A spicy pizza with garden vegetables and sausage

Many people have lots of tomatoes. With the cold weather, the last of them are ripening. This is a great way to use some of them. You can use either overripe tomatoes, underripe tomatoes, or both in the sauce.

If you want, you can substitute a pinch of red pepper flakes for the hot peppers. I have tons of them in my garden, and I like the bite they give the pizza. Here’s how I put this together.

2 cups of flour

1 cup of lukewarm water

1/2 tsp. salt

Olive oil

2 tbs. yeast

2 large (or several small) tomatoes

1 bell pepper

4 tabasco chiles (strictly optional)

1 green onion

2 cloves of garlic

Oregano

1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese

3 cups of shredded Mozzarella cheese

1 Italian sausage

Corn meal

Preparation

Place the flour, salt, yeast, about two tablespoons of olive oil, and the water in your mixing bowl. Use the dough hooks to bring the dough together. Adjust with additional flour or water if necessary. Knead the dough for about a minute, and then set it in a warm place to rest.

Chop the tomatoes, bell pepper, and hot peppers if you want them. Heat a medium skillet, and add enough olive oil to coat the bottom. Add the tomatoes and peppers. Chop the onion and garlic, and add those as well. Sprinkle on about a teaspoon of oregano. Let that simmer until the tomatoes start to fall apart. Taste and adjust with salt and pepper. Turn the heat off, and let the sauce cool to a warm room temp.

Use your hands to work the dough into a 17 inch circle, turning it over and flouring it as you do. Slide the dough into a 16 inch pizza pan, that has been sprinkled with corn meal. Roll the edges up to form a crust. 

Spread the sauce evenly on the pizza dough. Sprinkle on the grated Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle on the Mozzarella cheese. Slice the sausage and add that. Sprinkle the top of the pizza with a little extra oregano. 

Bake in a 410º oven until the cheese is golden brown and bubbling. Remove the pizza to a cutting pan, and drizzle the top with your very best olive oil. Let this sit for five minutes before slicing.

Serving

You want a big tossed salad to go with your pizza. Pick out a good red wine and ring the dinner bell!