Turkey Italian Sausage and Mushroom Pizza Braid

I didn't feel like making a big dinner so I decided to grab a few ingredients from the grocery store to make a homemade pizza. Instead of a regular pizza my kids and I decided to make a pizza braid. It only took a few extra minutes to make but was totally worth it! It not only looked really pretty it tasted delicious too. I planned on using just sausage and mushroom for the filling but my kids talked me into using pineapple too. This pizza braid was quick and easy to make and was a huge hit with the whole family... especially my kids who thought it was really cool.

Turkey Italian Sausage and Mushroom Pizza Braid:

Recipe and photos by Latestposter.blogspot.com

• 2 tsp olive oil
• 3 turkey Italian sausage links, casings removed
• 1/2 sweet yellow onion, diced
• 8 oz of button mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
• Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
• Cornmeal
• Pizza dough
• Pizza sauce
• Mozzarella cheese, shredded
• Pineapple tidbits
• Dried basil, to taste

Place the pizza dough onto a floured surface and let it sit at room temperature for 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the sausage (removed from casings) to the skillet and cook for 3 minutes, making sure to break up the sausage into crumbles. Add the onion, mushroom, crushed fennel seeds, sea salt, and freshly cracked pepper, to taste. Cook for an additional 5-6 minutes, stirring often, or until the sausage is cooked through and the mushrooms and onions are tender. Set aside.

Place a silpat mat (or large baking tray) on the counter and coat with cooking spray and sprinkle the top with a bit of cornmeal. Roll (or spread) the dough out on top of the silpat mat into a rectangle. Spoon the sauce down the center of the rectangle followed by the meat filling, pineapple, and cheese. Note: Don't use too much sauce or your pizza braid will be a bit soggy.

Cut even slits on both sides of the filling with a pizza cutter. Starting at one end, fold alternating strips at an angle across filling.

Spray the top of the pizza braid with olive oil cooking spray then sprinkle with a bit of dried basil.

Carefully place the silpat mat onto a baking sheet then place into the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes before slicing and serving. Enjoy.