.

Ingredients:

• Cooking spray
• 1 and 1/2 cups vertically sliced onion
• 1 cup green bell pepper strips
• 2 vegan Italian sausage links (such as Field Roast)
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 (14.5-ounce) undrained can diced tomatoes
• 1 (8-ounce) French bread baguette
• 1 cup shredded Daiya mozzarella

1. Heat a large skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat.  Add the onion and bell pepper strips, and saute for 6 minutes.

2. Add the sausage, and cook for 5 minutes, breaking apart the sausages into crumbles as they cook.  Add the crushed red pepper and the canned tomatoes, and cook for 5 minutes - the mixture will be thickened by the end.

3. Cut the baguette in half horizontally, and place the halves on a baking sheet.  Spread the sausage mixture evenly over the cut sides of the bread, and sprinkle evenly with the mozzarella.  Bake at 450 degrees for 5 minutes.  Cut each pizza in half and serve.  These are great with pickle spears on the side.

Note: for a fun dessert, try this quick strawberry-anise sundae recipe: Combine 1/4 cup light-colored corn syrup, 2 tablespoons vegan sugar, 2 teaspoons fresh-squeezed lemon juice, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, then continue to cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves.  Remove from heat and stir in 1 tablespoon anise-flavored liqueur.  Although any variety would work taste-wise, I have confirmation from the great vegan alcohol directory at barnivore.com that Pernod Ricard is vegan, as is Romana Sambuca.  Place about 1/2 cup vanilla non-dairy ice cream of your choice in a dessert bowl, along with 1/4 cup sliced strawberries; top with about 1 tablespoon of the anise syrup. 

Nutrition Info:
4 servings (1 pizza half), Calories 375

Tasting Notes:
I hate to give two 5's a row, lest my readers think I'm over-inflating how good my cooking is, but this pizza seriously tasted like it came from the corner pizzeria, not my own kitchen, and if I hadn't made it with my own two hands, there's no way I would believe it was vegan.  Just the right kick of spice from the crushed red pepper, savory sausage, deliciously crispy baguette for the crust, and super cheesy, melt-y Daiya on top.  Yum!

Rating:
5