Sausage, Onions, and Peppers Deep-Dish Pizza - Chicago Style Pizza

Ingredients

• Pizza dough, homemade or store-bought
• All-purpose flour, for dusting
• Olive oil
• 1/3 pound hot Italian sausage
• 1/3 pound sweet Italian sausage
• 1 red onion, sliced
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 red pepper, sliced
• 1/2 cup Tomato Sauce, recipe follows
• 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan
• 1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
• 1/3 cup 4-cheese blend, shredded

Directions

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.

Roll out the pizza dough on a lightly floured surface into approximately a 12-inch round and 1/2 to 3/4-inch thick. Oil a 10-inch pie pan and fit the dough into the pan, spreading the dough up the sides of the pan. Set aside to let the dough rise, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet. Remove sausage from casing and add to skillet. Cook until sausage is browned. Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes, until soft. Season with salt and pepper. Add the bell pepper and cook until slightly softened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.

Place the dough in the oven and par-bake half-way for 8 to 10 minutes.

Drizzle the dough with olive oil and top with Tomato Sauce, 1 cup of the sausage mixture, grated Parmesan, chopped tomatoes and the cheese. Bake in the oven until crust is golden and cheese is melted, about 5 to 10 minutes.

Cut into wedges and serve immediately.

Basic Tomato Sauce

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 red onion, small dice
• 4 tablespoons minced garlic
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 3 tablespoons red wine
• 1 (28-ounce) can whole plum tomatoes
• 1/2 cup water

Heat the oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for about 5 to 7 minutes, until onions are soft and translucent. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and add the basil leaves, red wine, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 20 to 25 minutes.

Cool the sauce before using it to make pizza.

Yield: about 3 cups