Homemade Taco Pizza

This is a meal I tried last night and it was a HUGE success.  I definitely didn't expect it to be as good as it was and am excited to enjoy the leftovers over the weekend.

Let me start out by easing the minds of those people not from Iowa.  I know taco pizza sounds weird and kind of disgusting.  You could not be more wrong.  It is so amazing.  The first taco pizza I ever tasted was from a chain in Iowa called Happy Joe's.  They are known for their taco pizza and it's easy to tell why.  They have hands down the best taco pizza and it's something I crave when I go home.  You can get an idea with this pic:

This picture is of a Happy Joe's pizza so you can see what it is "supposed" to look like.
I didn't make this from a recipe...just put together what I thought sounded good and went from there.  Here is the best I could do to formulate some sort of a recipe.

Homemade Taco Pizza
1 thin Boboli pizza crust
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lb ground beef or turkey
1 packet taco seasoning
Shredded Mexican cheese

Optional:
diced yellow onion
shredded lettuce
diced tomatoes
sour cream
crushed Taco Doritos
red taco sauce

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Brush both sides of the Boboli crust with olive oil and put it directly on the oven racks.  Watch crust carefully and pop any air bubbles that appear.  Once the crust is crispy to your liking (I like mine very crispy), take it out and set aside on a pizza pan.  While oven is heating, brown beef or turkey and add taco seasoning per the directions on the packet.  Once the meat is prepared, spread it over the crust.  I added the diced onions at this point as I like it when they are heated a bit but this would just be based on your preference.  I topped it off with the Mexican cheese.  The amount would be based on your preference.  I like my pizza with a lot of cheese but it's up to you and your audience!

After the cheese was melted, I broiled it for a second to get the cheese really cooked well and removed it from the oven for it to cool a few minutes.  I didn't top the entire pizza with the extra toppings because I knew it wouldn't be reheatable that way so I recommend to only top with what is going to be eaten so you get the most out of it.  I added lettuce, tomato, sour cream and crushed Doritos and then drizzled the taco sauce on top.

So, not only is this recipe delicious, it can be adjusted for whatever you and your family enjoy.  If I were making this for my family or for a dinner party, I would set out all of the regular "taco toppings" and let people add them as they like.  You could include olives, jalapenos, green onion, refried beans, guacamole, etc.  The list is endless!

There are several things that could be substituted or added depending on what you're looking for.  You'll notice I didn't use sauce but some recipes online use refried beans on top of the crust as a kind of sauce.  Feel free to make your own crust if you'd like or use whatever you find at the store.  Also, add spice as you want! You can use a hot taco sauce and/or a hot taco seasoning packet and really punch it up!

Here is another suggestion, and this goes for any recipe: Substitute if you want something healthier! Don't think that you HAVE to stick to a recipe for it to be good.  You can add light sour cream...or none at all.  I made this with extra lean ground turkey and it was still delicious and not as greasy.  The list goes on an on with the things you could change depending on your taste so go ahead and do what sounds good!!!

This is another thing I recommend that EVERYONE have in their kitchen: The Vidalia Onion Chopper.  I am not one of those people who think that the food tastes better or that someone is "more authentic" if they chop everything by hand themselves.  Definitely not.  At some point, we didn't have dishwashers, ovens, microwaves, vacuums, etc.  Now we use them every day and life is still as good.  Just sayin'.  Here is a pic of the onion chopper and the link below if you want to purchase.

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=14556052
So there you have it! Please be adventurous and try this recipe.  It is so delicious and gives you something different to offer your family and friends! Now here is the final product:

And, lastly, for those of you who are curious...I was watching Criminal Minds reruns as I made this delicacy.  You'll probably find this as a theme. :)

Good eatin,

Deedles