First Posted: 5/6/2014
People are really starting to hate on pizza crust.
Everywhere I turn it seems they’re attempting to sub something else in for the bready goodness – cauliflower, zucchini, all mashed up and spread out to act the same way a pizza crust would.
That’s all well and good (and, in ways, healthier), but I’ve recently found another crust substitute that beats all the others: meat.
It even gives way to a cool naming convention, the Meatza (meat plus pizza, you see what I’m saying here), and it’s delicious.
You can concoct whatever topping combination you’d like for your pie, but I went ahead and replicated the Mediterranean Meatza Pie from Stupid Easy Paleo.
For this, you’ll need to first determine what kind of pie you want. An 8-inch round? You’re going to need two pans. If you want a 13 by 9-inch square, settle in with only one pan. Me, I went with the round version – I’ll take circular pizza over square any day.
For the crust, you’ll need one pound of lean ground beef, one tablespoon of fresh chopped basil, one minced garlic clove, one-half teaspoon of salt and one-half teaspoon of pepper, and two tablespoons of a dried herb mixture (I used oregano, thyme, and parsley).
Preheat your over to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix all the crust ingredients up in a large bowl, then press them into whatever pans you desire. I halved my mixture to put into the two pans.
Bake the crust for 10 to 15 minutes, until cooked through, then get to adding the toppings.
For the Mediterranean pie, a half-cup of each is needed: tomato sauce, sliced red bell pepper, sliced sun-dried tomatoes, chopped artichoke hearts, sliced olives, and a little bit of fresh basil for garnish.
Add the tomato sauce and red peppers first, then pop the crust back in the oven for 5 minutes to soften those up. After removing the pie from the oven, top with the rest, slice it up like you would a regular pie, and enjoy.
Prefer a Greek-inspired pizza? Sub in ground lamb for beef, and instead throw green bell peppers, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, red onion, and olives on top!
MEDITERRANEAN MEATZA PIE
Courtesy of stupideasypaleo.com
Makes 2 pies
INGREDIENTS:
Crust:
• 1 lb. lean ground beef
• 2 tbsps. mixed dried herbs, such as oregano, thyme, parsley
• 1 tbsp. fresh basil chopped
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
Toppings:
About 1/2 cup of each:
• Tomato sauce
• Red bell pepper, sliced
• Sundried tomatoes, sliced
• Artichoke hearts (canned or packed in oil), chopped
• Olives, any kind, sliced
• Fresh basil for garnish
HOW-TO:
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
• In a large bowl, mix the crust ingredients – ground beef, dried herbs, basil, garlic, salt and pepper.
• Divide the meat in half. Press half the meat into an 8-inch round pie pan. Repeat with the other half. (You can even do a 13 by 9 inch rectangular pan if you want square pizza.)
• Bake for 10-15 min or until cooked through. Remove from the oven and drain off any liquid in the pan.
• Add the tomato sauce and red pepper on top, then put it back in the over for another 5 minutes to soften them up. Remove from the oven and add the rest of the toppings, then cut the pizza into slices.
