Pizza on the Porch

Had company for dinner tonight, but wanted to keep things nice and simple. I made a few homemade pizzas, including one for dessert. Every one was a keeper, each more delicious than the next. Gotta love those kind of nights!

The main course pizzas were a Caramelized Onion and Crispy Pancetta Pizza and a Spicy Sausage Pizza. Nicholas helped me make the pizzas, and actually ate both, surprisingly enough. In fact, he liked them so much, he made me promise to save some of each for his babysitter tomorrow night. The Caramelized Onion and Crispy Pancetta one was light, slightly sweet and very flavorful. The Spicy Sausage one was a very overloaded pizza (in a good way) with spicy sausage, mozzarella, diced tomatoes and fresh basil. Delish! The sausage is mixed with white wine and spices making it pack a real punch. We had a hard time deciding which one we liked better.

Lastly, for dessert, I made a Fruit Tart that was summery, sugary and easy to make. This would have been a perfect entry for last week’s Sugar High Friday. Another great night weather-wise for porch eating, we’re making sure to take advantage of it while we still can.

I can’t believe tomorrow is Friday already – this week went fast! Tune in tomorrow to see what’s on tap for the weekend…

Caramelized Onions and Crispy Pancetta Pizza

Fruit Tart

Sweetnicks Spicy Sausage Pizza
Spicy Sausage
2 pounds ground pork
1/2 cup white wine
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1-1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 garlic cloves, crushed

Rest of Pizza:
1 (10-ounce) can refrigerated pizza crust dough
Cooking spray
5 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese (about 3/4 of an 8 oz bag)
4 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil
1 (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, drained well
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Combine all ingredients for spicy sausage in a large bowl. Cook sausage in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Drain. Preheat oven to 450°.
Unroll dough onto large baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Pat the dough out. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border, and top with sausage, basil, and tomatoes. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and pepper. Bake at 425° for 12 minutes or until cheese melts.

Sweetnicks Caramelized-Onion and Crispy Pancetta Pizza
1 tube refrigerated pizza dough
1 teaspoon olive oil
8 ounces pancetta (Italian-style bacon) or Canadian bacon, chopped
2 medium onions, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded fontina cheese, divided
4 oz. Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
Cracked black pepper

Unroll dough onto large baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Pat the dough out. Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; add pancetta, and sauté for 2 minutes. Add onions, thyme, salt, and white pepper; cook 20 minutes or until onions are browned, stirring frequently. Preheat oven to 475°. Brush the pizza dough with 1-1/2 teaspoons oil; top with half of onion mixture. Sprinkle cheese over pizza and top with remaining onion mixture. Bake at 475° for 9 minutes or until crust is crisp. Sprinkle with black pepper.

Fruit Tart
1 (18-ounce) package refrigerated sugar cookie dough
Cooking spray
3 tablespoons seedless raspberry jam, melted
3/4 cup lemon curd
1 cup fresh raspberries
1 cup sliced strawberries
2 plums, sliced
2 teaspoons sugar

Preheat oven to 350°. Press dough into a 12-inch pizza pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 12 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack. Preheat broiler. Spread jam over crust. Spread lemon curd over jam; arrange raspberries, strawberry slices, and plum slices on top. Sprinkle sugar over fruit; broil 3 minutes.

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