Sweet Sausage Pizza with Carmelized Onions, Red Peppers and Basil

This morning I thought I would make Tollhouse Pan Cookies between two rounds with the snow plows.  When I pulled them out of the oven, something just did not look right.  All I can think of is that I only added 1 1/4 cups of flour instead of the 2 1/4 cups called for in the recipe.  Needless to say, that greasy mess went right in the garbage.

Then, I thought I would make tuna salad for lunch using a recipe I found for Balsamic Mayonnaise.  Now, if anyone has ever made mayonnaise from scratch, you very slowly add in the oil.  Too much, too soon can break the thick mayonnaise and turn it into a soupy mess. I had it nice and thick and creamy.  Then, one more small addition and there it was, the mayonnaise just broke and I had a soupy mess on my hands. 

I told myself to write this day off and move on.  Afterall, cooking is a learning game.

After two kitchen failures this morning, I really had a craving for homemade pizza.  Pizza is the one food that I could eat any day, any time.  And relatively easy to make.

Sweet Sausage Pizza with Carmelized Onions, Red Peppers and Basil

1 pound loaf frozen bread dough

1 tablespoon cornmeal

½ pound sweet Italian sausage

1 teaspoon fennel seed

3 tablespoons olive oil; divided

½ medium red onion; sliced thinly

½ medium red pepper; sliced thinly

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

2 plum tomatoes; seeded and sliced thinly

2 tablespoons fresh basil; rolled and thinly sliced

¼ cup marinara sauce

½ cup Romano cheese; sliced thinly with a vegetable peeler

½ teaspoon kosher salt

Olive oil

1. Thaw bread dough in a greased covered bowl in a warm spot until doubled in size (about 8 hours).

2. Grease jelly roll pan and sprinkle with cornmeal. Preheat oven to 425˚

3. Roll bread dough to fit a 15x10 ½-inch jelly roll pan. If dough shrinks back, let it rest for 10 min and roll again. Repeat until dough is large enough to fit into pan. Pat dough into pan and bake for approximately 15 minutes until crisp and light gold brown.

4. Meanwhile cook sausage in frying pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil and fennel seed over medium-high heat until browned. Set aside.

5. In same pan, add remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and sauté the red onions and red pepper until tender and onions are slightly caramelized. Add balsamic vinegar. Set aside.

6. Spread marinara sauce on crust. Add crumbled Italian sausage, red onion and red pepper mixture. Top with sliced tomato, Romano cheese, basil.

7. Sprinkle with kosher salt and drizzle with additional olive oil.

8. Bake pizza for 20 minutes or until warmed through.