As promised in a previous, I am sharing my recipe for my family’s mini English muffin pizzas. Since they’re made with a whole wheat “crust,” piled with veggies, and come with insta-portion control, they’re a great meal to add to your family’s lunch or dinner rotation.

Ingredients:

• 1 pkg whole wheat English muffins
• 1 small can marinara or pizza sauce
• 1 cup or so of part-skim cheese
• Toppings of choice: sliced olives, spinach, chopped mushrooms, sausage, bacon bits, artichokes, etc.
• 1 garlic clove, chopped
• basil to season

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees.

2. Spread the English muffin halves on a baking sheet.

3. Spread a spoonful of sauce over each muffin and sprinkle with the desired amount of cheese.

4. Sprinkle with toppings of choice. Try to pile ingredients in thin layers. Thick toppings will cause the mini pizzas to heat inconsistently and weigh them down.

5. Season with chopped garlic and a pinch of basil. The garlic really makes a difference for the mouth-watering factor. Take my word for it.

6. Heat the pizzas in the oven until the cheese melts and the bread starts gently browning, about 10 minutes. Serve with your choice of side.

We have these mini pizzas on our weekly family menu quite often. They’re so simple to make, pretty darn healthy, provide a great opportunity to sneak in extra veggies, and each family member gets to customize their pizza to their liking. They’re a much better alternative to greasy overloaded delivery pizza–and quicker too! Plus, it’s a fun little meal to put together as a family. My four-year-old loves helping me make these.

And just for kicks, I had to show you the litter that our knucklehead pit bull just had.