Sauerkraut and Kielbasa Pizza

Sauerkraut smells.

Right?  That is what I always thought.  One of my Boulder friends gave me a bottle of her homemade sauerkraut recently.  Homemade food thingies have a very special place in my heart.  Tear up a little when I am gifted food.  However, of all the things in the world that you can make, I have never once considered making sauerkraut.   

When my friend was telling me she made sauerkraut, first I thought...weirdo.  Second, I listened and she said it tastes nothing like the canned stuff at the store.  And I had a revelation, "you know, I have never had non-fresh kimchi and I have always loved the stuff."  Then I thought, "I bet homemade sauerkraut is just as amazing."  And, it is!  And it does NOT smell so bad.

Don't get me wrong, I totally plug my nose and scoop plenty of canned sauerkraut on my Reuben.  Once it is mixed in with all the other lovely Reuben ingredients, it tastes fine.  And you gotta have it.  But, boy does it reek.  

I really wanted to try this sauerkraut on pizza, so I searched around to find an interesting recipe.  I found this one, and it inspired the recipe below.  I loved the sauerkraut on this pizza.  So good!  I used a turkey kielbasa and thought it added a nice salty balance.  But, I think any sausage or salty meat would be great.  And of course, I topped it with some sliced dill pickles.    Sorry if that makes you want to puke, but I am telling you...it is good!    

Sauerkraut and Kielbasa Pizza

1/2 of PW’s pizza dough recipe

1 small to medium yellow onion, sliced

2 cups of sauerkraut, plus some juice

2 tbsp of Dijon mustard

2 ounces of cream cheese

4 ounces of mozzarella cheese, shredded

2 ounces of Swiss cheese, shredded

4 ounces of kielbasa sausage, thinly sliced

fresh cracked pepper

sliced dill pickles

Preheat the oven to 475-500 degrees F.

In a small skillet, sauté onion slices in a little olive oil. Cook for about 5-10 minutes, until soft. Add sauerkraut and a tsp or so of the juice. Cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Stretch out the dough onto an oiled baking sheet. Spread Dijon mustard all over the dough with the back of a spoon. Crumble the cream cheese on top. Layer the onion/sauerkraut mixture on next. Sprinkle on shredded mozzarella and Swiss cheese. Top with sliced kielbasa sausage and plenty of fresh cracked pepper.

Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes until the crust is crispy and the cheese is melted and golden brown. Serve with sliced dill pickles!

(Servings: 4, Prep time: 20 min., Cook time: 15 min., Difficulty: Easy)

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foodforscot Ratings:

Shanon (taste):  7/10

Scot (taste):  7/10

Effort:  2/5

Dishwashing Effort:  2/5