It's All About Cupcakes!

Is it me or are cupcakes a serious fad right now?! With an enormous increase in cupcake shops and bakeries across the nation and awesome shows like Food Network's Cupcake Wars, I think it's safe so say that everyone loves cupcakes! There is something about their miniature and adorable shape and stature that is just so inviting and appetizing and let's be honest...cupcakes are cute! I am a huge cupcake fan, they look cute and are great for portion control. This recipe shows how I've really taken the cupcake fad to heart, proving that everything is better when made in a cupcake pan!

These are my pizza cupcakes--I wouldn't exactly call them a savory cupcake, rather just everyday pizza ingredients baked into a cupcake pan and into a perfectly portioned meal! These miniature pizzas aren't mini when it comes to flavor--they pack a serious and delicious punch and the best part is that each one is only around 115 calories!

     Ingredients: 

• Pizza Dough (chose your favorite! it can be homemade dough or store bought. I was feeling lazy and went with a Pillsbury store bought dough)
• Approximately 1 Cup Pizza Sauce (again, chose your favorite--anything will work!)
• 1 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese 
• Toppings-- chose your favorite toppings! Top it with ingredients you love! 

For the toppings, I actually chose to incorporate some of them into the dough itself, since there is such a small and finite surface area on these little cupcake sized pizzas. 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and grease or spray non-stick cooking spray like Pam in each slot in the cupcake/muffin pan. 

Place your pizza dough into a medium sized bowl and add your desired toppings to the dough. I chose to use fresh basil, fresh baby spinach, and turkey pepperoni (yes there is such a thing and it is delicious and healthy!). Once you have mixed in and incorporated the desired toppings to the dough, roll out the dough and cut it into 12 equal squares. Place and therefore mold the squares of dough into the cupcake spots in the pan and press the dough down firmly to cover the entire space and so the dough comes up the sides of the cupcake slot. 

Add about a tablespoon of the pizza sauce and about a tablespoon of mozzarella cheese to each (you can eyeball this). I also added a pinch of italian seasoning just to add a burst of flavor but it's totally optional! In addition, I added a couple extra turkey pepperonis to the top of each just for good measure :). 

Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes. Let cool and enjoy!