Sausage, Mushroom, Onion & Pepper Pizza on Whole Wheat Crust

I decided on a quick weeknight pizza and thought sausage and veggie would go over well with the boys. I didn't want to make a big pizza, so I halved my normal "go to" crust recipe for week night pizza (since it doesn't require time to rise) and made enough for 1 12" thin crust pie.

 I started with the liquid ingredients in the bottom of the Kitchen Aid mixer plus the sugar.

I added in the flour and turned the mixer on. I scraped down the sides as needed to help the dough ball form.

Once the dough ball was formed I let that go on about medium speed for 5 minutes and then let the dough rest while I got everything else ready.

I started with mushrooms, an orange pepper, large onion and ground sausage.

 I diced up the pepper and put that with the mushroom and sausage into the nonstick frying pan.

 I broke up the meat and set the heat to about medium while I finished dicing the onion.

After getting the rest of the veggie into the mixture I stirred to combine and then let that cook on medium heat for about 15 minutes.

While the meat mixture finished cooking I went ahead and rolled out my medium sized crust and gave it a little bit of an edge, but not much since it was pretty thin!

Once the onions were translucent and the meat was completely cooked through I turned the heat off and finished prepping the crust.

On went about half a small can of tomato sauce.

Followed by a generous sprinkling of Italian seasoning, garlic powder and grated Parmesan cheese.

The meat and veggie mixture was sprinkled on over the top next.

 Lastly came about a cup of mozzarella and a sprinkling of cheddar.

That went into the pre-heated oven for about 15 minutes and out came a golden, beautifully browned pizza!

I added a couple slices of fresh tomato to mine and we all enjoyed our dinner! Quick and easy and do-able even on a weeknight, This crust is a lot denser than one you would allow to rise, but it works well with the whole wheat and I love that I can count on it anytime I don't have a couple hours to do a different crust!

Pizza Crust (this is the full recipe, I used only half for a thin 12" pizza, but normally use a full amount for a larger pizza pan - this recipe was given to me by my mother-in-law!)

1 pkg dry yeast (I sometimes use "dry active" but have also used instant/bread machine yeast interchangeably in this recipe)

1 cup warm water

3 cups whole wheat flour (or 1/2 whole wheat, 1/2 AP)

1 tsp sugar

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup olive oil

Sauce:

1 8-oz can tomato sauce

Italian seasoning (to taste)

garlic powder (to taste)

grated Parmesan cheese (to taste)

Directions

Dissolve yeast in warm water; add sugar, salt and oil. Mix. Add half of the flour and beat until there are no lumps. Gradually add remaining flour. Knead dough for five minutes, adding additional flour if dough is still tacky. Take half the dough for a smaller pizza pan or use all the dough for a larger pan and roll out to fit. Repeat if necessary. Top with tomato sauce and favorite toppings. Bake in a pre-heated 450 degree oven for 15-20 minutes or until crust is lightly browned and cheese is melted and browned.

Sausage and Veggie Topping

1/2 lb ground sausage

1 large onion, finely diced

1 bell pepper (your choice of color), diced small

1-2 cups fresh mushrooms

1 cup shredded mozzarella

1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

Combine ingredients in a non-stick skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Cook until meat is browned all the way through and vegetables are tender, about 14-20 minutes.

Spread toppings over prepared crust and sauce, sprinkle with cheese and bake as directed.