These pizza cups are so easy to make and each one is a full serving! You can make them all the same, or everyone can build their own. And they are so easy and quick to make, you can make them on a weeknight!

Here’s how you do it:

You’ll need a Texas muffin pan. You can use a regular muffin pan, but it’s hard to fit everything inside of them. The Texas muffins are large and easy to fill with delicious toppings! I use silicone because it’s so easy to get the muffin out.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Start with the dough. I used a premade dough from Trader Joe. It has garlic and herbs in it and it’s good without anything on it!! If you feel so inclined, you can make homemade dough ^[1] – but any pizza dough will work.

Prep the muffin cups – if you are using metal, spray a little cooking spray on each cup. You won’t need to do this on silicone cups. Sprinkle half the parmesan evenly in the bottom of each cup.

Roll it into a fat tube and cut it into six even pieces.

Roll each piece into a ball, then pull and push it into a flat piece.

Gently work the dough into each muffin cup, pushing it up the sides.

Brush the edges of dough with some olive oil – you can sprinkle more  parmesan cheese on it too.

Now the fillings.

Put the cheese in first, about 2 to 3 Tablespoon in each cup. It will keep the bottom from getting soggy.

Next put in about 2 Tablespoons of sauce on top of the cheese.

From here you can add any toppings you want – olives, onion, sausage, pepperoni – whatever you like on your pizza.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 to 30 minutes. The edges will be lightly browned and the insides bubbling.

Remove from the oven and let them cool for five minutes.

Pop them out of the muffin cups and serve – a green salad makes the perfect accompaniment!

© Copyright 2023 The Lazy Gastronome

It’s National Pizza day!! Who doesn’t love a good slice of pizza? And there are so many options! Seems us folks in the U.S. love our pizza – more than 3 billion are sold every year! And that doesn’t even include the frozen variety. And yes, Pizza really is from Italy. Naples to be exact, in 1738.

But back to pizza day. It’s really hard to come up with something new, a pizza that no one has tried. Well, I came up with Pizza cups. And since one cup is a serving, everyone can put together their own cup (or cups).

Here’s How to Make some Pizza Cups:

Start by cooking up and preparing your “toppings”.

We used mushrooms and sausage. I cooked the sausage whole and cut it up after it was done.

I added the mushroom slices to the same pan to slightly sauté them. Set them aside.

Next, grate the cheese. We also had sliced olives and sundried tomatoes and, of course, pepperoni.

Spread the sheet of dough out and cut it into six pieces. Place on piece in each Texas Muffin cup, spreading it out covering the bottom and up the sides.

Sprinkle 1 Tablespoon of the parmesan cheese in each cup (about 2/3). That helps to keep the bottom crust from getting soggy.

Top the parm with the sausage,

mushrooms,

olives, onions and tomatoes.

Spread one Tablespoon of sauce over each,

the spread over the mozzarella cheese and pepperoni and the rest of the parmesan. And any other toppings you want to do.

Some topping ideas – artichoke hearts with ricotta and gouda cheese (no tomato sauce); Fresh spinach, sundried tomatoes, pine nuts and mozzarella; Ricotta, sundried tomatoes, mushrooms and mozzarella; taco seasoned beef, cheddar, jalapeño and tomatoes. Now go forth and pizza!

Place in a preheated oven (400°) and bake for about 30 to 40 minutes. The inside will be bubbling and the crust will be golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for five to ten minutes.

A great meal or a snack ^[6]!

© Copyright 2021 The Lazy Gastronome

Here are some things that are perfect to use for this recipe!

Disclosure: The items below are affiliate links through Amazon.com. If you purchase any of these products through the links, I receive a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support!

It’s National Bacon day ^[11]! A form of bacon dates back to 4900 BC. The Chinese made a salted preserved pork belly. The idea made it’s way west and variations can be found in both Greek and Roman menus. The name of this wildly delicious food, found in a variety of languages, literally means the backside of the pig. In the 16th century it referred to anything that was pork and, around the 17th century, it became the word for what we know today – salted and smoked pork belly.

Here is a recipe that uses bacon to enhance individual meatloaves – but make plenty. These are really good!

Here’s How to Wrap that Bacon:

Mix the beef, soup mix, bread crumbs, garlic powder, lemon pepper and egg together well.

