Pesto Sausage Pizza

I know that I am in the middle of my Mexican Food Challenge month, but I thought that I would post something that I made a few months back that wasn't Mexican for a change of pace! I adapted this recipe from Taste of Home's Simple and Delicious magazine. It was really quick to prepare, and I really thought the flavors were great. The only problem I had with it, was I made it with a new kind of chicken Italian sausage that I had on hand, and the flavor of the sausage was not to my liking, it was heavily flavored with wine and a strong cheese, which was too overwhelming for this pizza. I picked the sausage off a few pieces and the result was delicious! I will definitely be making this again, but next time, I will be sticking with a sausage I trust!

Pesto Sausage Pizza

1 (13.8 oz.) can refrigerated pizza crust (or fresh pizza dough)

½ lb. bulk Italian sausage (I used chicken, but turkey would work well too!)

1 c. chopped onion

1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened

¼ c. prepared pesto sauce

1 c. roasted garlic Parmesan spaghetti sauce

1 (2¼ oz.) can sliced ripe olives, drained

1½ c. Monterrey Jack cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 400 °F

In a large skillet, cook sausage and onion over medium heat until sausage is no longer pink; drain. Unroll pizza dough and stretch out a bit. Transfer to a greased baking pan with a 1-inch lip, building up the edges slightly. In a small mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and pesto until blended. Spread over dough. Layer with spaghetti sauce, sausage mixture, olives and cheese.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until crust is golden brown and cheese is melted.