Carnitas Pizza with Guacamole

The Monkey Scientist and I have been experimenting with carnitas lately. There is nothing like delicious shredded pork. We've tried making it in both the Dutch oven and the CrockPot but I haven't decided which tasted better. Since we had so many leftovers, we decided to make a carnitas pizza!



I have to admit (and maybe you've noticed) that I'm not a huge fan of Mexican food. It's surprising since I love spicy food, but between the cilantro and corn tortillas there are so many things I don't like at all. I was excited that this recipe let me bring in all of the Mexican flavors I like in a familiar favorite - pizza.

I loved how this came together. The Monkey Scientist picked up the dough at the Italian market in Cleveland Park. It has wonderful flavor and came out nice and crispy on the edges. The pizza was the perfect combination of spicy, cheesy and tangy. I liked the hot pizza topped by the cool guacamole as well, it was a nice contrast. This is the guacamole recipe I always use (usually with chips of course) and I adore it! Next time we may try to make this pizza on the grill like Mom does - I bet it would be fantastic!



Carnitas Pizza with Guacamole
carnitas adapted from My Baking Addiction
pizza adapted from What's Gabby Cooking?
guacamole is a yelleBELLYboo original

Ingredients
Carnitas
1 large Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp paprika
2 tbsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
1 pork butt (ours was 2 1/2 lb)
3/4 c cider vinegar
4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 can chipotles in adobo, roughly chopped
2 oranges, juiced
1 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 bottle beer
Pizza
1 batch pizza dough
1/2 jar salsa
1 bag shredded Mexican cheese
1/2 can fire-roasted chiles
2 tbsp adobo sauce from chipotles in adobo
Guacamole
2 ripe avocados, diced
2 tomatillos, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lime, juiced
Salt and pepper
Dash cayenne
Dash cumin

Instructions
Carnitas
1. Rinse pork under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
2. Place onions in Crock pot. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, paprika, salt and pepper. Rub to cover the roast. Place roast on top of onions.
3. Mix remaining ingredients and add to Crock pot. Add water to just cover pork.
4. Cook on low 10-12 hours.
5. Remove meat and onions from Crock pot. Chop or shred meat and onions. Add a bit of the cooking liquid for flavor.
Pizza
1. Preheat the oven to 500.
2. Carefully stretch dough to the size of your pizza pan or cookie sheet.
3. Top with salsa, then cheese, chiles, and adobo.
4. Bake 8 minutes, remove from onion. Top with shredded carnitas (maybe 2/3 c worth).
5. Return to oven and bake an additional 4 minutes.  Let rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing.
Guacamole
1. Add all ingredients to a medium bowl.
2. Mash with a potato masher or the back of a fork until well combined.
3. Smear on top of each slice of pizza.

Tortilla Pizzas

I have a confession to make.  These are iPhone photos.  And, I was simply the sous chef behind this recipe. It was a Monkey Scientist creation (although I may or may not have emailed him the recipe).  Regardless, this is such an easy, healthy recipe, that I wanted to share it with you despite not having my camera with me when the MS was cooking.  Forgive any lack of quality in photos - it doesn't indicate a lack of quality in the recipe.



My next warning I should give you, is about the jalapenos. They make this pizza VERY spicy, especially if you use whole slices, with seeds, and as many as we did.  The Monkey Scientist liked it, but my mouth was on fire and I ended up having to peel a lot of them off.  Giardiniera was a little less spicy, although of course it's very regional and you may not be able to find it (the Monkey Scientist may or may not have smuggled a jar back with him from Chicago).  If you're not into spicy (I'm talking to you, Mom and Dad), leave the jalapenos out.  The pizza will still be delicious!



I am a huge pizza lover.  I mean seriously, who isn't?  But come New Year's Resolution time, it just doesn't fit the healthy diet I'm striving for.  These tortilla pizzas are such a great alternative.  The carb-filled crust is swapped out for a crispy, crunchy tortilla.  It's no Chicago deep dish, but it turns into almost a sweet cracker - absolutely awesome.  Plus, if you load on enough veggies, you don't need to add nearly as much cheese while maintaining that cheesy taste of a delicious pizza.



I love this pizza! It can be adapted so many different ways to fit the ingredients you love.  While we pretty much stuck by the original recipe, we added sausage for some extra protein. I absolutely LOVED the white beans in it.  I didn't stick by the proportions of the original recipe, but compared to what you see on my pizza, I wish I'd had a lot more beans.  Per usual, I also dug the artichokes on this pizza - they're one of my favorite things.  As far as portions - I had 1 plus less than 1/4 of a second, and the Monkey Scientist ate 2.  I would aim for 1 for a light (read: female) meal and 2 for a more robust (read: male) meal.  This would also be a really fun recipe to make with your kids - let them load the toppings on themselves! (Just do the "putting in the oven" yourself please!)



Tortilla Pizzas
from Eighty Twenty, with some small additions

Ingredients
4 10" whole wheat flour tortillas
3 Tbsp olive oil, divided
1 cup sliced onions
2 tsp minced garlic
1 cup white beans, drained and rinsed well
1 1/3 cups quartered artichoke hearts (patted dry if canned), separated into smaller pieces
1/2 cup low fat, low sodium chicken sausage, sliced (optional)
1 1/3 cups baby spinach leaves, stemmed
2 oz crumbled feta cheese
1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup jalapeno slices or giardiniera (optional)

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Heat 1 tsp in a skillet over medium heat. Add sliced onions and saute until soft, ~5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. On each tortilla, spread 1/2 tsp olive oil. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp minced garlic onto each tortilla, then spread white beans, artichoke pieces, sausage, spinach leaves, sauteed onions, cheeses and jalapenos (if desired) evenly onto tortillas.
4. Place in oven, directly on middle rack or on a cookie sheet, and bake for 10-16 minutes, or until tortilla is crispy and cheese is melted. Remove from oven and allow to cool for ~2 minutes prior to cutting into quarters and serving.