Cheeseburger Pizza

Cheeseburgers for dinner tonight, or pizza? Both sound good, but why decide between the two? You can have both with this Cheeseburger Pizza!

Do you get coupon booklets in the mail?  I love when we do because they save us money, but also because sometimes they introduce me to new foods or restaurants.  Many times Mike and I have tried something new because we had a coupon for it!

We recently received some coupons for a pizza joint.  I set the coupons aside, not because I wanted to go there, but because the picture of their newest pizza caught my attention.  It was a cheeseburger pizza!  Genius, right?  I've had a variety of uncommon pizzas: BLT Pizza, Jerk Chicken Pizza and Breakfast Pizza  to name a few, but the concept of a cheeseburger pizza never occurred to me.

Saturday nights are typically our pizza nights, so I decided to branch out and try my take on the cheeseburger pizza.  I used some creamy Velveeta and mixed it with cooked ground beef to make a delicious sauce.  I put that on my favorite pizza crust and then topped it with a layer of mozzarella cheese.  When the pizza came out of the oven I added diced tomatoes and pickles.  I briefly considered adding on some shredded lettuce but opted against it because warm lettuce didn't sound appetizing.  You could add virtually any toppings you enjoy on burgers or pizza!

Cheeseburger Pizza

Makes 1 large pizza, approximately 8 slices

Ingredients:
Pizza dough
1 lb ground beef
1 lb Velveeta
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup diced pickles
1/2 cup diced tomatoes

1.  Roll out or press pizza dough onto a greased pizza pan (or pizza stone).

2.  Cook ground beef in a large skillet until browned.  Drain grease.

3.  Cube the Velveeta cheese and add it to the skillet with the beef.  Cook on low heat, stirring constantly until the cheese is melted.

4.  Spread the meat and cheese mixture on top of the pizza dough.

5.  Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top.

6.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, until pizza dough is cooked through in the center and the edges are golden.

7.  Top warm pizza with diced pickles and tomatoes.  Serve warm.

Dill Pickle Bread

This soft and moist white bread is made with pickle juice, giving it a unique and delicious flavor. It's perfect for sandwiches or eating plain!

By now it should come as no surprise to you that I love pickles!  I've told you before that my mom buys Mike and I a huge jar of pickles for Christmas each year.  We both often slice up a pickle and enjoy it for a snack.  And, when I talk about these pickles, I don't mean those little spears.  Oh no, we go for the full pickle!

A couple weeks ago, Mike suggested that I make pickle bread.  No I've made all kinds of breads, and a variety of pickle recipes, but I've never thought to combine the two.  I did a little looking around online and it doesn't seem to be a very popular concept...yet!  

The water in your traditional bread recipe is replaced with dill pickle juice.  A small amount of dill weed is added to the dough.  This dough baked up into a beautiful loaf of bread.  When I cut into it, I couldn't believe how soft it was.  One bite and I was hooked!  

I used this bread as the base for a delicious sandwich (which I'll be sharing with you in the near future!)  We also enjoyed the bread on its own.  I was surprised when two and three days later, the bread was just as fresh tasting as the day I made it.

If you're a fan of pickles, you'll want to make this bread!

Dill Pickle Bread

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients:
1-1/4 cups dill pickle juice, warmed to 110 degrees
2 teaspoons yeast
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 egg
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dill weed
3 cups flour

1.  In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the warm pickle juice, yeast, and sugar.  Stir gently and allow it to sit for 5 minutes, until the yeast blooms.

2.  Add the egg and olive oil and mix.

3.  Mix in the dill weed and flour to form a dough.

4.  Knead on medium speed for 5 minutes.

5.  Cover the dough and let it rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

6.  Remove the dough from the bowl and shape it into a loaf.  Place in a greased 9x5" bread pan.

7.  Allow the dough to rise again until doubled, about 1 hour.

8.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.

Allow the bread to cool before removing from the pan and slicing.

Source:  Group Recipes

Baked "Fried" Pickles

I'm excited to announce that I have finally created a Facebook page for Melissa's Cuisine!  You can find it here.  I hope to get some good food related discussions going on that page, and I'd love for you to join in.

