Copycat Taco Bell Mexican Pizzas are the PERFECT dinner recipe! With less than 400 calories, you can feel good about serving this fresh family meal!
When I was in high school, I used to love going to Taco Bell after work and ordering the Taco Bell Mexican Pizzas. I don't know what it was about it...maybe the crunch of the tortillas and the mix of cheese and enchilada sauce? Whatever it was, it got me every time. Then one night after work I went to the drive-thru, ordered my pizza, and drove off....without my change!
When I got home I realized my mistake, so I called and asked to talk to the manager. They said they would count out the register drawer when they closed, and would refund my change. Sure enough, I never heard back so I called the next day, and the manager told me the register was not 'over' meaning there was no extra cash there.
I came to the conclusion that the drive-thru person must have pocketed my change (I paid with a $20, and that's a lot to a 16 year old...well, in 2001 it was!), and I vowed never to eat at Taco Bell again!
Well my vow lasted a long time, and by the time I found myself stuck at Taco Bell again, I was a vegetarian and there are super limited options. My favorite? A Crispy Potato Soft Taco or the vegetarian Taco Bell Mexican Pizzas, but these bad boys definitely are not healthy.
Okay, flash forward to the present where I actually know how to cook. I saw a couple pins on Pinterest one day for DIY Mexican Pizza's and it brought back all the memories of TB Mexican Pizzas. The only difference is that now that I am a vegetarian, I obviously don't want beef on my pizza, so
I came up with a healthier version that just uses refried beans (check out this awesome refried bean recipe), and let me tell you, it's delicious, and JUST like Taco Bells Mexican Pizza (probably better actually). If you aren't a vegetarian, it would be easy for you to brown up some ground beef or ground turkey and throw it in there.
This is delicious, it's quick, it's healthy (only 400 calories per pizza, which is great for how filling it is), and you will love it. I use La Banderita Tortillas (***UPDATE: I now use Ole Xtreme Whole Wheat Wraps because they are only 50 cals per wrap - they work GREAT!) because they only have 72 calories per tortilla, and most other brands are a lot higher. Of course, you could use homemade tortillas or whatever brand you like for your copycat Taco Bell Mexican Pizzas.
Put this on your weekly menu plan and make it asap. I've made them twice in the last 2 weeks, that's how easy and yummy they are!
I like using my homemade chipotle enchilada sauce on these Copycat Taco Bell Mexican Pizzas, because it gives them a smokey kick! But, it definitely takes the flavor to a different place than TB's pizzas...which isn't a bad thing if you like some smokey heat! Get the recipe here.
Things you might need for this recipe (aff. links)
Like Mexican food as much as I do? Check out some of these other Mexican inspired recipes from Domestic Superhero:
- One Pot Cheesy Mexican Pasta
- Jalapeno Ranch Black Bean Loaded Nachos
- Southwestern Flatbreads
- Mexican Baked Eggs (One Skillet)
- Mexican Street Corn Salad (Esquites)
- 1 cup refried beans I use vegetarian
- 2 Roma tomatoes diced finely
- ⅔ c. shredded cheese I used a blend of cheddar and monterrey jack
- 2 green onions sliced
- ⅓ c. enchilada sauce
- 4 whole wheat tortillas I like La Banderita Xtreme
- Cooking spray
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a hot skillet or griddle with cooking spray and 'fry' the tortillas, flipping frequently so they don’t burn. You want them to get nice and crispy. Remove fried tortillas to a plate.
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Heat the refried beans so they are warm. Place 2 tortillas on a baking sheet. Spread ½ cup of refried beans onto each tortilla. Place remaining tortillas on top of beans.
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Pour half of enchilada sauce on top of each tortilla and spread around.
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Add half of the chopped tomato on top of the sauce. Add ⅓ cup of cheese on top of each tortilla. Add half of the green onions on top of the cheese.
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Place in oven and cook about 8-10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Video
I like to let these cool a few minutes, then cut in quarters with a pizza cutter. Then you can pick up the slices and eat without a fork and knife! Recipe makes 2 servings, 1 pizza per serving.
Serving Size 1 serving
Calories 401, Fat 15.3g, Carbohydrates 58.1g, Dietary Fiber 30.0g, Protein 29.4g
Veronica Lynn Vittitow
I don't understand why all of these copycat Taco Bell Mexican Pizza recipes use the flour tortillas...the real mexican pizza was made with the hard shell tostada shells.
Allyson
Hi! I am sorry but you are incorrect! Even according to their website you can see they use flour tortillas: "Mexican Pizza is 2 Crispy flour shells layered with beans, seasoned beef, pizza sauce, tomatoes and melted three cheese blend. Order now!"
Ginnie
Hi ,I'm sorry but you are incorrect. It has always been a fried Corn Tortilla's!!!!!
Winniebear
We don't eat TB often due to dietary restrictions but when we do, the MP was always one of our go tos. I never thought to make it at home and I just happen to have all of the ingredients already. I'm excited to try this. Thank you so very much for posting this. Also gives me a reason to use my leftover mild sauce packets 🙂
Allyson
And if you want to add beef to make it more authentic, feel free! Let me know how you like them!
Denise Reed
Oooooooo. Delicious. Will be making these tonight. Yummy!
Thank you so much for the recipe. I bet the taco bell employee thought you gave them a tip. Hopefully you recouped some of your money.