Supreme Pizza Stew

        We are finally experiencing super cold winter weather here in Alabama this week and that has us craving piping hot bowls of soups and stews!  We tried out a new stew recipe that had all of our favorite pizza flavors and it was a huge hit!  Like all soups, it was even MORE delicious on day 2, once the flavors had time to meld together.  We served it with our favorite Parmesan Ranch Garlic Bread.   I made this on the stove top but I am including slow cooker directions too!  This one is a keeper for sure!

Supreme Pizza Stew

Ingredients

6 oz Pepperoni
1 lb Ground Beef
1 lb Italian Sausage
1 bell pepper, diced
16 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1 to 2 tsp minced garlic
15 oz can diced tomatoes with juice
1 quart beef broth
2 tsp dried basil
salt & pepper to taste
shredded mozzarella for topping
*Black olives would be great in this, but I was out. Will add next time.

Directions

For the stove top: Add the pepperoni to a soup pot over medium high heat and cook stirring occasionally until the pepperoni render their fat and get crispy.  3 to 4 minutes.  Remove pepperoni with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.  Add Italian sausage, ground beef, bell pepper, mushrooms, and onion to the soup pot and cook until meat is browned.  Drain off grease.  Add minced garlic, tomatoes with juice, beef broth and basil to pot.  Cover and simmer for an hour, stirring occasionally.  Add reserved pepperoni and salt & pepper to taste.  Serve stew topped with mozzarella cheese with garlic bread on the side for dipping and enjoy!

For the slow cooker: Do the same as above except after you drain the grease off, add the browned meat and veggies and rest of the ingredients to the slow cooker and cook on low for around 6 hours.  Add reserved pepperoni, salt & pepper to taste and serve topped with mozzarella cheese and garlic bread for dipping and enjoy!