Bonus Recipe: Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza

Good evening everyone! Summertime feels like it’s fully upon us (although it’s still technically two weeks away, the weather is saying otherwise). As such, we’re spending more time outside and enjoying the beautiful weeknights. That means a few changes to our normal format. In place of the usual “Around the Culinary World” feature, we’re going to be featuring odds and ends – quick recipes, product reviews and the occasional news story – just over the summer months. The food news has been fairly mundane lately and rather than simply sharing a story or two a week, we decided to shake things up a bit.

We’re starting this shakeup by sharing a great weeknight recipe that the whole family is sure to love. One of our greatest (guiltiest) pleasures is bacon cheeseburger pizza. This blending of burger and pizza reins supreme over most other pizza challengers. The obvious downfall is most commercial bacon cheeseburger pizzas are less than great for your diet or healthy eating lifestyle. While it is certainly true that you can splurge every now and again – we decided to create a healthier version of the standard bacon cheeseburger pizza, one that’s so easy you can cook it up quickly for a weeknight dinner.

The Recipe: Weeknight Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza

This is an Out of the Culinary original recipe

What You’ll Need:

1 Prepared Large Pizza Crust (Whole wheat preferred)*

1 Pound Hamburger (80/20)**

4 Slices Thick Cut Bacon (Turkey bacon works as well)

Thick Cut Dill Pickle Slices (Quantity based on preference)

2 Cups Pizza Cheese (Shredded)

4 Ounces Tomato Sauce (Low or no sodium)

* These can usually be found in the tomato sauce aisle. They are vacuum packed and ready to bake. While you can certainly make your own crust, if you want to make this recipe on the weeknight – using ready made crust is the quick and easy way to save some time.

** Save money here by buying the fattier hamburger. You can rinse the cooked hamburger under warm water in a colander to wash away the excess fat.

To begin, preheat your oven to the temperature instructed on the pre-made pizza dough packaging. (Typically 425-450)

In a large (12 inch) non stick skillet, brown your hamburger oven medium high heat until completely cooked through. Once cooked, pour the hamburger into a colander and rinse under hot water to remove the excess fat and grease from the meat. Set the hamburger aside until needed.

While the hamburger is cooking, cook the slices of thick cut bacon over medium high heat in a small (8 inch) non stick frying pan. Once the bacon is browned and crispy, transfer the sliced to a paper towel lined plate. Blot off the excess fat and grease from the bacon before chopping the slices into smaller bits with kitchen shears. Set the bacon bits aside until needed.

To begin constructing your pizza, spread the tomato sauce across the surface of the dough with a rubber spatula. Once the sauce has been layered to your thickness and quantity preference, add the pickles (don’t knock this until you try it – it may sound weird to have pickles on a pizza, but once you taste it, you’ll know why they’re there.) Next, add about ½ of the hamburger mixture evenly over the pickles and pizza crust. Sprinkle ½ of the bacon bits evenly on top hamburger mixture.

Top this with about ½ of the cheese mixture before repeating with the remaining hamburger and bacon bits. Top these layers with cheese and pop the pizza into the oven for 10 to 15 minutes. Once the cheese is golden brown and delicious, slice up and enjoy!

The Results:

While this isn’t a “healthy” recipe, it is “healthier” than the other options out there. When you can make up a tasty meal at home with quality ingredients, it’s always going to be better than the mass produced commercial offering. This recipe is so quick and easy that you can make it up after a busy workday and not spend the entire evening in the kitchen. With its plethora of flavors, it’s also sure to please just about the whole family (outside of any vegetarians you may have!)

That’s all we have for you this evening. Maggie takes to the kitchen tomorrow night to cook up a brand new recipe that blends two unique ingredients. I’ll follow her on Wednesday with a recipe intended for grilling season – but we’re adapting it for apartment friendly cooking. Stop back in tomorrow night to see what Maggie has cooking. Until then,

~Cheers