Mexican Pizza
January 16, 2018 by Nicole Collins
It's Taco Tuesday!
I, for real, am wondering when Taco Tuesday will finally be recognized as a federal holiday so we can have every Tuesday off of work to eat tacos and drink margaritas.
Doesn't that sound like the perfect life?
I think I might start a petition. Anyone out there want to sign?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
Though it's Taco Tuesday, we're not actually having tacos today. Actually, we're having taco in pizza form. But, I can't imagine there's anyone in this world that's going to fight with me about having pizza today, either.
Today, we're having Mexican Pizzas!
So, I can't remember what flavor of yogurt I ate for breakfast yesterday, but I can remember exactly what I was eating when my little brother was born 22 years ago.
I was eating Mexican Pizza!
I was 11 years old when my little brother was born, and I remember we'd been at the hospital for a hot minute while my mom was in labor. We just sat down to eat some Taco Bell, and that's the moment my little brother decided to enter the world. I guess it's no surprise that, to this day, Taco Bell is one of the major food groups in his diet.
So, this one is for my little brother today!
But today, we're taking a little bit of a healthier spin on the Mexican Pizza. We're baking instead of frying, using ground turkey instead of beef, and we're making a homemade taco seasoning. Talk about good stuff going on in this pizza!
We start by cooking up some ground turkey with our homemade taco seasoning mix. There's a little bit of everything on the roster: chili powder, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, cayenne, and s&p. Since we're making the taco mix ourselves, we can control the salt content and keep it clean without the added shelf preservatives.
Next, we spritz some flour tortillas with cooking spray, and pop them in the oven for a few just to take some of the flimsiness out of them. Then, we spread some refried beans and our meat mix on one tortilla and top it with another tortilla. That's the base of our pizza! Some store bought enchilada sauce, mexican shredded cheese, and fresh tomatoes get spread on the top layer (our sauce and cheese layer, if you will), and we wait for it to get all melty and crispy in the oven!
When it comes out of the oven, we cut it in to fours, and top it with some fresh avocado and sour cream to cool it down a little bit. It's a taco pizza!
Thank goodness tacos can come in all shapes in sizes so we can get away with eating pizza on Taco Tuesday. I mean, can it really get any better than that?
Oh yeah, a margarita would make it better. I know I have some tequila and limes around here somewhere!
I'll let you know when I get that Taco Tuesday petition going; but for now, let's eat!
Mexican Pizza
Serves: 4 Print
Ingredients:
¾ lb ground turkey
1 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
½ tsp paprika
¼ tsp garlic powder
¼ tsp onion powder
¼ tsp oregano
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
2 tbsp water
½ tbsp olive oil
8 6-inch flour tortillas
1 cup refried beans
1 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese
¼ cup enchilada sauce
½ cup grape tomatoes, quartered
1 green onion, chopped
cooking spray
avocado and sour cream, for serving
Directions:
In a large skillet over medium high heat, heat olive oil. Add ground turkey, all spices, and water, stirring to combine. Cook until turkey is no longer pink, about 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil, and spray with cooking spray. Lay tortillas in a single layer on the prepared sheets. Spritz the top of the tortillas with cooking spray. Bake for 5 mins. Remove from oven.
Flip over 4 of the tortillas. Spread beans on top of the 4 tortillas you flipped, dividing evenly and covering the surface. Top beans with meat mixture. Top meat with the other 4 tortillas, toasted side up. Divide enchilada sauce between the 4 pizzas, covering the surface. Top with shredded cheese, tomatoes, and green onions. Place back in the oven, and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Top with diced avocado and sour cream, if desired. Serve immediately.
Recipe notes:
*If you're making these ahead, you can reheat the cooked pizzas at 375 degrees for about 8-10 minutes. They'll get perfectly crispy again!
*You could certainly use store bought taco seasoning, if you prefer. You'll need about 2 ½ tbsp of premade seasoning.
*I ALWAYS cover my baking sheets with foil for easy clean up. It's certainly not necessary if you like doing dishes. ;-)