I use my hands and squish and squeeze to make sure the egg is fully incorporated in the mixture.

Form six large balls.

Cut the cheddar into 1 inch cubes. Push the cheese into the meat and form the ball around, sealing any openings.

Wrap a slice of bacon around the ball,

then drape a half slice over the top.

Put each loaf into one cup in an extra large muffin tin. (I used silicone and it was perfect!).

Bake in a preheated 350° oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until the beef is browned and the bacon looks crispy.

Remove from the oven and allow to rest for about 5 minutes.

Serve over rice or potatoes.

© Copyright 2020 The Lazy Gastronome

Variation – use pepper jack cheese and a couple slices of jalapeño on the inside.

Here are some things that are perfect to use for this recipe!

Disclosure: The items below are affiliate links through Amazon.com. If you purchase any of these products through the links, I receive a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support!

It’s National Nachos day! And Saturday the 14th is National Spicy Guacamole day. What great days to combine!

Rumor has it that after a long day of shopping, a group of U.S. army wives stationed in Mexico, stopped into a restaurant after the kitchen had closed. They asked is they could please have a snack, so Nacho, the head waiter, went into the kitchen and heated up some tostada fried into triangles with cheese and slices of jalapeño and served it with sauce. The women loved it and often ordered the “Nacho special”.

And what goes better to dip them in? Why guacamole ^[16], of course!

Here is a great recipe that creates a dish of nachos for each person! Everyone can choose their own topping if they want – like I love jalapeños, my husband does not.

And to dip them in – that flavorful avocado dip, guacamole – spicy guacamole!

Here’s how you do it!

Start by lightly oiling the pans and pre-heating the oven to 350° – Prepare all the toppings.

Next, cook the beef. Brown it in a heavy skillet on medium heat. Mince the chipotle and it with all the remaining spices and the adobo sauce to the skillet with the meat. Simmer gently adding water as needed for about 20 minutes.

While the meat is cooking, place the peppers on the grill, in the broiler or in a heavy skillet or grill pan. Grill until skins are charred.

Place them in a paper bag and let them sit for about 15 to 20 minutes to cool.

Now build your nachos. Everyone wants to get some topping on every single bite. Bare chips are not acceptable!!

Set a loose layer of chips on the bottom.

Add a layer of each topping.

Add a few chips on top of that and layer more toppings.

Go as high as you like! I did two layers, but I think I could have eaten three!

Place the pans on the center rack in the oven with a cookie sheet on the rack below. The cookie sheet is to catch anything that drips out of the pan so it doesn’t go onto the oven.

While the nachos are baking, make the guacamole.

Rinse the peppers under cold water and gently rub the skins off. You can clean out the seeds now or leave them for a spicier guac.

Place all of the ingredients into a marble mortar and mash everything together with the pestle. If you don’t have a mortar and pestle, the back of a spoon in a deep bowl will work.

Take the nachos from the oven and garnish with green salsa, sour cream and avocado slices.

Portion the guacamole into individual bowls

and serve with hot nachos! We at them for dinner.

© Copyright 2020 The Lazy Gastronome

Here are some things that are perfect to use for this recipe!

Disclosure: The items below are affiliate links through Amazon.com. If you purchase any of these products through the links, I receive a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks for your support!

Breakfast in a cup!  Potatoes and Eggs, topped with some bacon and cheese all baked together for each person~

What you need:

• 2 cups frozen shredded potatoes (country hash browns)
• 6 large eggs
• 6 Tablespoons shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese
• 6 Tablespoons cooked bacon bits
• Salt and Pepper

 

How to Do it:

Spray the inside of six ramekins with cooking oil.  Gently press 1/3 cup of potatoes into the bottom of each cup, forming a “basket” around the sides.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Carefully crack one egg into the center of each potato basket.

Top the egg with cheddar,

then bacon and bake in a 325 degree oven for about 20 minutes.

Remove from oven and broil for about 3 minutes, or until the top is bubbling and slightly brown.

Serve Hot!

Serves 6

What you don’t use today, store in a sealed container and reheat tomorrow!!

You might also like these breakfast ideas!

© Copyright 2017 The Lazy Gastronome