Starting July with a Bang! Beef Breakfast Pizza Olé

     A yummy Sunday brunch is a great way to start any month and Beef Breakfast Pizza Olé was a bang-up dish for July! And, we’ve certainly been looking forward to giving this recipe a try.

    After being invited to do so, Barry and I took the Kansas Beef Council’s online personality assessment that is designed to help inspire healthy eating habits. Their new My Plate, My Way interactive tool offers personalized tips and recipes to guide healthy eating choices that are tailored to you, while fitting in with USDA’s dietary guidelines.

     Guess what? My assessment revealed that I was a “Family Chef” – imagine that!  It went on to offer a couple of recipes that would align with my personality (cooking) style and Beef Breakfast Pizza Olé  is one of them. 

   

To take the My Plate, My Way eating personality assessment, please visit: www.BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com/myplatemyway.aspx

And, check out Barry's assessment and resulting recipe for Sumptuous Steak Stir-Fry.

Beef Breakfast Pizza Olé   Makes 4 servings

Source: Kansas Beef Council

Total recipe time: 40 to 45 minutes (includes baking time)

1 recipe Basic Country Beef Breakfast Sausage (recipe below)

1/2 cup salsa verde

1 package (11 ounces) thin-crust refrigerated pizza dough

3/4 cup diced seeded tomatoes

1/2 cup reduced-fat shredded Mexican blend cheese

4 eggs

2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions

Salsa verde

1.  Preheat oven to 425°F. Prepare Basic Country Beef Breakfast Sausage (recipe follows). Stir in salsa verde.

2.  Meanwhile, unroll dough on greased baking sheet. Pat or roll evenly to 14 X 10-inch rectangle, pinching together any tears, if necessary. Bake 8 minutes. Remove from oven and top evenly with beef mixture, tomatoes and cheese. Make four "wells" in beef mixture and crack one egg in each "well." 

Ready to go into oven.

3.  Continue to bake in 425°F oven 13 to 18 minutes or until desired doneness of egg is reached. Remove from oven; sprinkle with green onion. Cut into four wedges. Serve with additional salsa, as desired. 



Out of the oven.

Basic Country Beef Breakfast Sausage: Combine 1 pound ground beef (96% lean), 2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage or 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper in large bowl, mixing lightly but thoroughly. Heat large nonstick skillet over medium high heat until hot. Add beef mixture; cook 8 to 10 minutes, breaking into 3/4-inch crumbles and stirring occasionally. (Cooking times are for fresh or thoroughly thawed ground beef. Ground beef should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160°F. Color is not a reliable indicator of ground beef doneness.) Makes 2-1/2 cups crumbles.

Meta's Note -- Once meat is thoroughly cooked, check seasoning and add additional spices as desired.

Adding the seasonings to ground beef.

Browning the seasoned ground beef.

Meta’s Make Ahead Ideas – In case you might want to avoid some of the last minute work, here’s a few ideas of what could be done ahead:

·         *Prepare beef sausage, fry and refrigerate

·         *Prepare pizza crust and bake

·         *Chop veggies

Check out other recipes, tips and ideas at KansasBeef.org