taco pizza

We have a regional chain here, Godfather's Pizza, who makes our favorite pizza, which just happens to be taco pizza. The best part about this taco pizza is that there's no refried beans to be found - something that my picky husband refuses to eat. Sparked by a craving, I concocted my own taco pizza and think it rivals the original!

What you'll need:
dough:

• 10 fluid ounces warm water
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons active dry yeast

topping:

• 1 small can tomato paste
• 1 Cup taco sauce, approx. (spiciness depending on your taste, we used mild)
• 1+ T chili powder
• 2+ tsp ground cumin
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 small can chopped green chilies, optional
• 2+ C monterey jack or Mexican combo cheese, divided
• 1+ C cheddar cheese, optional
• shredded lettuce, optional
• chopped tomatoes, optional
• sliced black olives, optional
• sour cream, optional
• additional taco sauce, optional

What you'll do:

Making the dough in a bread machine is easiest, but you could do it by hand also. Into the bread machine, dump in this order: water, salt, oil, flour, and yeast. Meanwhile, combine the tomato paste, 1 C taco sauce, chili powder, and ground cumin. You can add more sauce if you want the sauce thinner or spicier; you can add additional chili powder for more spiciness, and more cumin for a more robust flavor.

Add the ground beef, onion, and green chilies to a skillet, season with salt and pepper, and cook until beef is brown. Drain the beef mixture.

When the dough finishes, pat it out on your greased pan(s) (if it's sticky, use some flour on your fingers). I used a rimmed 15x10 cookie sheet for a deeper dish crust, but you could spread it out more thinly and do two pizza rounds. Spread with the taco sauce mixture to your liking (you may have extra sauce). Sprinkle sauce with 1/4 C monterey jack cheese. Top with beef mixture. Add remaining monterey jack cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25min for a thicker crust, 15-20 min for two thin crusts. Pizza will be done when the edges are golden brown.

Serve with sour cream and sprinkled with cheddar cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, olives, and additional taco sauce, if desired.