I was craving pizza this morning, HARD. So, I thought it was a good time to share my favorite quick fix for pizza cravings. This is what I make when I’m dying for pizza, but don’t want to buy or make a whole pizza (because you know I’ll just end up eating the whole thing). These quick little tortilla pizzas give me the satisfaction of pizza without a bunch of super thick crust and they give me an opportunitiy to squeeze a few extra veggies into my day.
The beauty of this pizza is that I can take advantage of all the pre-chopped vegetables from the salad bar at my local grocery store without having to buy a whole bag/bunch/item of each one. All I need is a handful and all I pay for is a handful. You want to steer clear of super watery vegetables for this pizza because the thin tortilla crust may become soggy (tomatoes, pineapple, etc.). Luckily, the water heavy vegetables are also the ones that weigh the most and will drive up the cost of your salad bar loot.
The salad bar pickings weren’t that great today, so I just grabbed some mushrooms, red onion, bell pepper, and black olives. Some items I’ve used in the past are: baby spinach, tri-colored bell peppers, roasted garlic, sun dried tomatoes, and feta. Many salad bars even have meat. Mine offers chopped deli meats (turkey and ham) and pepperoni. You just kinda have to go with the flow of what’s available at your salad bar. The most important thing to remember is that you’ll need less than you think. I always end up making two pizzas at once simply because I realize I’ve gotten way too many veggies for just one pizza. I swear they multiply once I chop them! So, just get a handful.
The Quick Fix Salad Bar Pizza
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The Quick Fix Salad Bar Pizza
Servings 1 to 2 servings (2 pizzas)Ingredients
- 2 7 or 8 inch flour tortillas ($0.36)
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella ($0.46)
- 1 cup mixed vegetables from a salad bar ($0.84)
- Pinch Italian seasoning or red pepper flakes (optional) ($0.05)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the tortillas on a baking sheet or pizza pan. Bake for 5 minutes, or until golden brown. If the tortilla puffs up or develops a bubble, poke it with a sharp knife and press down to flatten.
- Chop or break up the vegetables into small, bite-sized pieces. Sprinkle about 1/4 cup shredded cheese over each tortilla, then top with the vegetables and a sprinkle of Italian seasoning or red pepper flakes.
- Bake the topped pizzas for 5 more minutes, or until the cheese is fully melted and the edges of the pizzas are slightly darker brown.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
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Step by Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees FIRST. It must be preheated. If you have a toaster oven, this recipe is perfect for it. Instead of heating a big oven, you can just heat a small toaster oven.
Place your tortillas on a baking sheet or pizza pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 5 minutes…
Or until they’re lightly golden brown and mostly crispy, like this. If your tortilla grows a big bubble while it’s baking, pierce it with a sharp knife. If it doesn’t deflate, just press it down to flatten it. It’s easiest to do this while the tortillas are in the oven and still relatively soft. Just be careful.
This is my small little dish of veggies that I got at the salad bar: mushrooms, bell pepper, red onion, and black olives. Usually the salad bar has tri-colored bell peppers, so it’s prettier, but c’est la vie. I also used 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella between both pizzas.
Break or chop up the vegetables into small pieces. Since they’re all kind of crispy, I just used my hands to break them into pieces. No knife needed. Top the pizzas with the cheese, veggies, and a sprinkle of Italian seasoning or red pepper flakes.
Then bake for 5 more minutes, or until the cheese is all melty and the edges of the tortilla are nicely browned. READY TO EAT!
So fast, so easy, so inexpensive.
Here are some pictures from some pizzas that I made a couple of months ago (taken with my iphone). SO YUM.
Ahh this is so brilliant! I knew you would have a solution for my pizza craving!
…Once again your ideas are spot on….
…………when cooking for fussy eaters I love the idea of Kids get their own toppings and then all cook together….great way to introduce the youngen’s to food fun……
………..And if you cooking for one you can save a lot of money on pick and choose just a few onions/peppers etc. for stir fry or baked chicken breast stuffing too…soup,,,,I gotta go find a salad bar now
Once again your ideas are spot on….
This is the most brilliant penny-pinching post I have ever read. I seriously got so excited after reading it that I yelled across the house for my husband (who introduced me to your website) to go to the salad bar and said “it’s a pizza kind of night!” Lol! Love your blog, and love your inspirational/witty recipes!
Thank you for inspiring me to cook again!
Only 84 cents for all those? Genius idea :) Going to try this.