Recipe and photo provided by Cadry Nelson, cadryskitchen.com



¼ c. (heaping) spicy black beans
1 cornmeal crust
A few spoonfuls of marinara sauce
1 small tomato, chopped
¼ yellow onion, chopped
½ avocado, diced
¼ medium red bell pepper, chopped
4 Kalamata olives, sliced
1-2 large handfuls nacho chips, crushed
Cilantro (to taste)

Preheat oven to 425°. Top the cornmeal crust with marinara and spicy black beans. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the pizza from the oven and top with tomato, onion, cilantro, avocado, red bell pepper, Kalamata olives and crushed chips. Serves 2 people.

Taco Time!

• Sponsor a contest to come up with the catchiest Mexican-themed name for your taco pizza.
• Add some Mexican beers, such as Dos Equis or Modelo Especial, to your beverage selection and suggest pairing options on the menu.
• Don’t limit yourself to taco pizzas. How about a chicken fajita pizza or chimichanga pizza? The Corral Drive-in Theater, Pizzeria and Grill (corraldrivein.com) in Guymon, Oklahoma, recently created a Green Chili Chicken Enchilada Pizza, baking green chili, slow-cooked chicken and cheddar cheese on a crust and topping it with lettuce, tomatoes and homemade guacamole.

​Yo Quiero Taco Pizza

It’s just like a taco—except it’s a pizza. And, really, how can you go wrong with that combination? The taco pizza lends a spicy south-of-the-border kick to the classic Italian pie and has become a staple on many pizzeria menus around the country. Some pizza makers combine traditional Mexican and Italian ingredients, including pepperoni and ground sausage, or substitute chicken for ground beef. Vegan options replace the beef with black beans to create a healthier pie that still explodes with flavor. Here are some examples of popular taco pizzas from around the United States:

Who invented the taco pizza? Happy Joe’s Pizza & Ice Cream (happyjoes.com) in Bettendorf, Iowa, lays claim to the honor and offers several variations on the classic, including the Taco Joe, loaded with refried beans, seasoned beef and sausage, plus fresh lettuce, tomatoes, Happy Joe’s own taco chips and its Spicey Joe’s taco sauce.

Located in Fredericksburg, Virginia, Vinny’s Italian Grill and Pizzeria (fredericksburgpizza.com) offers a taco pizza that blends Italian seasonings with traditional Mexican ingredients, including ground chuck, hot peppers and fresh tomatoes, baked on a regular cheese pizza with red sauce and topped with shredded cheddar and lettuce.

Featured on WGN’s Chicago’s Best, Punky’s Pizza & Pasta (punkyspizza.com) developed a thin-crust taco pizza that features both ground beef and pepperoni with a standard pizza sauce. The Windy City favorite is topped with lettuce, tomatoes, mozzarella, cheddar and sour cream and served with a side of picante sauce.

Customers at Omaha, Nebraska-based Godfather’s Pizza (godfathers.com) can stuff themselves with the Super Taco, an oversized deep-dish pie packed with beef, onions, lettuce, tomatoes, cheddar and mozzarella. It’s finished off with black olives, sour cream and even more cheese for a taste that’s simply delicioso.