National Pizza Month

I don't know about you, but I don't need a special occasion to enjoy pizza. However, I guess it is sort of nice that they dedicate a whole month to celebrating all that is pizza. October is National Pizza Month, as was first observed back in 1984. Gerry Durnell, the founder of Pizza Today magazine, chose October because the first issue of his magazine debuted in October of 1984.

Pizza is a popular treat, enjoyed at least once a month by 94% of Americans. As a girl from the Midwest married to a man from New Jersey, I can tell you that what people consider to be the ideal pizza can vary greatly. So, can the toppings that they enjoy. If I am eating out, I am a fan of the thin crust pizzas cut into squares or a nice hand-tossed pizza. I enjoy a variety of toppings (not necessarily on one pizza) - crumbled sausage, banana peppers, green peppers, onions, green olives, pepperoni. I also like the deep dish Chicago pizzas full of all that glorious ooey-gooey cheese. Some of my favorite, non-pizza place pizzas, include toppings like feta cheese, kalamata olives, caramelized onions, fresh sliced tomatoes - of course, prepared in a brick oven. My husband on the other hand needs a large pizza that has a doughy crust that can easily be folded for eating - New York Style he calls it. I can tell you that here in Ohio, it is very hard to find good New York Style pizza.

One thing we can all agree on is that we enjoy homemade pizza. When I was a kid, I can remember my mom making pizza crust from a box mix. It was a nice thin pizza that you ate with a fork. I tend to use frozen bread dough to make most of my homemade pizza, but sometimes, whether to mix it up or to use up leftovers, I also like to use other crusts.

When we have bagels, English Muffins, Hoagie Rolls, French Bread or hamburger rolls on hand, I like to make pizzas on them. It is fun because each pizza can be built the way they like it. We can add onions to one and green olives to another. It can be heavy on sauce or light. With or without pepperoni. The choice is theirs. They are the chef. Plus, these mini-pizzas are fun to eat.

Have you seen the new Pizza Toppings from Hormel?

I love that I can now have crumbled sausage or crumbled beef to add to my pizza. One of my favorite non-traditional pizzas to make is Cheeseburger Pizza. I've shared it before, but here it is (updated), in case you missed it.

Cheeseburger Pizza
1 package Hormel Beef Crumbles or 1/2# ground beef, browned and drained
1 pre-baked shell
1/2 c Ketchup
Mustard
2 c shredded sharp cheddar
onion rings

Place shell on baking sheet. Spread ketchup on shell and then add mustard in a criss-cross fashion. Top with beef, cheese and onion rings.

Bake in a preheated oven at 425 for 12-15 minutes, until cheese is melted and onion rings browned.

How do you enjoy your pizzas? What type of crust/style is your favorite?

No compensation was received for this post. All opinions expressed are mine or those of my family. I am completing this post as a participant in the Hormel Foods Extended Family Blogger program. Hormel Foods provided a thought starter and some of the information for this post.