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Dad's English Muffin Pizzas

Posted by Elise on Mar 7, 2007

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Back in 7th grade home-economics, the cooking segment consisted of learning how to make pizza with English muffins, some spaghetti sauce, a little cheese and a toaster oven.

Relax. These aren't those pizzas. These are cool, a little fancy, English muffin pizzas. When my father came home with a bag of English muffins announcing that he was going to make pizzas with them, I sort of rolled my eyes and stepped away. (Okay, dad, whatever you want.) But when the aroma of caramelizing onions, ham, bubbling Mozzarella wafted through the house, I got my plate ready. We'll be having these again soon.

Dad's English Muffin Pizzas Recipe

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Ingredients

6 muffin halves (want to make your own English muffins? here's how)
1 cup grated Mozzarella cheese, packed
1 Tbsp butter
1 medium onion, sliced thin
3/4 cup diced ham
A pinch of chopped fresh sage
1/4 teaspoon stoneground mustard
Optional: A few slices of fresh tomato

Method

1 Preheat oven to 425°F.

2 Melt butter in a medium skillet on medium high heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the diced ham, cook 5 minutes more. Mix in the sage and mustard. Remove from heat.

3 Put muffin halves, open side up on a sturdy baking pan. Distribute the cheese evenly, sprinkling over the muffin halves. Put the onion ham mixture on top of the cheese. If you want to use tomato slices, layer them between the cheese and onion mixture.

4 Bake at 425°F for 8-9 minutes, until the muffins and toppings are nicely browned, but not burnt. Cut into quarters for appetizers or just leave whole for a meal or snack.

Indexed: Caramelized Onion, Kid-friendly, Pizza, Snack

29 Comments

I make these all the time, with the slow-roasted garlicky tomatoes I made and froze last summer, and a nice slice of fresh mozzarella and sprinkling of fresh herbs. Hooray for your dad!

Posted by: lydia on March 7, 2007 3:18 AM

These look delicious! I always have a bag of English muffins handy in my fridge for a quick snack. Making pizzas out of them is great idea! :)

Posted by: Meena on March 7, 2007 4:32 AM

During summer school sessions, I used to LIVE on English muffin sandwiches and made dozens of variations of these. My favorite however was liver sausage with Miracle Whip and sliced tomato (some times with Velveeta). I wonder if Dad would approve ...

Posted by: Alanna on March 7, 2007 4:44 AM

Oh, so I can use them for *more* than Eggs Benedict? ;)

Those are gorgeous! Makes me wish I had something else besides oatmeal for breakfast... there's always lunch!

Posted by: Shawnda on March 7, 2007 6:17 AM

Elise, I love all these stories about your dad. Keep 'em coming!

Posted by: Madam Chow on March 7, 2007 6:52 AM

Looks delicious.

Lydia, how do you make and freeze "slow-roasted garlicky tomatoes"? Sounds tasty, and I never know what to do with my extra garden tomatoes.

I was also wondering how these would do with a slice of mozzarella instead.

Here is the recipe I've used for making english muffins:
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=40796

Posted by: Tom on March 7, 2007 7:42 AM

This looks like so much fun!!!!

Thank you!

Posted by: Mau Sandoval on March 7, 2007 8:33 AM

Love your dad's ideas - he sounds like a riot. Keep 'em coming!

Posted by: Ann on March 7, 2007 8:35 AM

Oh
my
God!

When I saw those I really let out a good laugh. I remember making those way back when. The only thing you missed was they need to be cooked in a GE toaster oven.

(Ok, we also used dried herbs, canned tomato sauce, and pepperoni...and aren't you fancy-schmancy sauteéing onions as well!)

Posted by: David on March 7, 2007 12:04 PM

What a kick to see this recipe here! I grew up in NY in the 50s and 60s and ate 100s of English muffin pizzas, with Thomas's English Muffins (no other would do!), jarred pizza or spaghetti sauce, and sliced Polly-O mozzarella cheese. Spread sauce on half muffin, top with slice of cheese, then another dab of sauce on top of the cheese, sprinkled with garlic powder and dried oregano. Absolutely delish!!

Even as a very sophisticated Calif. Bay Area "foodie" adult, every so often, I've gotten into an English muffin pizza jag, and will eat them for a week or so, exactly as I described them above, or at least until a package or two of Thomas's is used up. They're still delish to me. (Have to run out now and buy some muffins and cheese!)

As much as I appreciate your father's update of this wonderful snack, I'll be sticking with the old-fashioned way forever. It's just not English muffin pizza if it doesn't have jarred sauce and sliced mozzarella. :-)

P.S. To toast or not to toast the muffin before putting the sauce on? I go both ways, with different results. They're both good in their own way.

Posted by: Arcey on March 7, 2007 12:40 PM

I wondered why my page hits had doubled overnight! Looking good Elise.

Posted by: barbara on March 7, 2007 1:26 PM

Toast mine prior to topping, please. Who likes soggy pizza?

There are always english muffins in my bread box. Always. Don't ask me why.