I must have pickles on the mind lately.  Last week, I shared a recipe for pickle dip, and today I have another fabulous pickle recipe for you!  You may remember my recipe for fried pickles that I shared last year.  I created that recipe because I had heard that our favorite place to get them was closing, thankfully they didn't end up closing, so we were still able to have our fried pickles at the beach last summer.  These are similar, but much healthier because they are not fried!  Mike and I gobbled these up the day I made them, and I know we'll be making them again soon.

Baked "Fried" Pickles

1 egg
3-4 Tablespoons of flour
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon seasoning salt
1/2 teaspoon dill
2-3 dill pickles, thinly sliced
1-1/2 cups bread crumbs

1.  Beat egg in a shallow bowl.

2.  Add in the flour and mix until it's the consistency of paste.

3.  Stir in the worcestershire sauce, seasoning salt, and dill until well combined.

4.  Add your pickles to the paste mixture and toss until coated.

5.  Pour the breadcrumbs into a shallow dish.  Coat each pickle, one at a time, in the breadcrumbs.

6.  Place on a wire rack on top of a cookie sheet. 

7.  Bake on broil (500 degrees) for 4-6 minutes, until golden. 

8.  Remove from oven and flip each pickle over.  Return to oven and bake 3-4 more minutes.

Serve warm, with ranch dressing.

Source:  Family Fresh Meals

Pickle Dip

Last year, Mike and I had a big Super Bowl party with a bunch of our friends.  This year, we decided to keep it simple and just watched the game together.  However, I couldn't resist putting together a fun assortment of food for us to enjoy.  You know that Mike and I love pickles, and so I had a feeling this dip would be a big hit with us.  Mike actually said it was his favorite recipe I made that night!  We've enjoyed this pickle dip a few times in the past few months, and I knew it was a recipe that I had to share with you.  (Better late than never, right?)  If you're a fan of pickles, you're sure to be a fan of this simple and delicious dip!

Pickle Dip

Serves 8

You will need:
1 (8 oz.) block of cream cheese (I used Neufchatel)
1 cup diced dill pickles
1 Tablespoon worchestershire sauce
1 Tablespoon dill pickle juice

Mix all the ingredients together and serve with potato chips.

Source:  Happier Than A Pig In Mud

Fried Dill Pickles

I have a giant love of pickles.  Do you believe me?  Check out what Mike and I got for Christmas last year (and the year before):

That's right...A giant jar of pickles!  

Every year Mike's mom and her friend spend a week (or two) camping at the state park on the beach near our house.  We usually go out to visit them a couple times during the week.  There's a cute little hot dog stand just down the road that sells corn dogs and deep fried dill pickles.  I was a little hesitant the first time I tried the fried dill pickles, but oh my goodness!  They were fantastic!

Unfortunately, the little restaurant is not going to be around anymore.  I decided it was high time to make my own.  These turned out fantastic!  I had a hard time stopping myself from eating them.  I made them as an appetizer and I ate so many I really wasn't hungry for dinner.  I set a few aside to bring to Mike's mom and now I'm told I must come to the beach this summer to make them for everyone.  If you haven't had fried dill pickles, please try them today! ;)

You will need:

5 whole pickles, quartered into spears

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 egg

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 cups breadcrumbs

2 teaspoons dill weed

Oil for frying

1.  In a large zip-lock bag, combine flour, salt, and pepper.  Seal and shake to combine.

2.  Place pickle spears in bag and shake well to coat.  

3.  In a shallow bowl, beat the egg and buttermilk.  

4.  In another shallow bowl (I used a square pan), combine the breadcrumbs and dill.

5.  Dip the floured pickles in the egg mixture and then in the breadcrumbs, coating well.  

6.  Place the coated pickles on a tray.

7.  In a deep skillet, heat about 1/2" of vegetable oil to 350 degrees.

8.  Fry the pickles 4 at a time until golden brown on all sides.

9.  Place the pickles on a plate covered with paper towels to drain before serving.  

Eat plain....

...or dipped in Ranch dressing.  Either way, enjoy!!!