SWEET ITALIAN SAUSAGE AND PEPPER PIZZA by NancyC, adapted from Ragù 

Makes 2 (12″) pizzas, 6-8 servings each                                

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 (19-ounce) package sweet Italian Sausage
• 2 bell peppers-1 red, 1 green (or use 2 green or 2 red), chopped
• 1 small to medium-size onion, chopped
• 1 jar (1 lb. 8 oz.) Ragù® Old World Style® Traditional Pasta Sauce
• 3 cups (12 ounces) shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided
• 2 (14-ounce) packages 12-inch Italian bread shells

Heat olive oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-low heat (if oil is splattering too much, turn heat down a little lower) and cook sausage, turning occasionally, about 5 to 7 minutes; remove sausage from pan, let cool slightly and cut into thin slices (about 1/4″ to 1/2″ thick)–it’s easier to cut the sausage into slices after it has cooked a little. Sausage slices will still be pink in center, so return to skillet and cook a few minutes more, until sausage is fully cooked. Remove sausage slices from skillet and drain on paper towel.

With oil still in skillet, add chopped bell peppers and onion into it and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 3 to 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in pasta sauce and cook another 3 to 5 minutes, until everything is heated through.

Preheat oven to 375˚F. Place Italian bread shells on pizza pans, pizza stones, or 1 very large baking sheet and top each with half of the pasta sauce/veggie mixture, spreading evenly over surfaces (keep sauce about 1″ from the edges of the bread shells so it won’t drip off while it’s baking). Top the sauce evenly with 1 1/2 cups of Mozzarella cheese on each pizza. Then arrange half of the sausage slices evenly over the cheese on each pizza, pressing slices slightly into the cheese and sauce toppings.

Bake pizzas at 375˚F for 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool a few minutes, then cut with a pizza cutter and serve. Note: the package directions on the Italian bread shells say to bake at 450˚F, but I baked these pizzas at a lower temp, 375˚F, so my sausage slices wouldn’t get too overly cooked.

Recipe from NancyC | nancy-c.com