Does anyone remember these guys? Yummy flavored muffins
http://www.wolfermans.com/store/SHOP_BY_PRODUCT___English_Muffins___Signature___12_pack_Create_Your_Own_Signature_English_Muffin_Sampler___8012

Posted by: jonathan on March 7, 2007 1:30 PM

Love your recipes and stories =)

These "mini pizzas" look delicious! You can also add hard boiled eggs (mashed with a fork)... In Brazil we call Portuguese pizza (cheese, ham, onions and eggs).

Posted by: Isabella on March 7, 2007 2:24 PM

A blast from the past!

I had an aversion to even the thought of uncooked dough when I was a kid. My mom use to make these so I could be assured all the bread area was cooked. Can't wait to resurrect this idea and try it on my children.

Posted by: Rick on March 7, 2007 3:57 PM

Well, Elise, hurrah! I would have thought you had to toast the muffins first! Okay, I'll give this yumminess a try when we get home (on vacation from the cold). Thanks!

Posted by: mj on March 7, 2007 4:18 PM

Elise,
Your Panko-Crusted Salmon is mentioned in March issue of CSPI, Nutrition Action Healthletter. Way to go!
Susan

Posted by: Susan Cobos on March 7, 2007 5:02 PM

Exact same recipe, only we used the ready-bake biscuits you get in a can, rolled out to about twice their original size. Excellent snack or light meal!

Posted by: dsx on March 7, 2007 10:02 PM

Oh, fun! I also used to make these with canned sauce and supermarket Pepperoni. Yours do sound better!

Posted by: Lady Amalthea on March 8, 2007 9:24 AM

I love to make these with my 4 year old. They are so quick and easy to make and the little size is perfect for her.

Posted by: Bradley on March 8, 2007 2:14 PM

Oh - what a fabulous post! I grew up on these. And - we had them exactly as Arcey described above. Brings back wonderful memories. I made mini's several weeks ago with Gorgonzola. Yum!

Posted by: Chris on March 8, 2007 4:14 PM

Sold. Anything that includes an English muffin that I know my kids will like, I'm making.

Posted by: Chigiy on March 8, 2007 7:18 PM

I use spaghetti sauce from a jar as a shortcut for the sauce - we prefer Prego Sausage & Garlic because you get an extra topping (sausage). Also, I add 2-3 cloves of chopped garlic to the onions, add pepperoni (4 slices each). You can also use cheddar/jack on these as well if you don't have the mozzarella on hand.

Posted by: Ron on March 8, 2007 7:20 PM

I loved these. I will be making them again and again!

Posted by: Stacie on March 8, 2007 11:43 PM

Hi Lydia - Aren't they just the ultimate fast food?

Hi Meena - Hey then you're all set, if you already have the bag of English muffins. We don't usually have them around.

Hi Alanna - Do you mean liverwurst? I love liverwurst on anything, but please hold the MW and the V. (See, I can't even bring myself to type them out.)

Hi Shawnda - Cold pizza for breakfast - I think we all survived college on that diet.

Hello Madam Chow and Ann - As long as dad keeps on providing the material, I'll be here to report. ;-)

Hi Tom - Thanks for the recipe!

Hi Mau - You are very welcome.

Hi David - You're right! It had to be a GE toaster oven. They must have sponsored the cooking class.

Hi Arcey - I thought we should toast the muffins first and told dad as much. He did it his way, un-toasted, and they turned out great. Is there any brand other than Thomas's? They are so good.

Hi Barbara - That's what you get for knowing how to make the muffins from scratch, and doing it. :-)

Hello Isabella - Hard boiled eggs? Now that's an idea.

Hi Rick - Kids love these things. They are kid sized, and even the kids can make them.

Hi MJ - Nope, no need to toast the muffins first.

Hi DSX - That would work too, thanks.

Hi Lady - There must have been some massive national conspiracy with GE and Thomas's to get an entire generation of people making these pizzas.

Hi Bradley - They would be perfect for a 4 year old, wouldn't they?

Hi Chigiy - Knowing your kids, I know they would LOVE these.

Hi Ron - Garlic is a great kicker.

Hi Stacie - Yay!

Posted by: Elise on March 9, 2007 1:47 PM

Just tried your mini pizza. It's so yummy..Even make the kitchen smell heavenly....My daughter loves it so much.. Thank you!!

Posted by: Sally on March 12, 2007 3:36 PM

I just made your pizza last night on pita bread. I was planning on using english muffins, but I came across the pita bread at the store first and thought they look like mini pizza dough. They were so good and easy!!

Posted by: Annie on March 12, 2007 3:54 PM

Hi Elise,
Your recipe is very similar to what used to be one of the most popular kids' birthday party foods during my childhood. Every mother had her secret ingredient mix that served as a topping and we loved them all!

Posted by: Nicky on March 13, 2007 5:14 AM

We were still making English muffin pizzas when I was in 7th grade home economics! (I'm in college now) These look fabulous and I can't wait to try them.

Posted by: Tonie on June 6, 2007 3:54 PM

Assemble different ingredients at parties and let guests make their own. Great for kids.

Posted by: sandy on March 14, 2009 9:19 AM

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Dad's English Muffin Pizzas Recipe