Do you have any traditions in your family? They are so important for building memories and bonds with your kids, but since both my kids are still 1 and 2 years old we don't really have many established yet. However, on a semi-regular basis we have a Friday Family Pizza & Movie night. We've discovered how much fun it is to let our 2 year old help place pepperoni circles onto a pizza crust, along with other veggies and her pudgy hands stealing handfuls of grated cheese. Her excitement over eating a pizza that she had a hand in making is so fun to watch.
This pizza came about because I had thawed a pound of ground beef all ready to make another meal which didn't happen. It was Friday Family Pizza & Movie night so I grabbed my pizza crust and ground beef and made a combination of kids two favorite meals: pizza and tacos. And then we watched Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. It definitely pleased both the kids and adults in our family.
Recipe by Meal Planning 101
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Serves 4
1 lb lean ground beef
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tbsp taco seasoning (homemade or store-bought)
Splash of water
Your favorite pizza crust
1 cup salsa
1 cup sour cream
Grated cheese (cheddar, mozza or Monteray Jack would all work fine)
1-2 plum tomatoes, diced
1 cup lettuce, finely shredded or 2 tbsp fresh basil, finely shredded
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
In a skillet over medium high heat, brown the beef with the onions and garlic. Add the cumin, chili powder, oregano, salsa spice, salt and pepper (or sub out all these spices for your favorite taco seasoning). Mix and cook for about 30 seconds then add a splash or two of water to let the spices create more of a sauce for the beef. Turn to low and let simmer a couple minutes until the water has evaporated and remove from heat.
Put your pizza crust on a baking sheet or pizza stone. Mix together the salsa and sour cream and spread about 1/3 - 1/2 cup over your pizza crust. Top with the taco seasoned beef and shredded cheese. I bake for 10 minutes at 425 degrees and then broil for 1-3 minutes to get the cheese on top a nice golden brown. You should note that I use the par-baked shells from the bakery, so if you use fresh dough adjust your cooking time and temperature accordingly.
Give the pizza just a moment or two to cool ever so slightly and then top with diced tomatoes and lettuce. Serve with the rest of the salsa sour cream as a dipping sauce. Alternatively, you can skip the lettuce and top with finely shredded basil which is FAR tastier. Lettuce is more kid-friendly as well as most people have it in their fridges, but if you do have some fresh basil leaves I recommend trying that.
Click here for printable version of Mexican Pizza.
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THE RESULTS?
The flavor of this is pretty much self explanatory: Its pizza. And tacos. Meaning Awesome. When we subbed out the lettuce for the fresh basil it was unexpected and added a whole new layer of flavor that my husband and I loved. One of the only things that could make this pizza better is using a fresh, made from scratch pizza dough. But I have yet to discover one that I'm in love with. A friend recommended a recipe to me on Facebook but we haven't had a movie and pizza night in awhile so I haven't tried it yet. But I am open to suggestions! So tell me...
What's your favorite made from scratch pizza dough?
Meal Ideas:
- Mexican Pizza + Side Salad with Creamy Lime Cilantro Dressing
- Mexican Pizza + Raw Veggies with Chipotle Ranch Dressing to dip