Caramelized Onion & Fennel Pizza {w/ recipes}

I was rather surprised to realize this is my first post on pizza. The reason being that Steven and I make pizza at least 2-3 times a month. It is one of our staple, go-to recipes.

We have a few different types we usually alternate between:

chicken pesto goat cheese with roasted garlic
barbecue chicken with tomatoes and cilantro
thin crust with salami (like we had in Venice)
cilantro chicken meatball with buffalo mozzarella and fresh tomatoes

You see, we take our pizza very seriously.



Last week I decided to venture outside my pizza comfort zone and make a new combination. The fennel in my fridge was calling my name and I decided it belonged on a pizza. I searched the internet for recipe ideas and found a bunch with fennel and caramelized onions. I decided to give it a whirl.

This was a big step for me since I'm not an onion person. I hated them as a kid, and have grown to tolerate them as an adult. It's not the flavor, it's a consistency thing. So I'll cook with them, and eat them if I'm at someone's house, but I don't particularly care for them.

Until I had this pizza. My eyes were opened to the glorious-ness of caramelized onions.  Sweet and juicy onion with the subtle anise flavor of the fennel, I could have eaten them on their own. But atop a pizza crust sprinkled with mozzarella and goat cheese, topped with savory sausage. Mmmm, I was in pizza heaven.

I added some arugula for freshness (plus, this was how my pizza was served in Rome!).

Caramelized Onion & Fennel Pizza w/ Chicken Sausage 

pizza dough
1 sweet onion (thinly sliced)
1 fresh fennel bulb (core removed and thinly sliced)
1 large chicken sausage link
shredded mozzarella
crumbled goat cheese
olive oil
butter (optional)
arugula (optional)

1. To caramelize onions and fennel, heat olive oil in a large skillet, over medium high heat. I like to use a little butter as well, so I add about a tablespoon to the pan and swirl to combine with the olive oil. Add desired amount of onion and fennel to the pan. I used about half each and reserved the other half for another use. Cook onions and fennel over medium until caramelized (about 10-15 minutes). Remove from pan.

2. In the same skillet, brown sausage on all sides. The first time I made this I used a gruyere & garlic sausage and the second time I had artichoke and garlic sausage - both were great! Remove sausage and cut into bite sized pieces.

3. Shape pizza dough and place on baking sheet or pizza pan.

I'll admit, I cheat when it comes to pizza dough. I usually buy the dough from Trader Joe's. Or sometimes I pick up some frozen dough at a local grocer from a nearby Italian restaurant. But if you have your own pizza dough recipe, by all means use it here. 

4. Brush dough with olive oil and lightly layer with mozzarella and goat cheese. A little goes a long way with this pizza. There's so much going on you don't need a ton of cheese. Add sausage along with onion and fennel mixture. Bake according to dough instructions, or until cheese is melted and dough looks done.

5. Remove from oven and {optional} top with a handful of fresh arugula. Enjoy!!

w/ arugula

w/out