Hey y’all.
Phew. March really wore me out with all the Irish-American Heritage Month recipes and I missed out on National Nutrition Month. I can’t believe it’s already April! It should feel like spring, but, its pretty yucky outside here in MI. It’s been cold, wet, muddy and rainy. There are still piles of snow in the cornfield behind me, but for the most part, my yard is snow free! Whoopeeee!
We’re gathered together today to discuss cheese. mmmm cheese. I can’t imagine my life without it. More specifically though we are here to discuss California Dairy and the wonderful creamy cheese I tried.
But first I must apologize for the delay. My first care package didn’t arrive and by the time I figured out (real duh moment) it was not going to, I reached out the CA Dairy spokesperson who very promptly sent me a replacement. Sadly though I wasn’t able to join the contest but I am still obligated to post my recipe and review, which I am more than happy to do! I want to thank everyone for being so understanding about my late post. However, as my luck would have it, I was unable to locate CA Dairy cheese at the 2 larger stores I have close by so I ended up using my gift card to order some CA Dairy cheese on Amazon.
Thank goodness for Amazon, right? I mean, we can find just about anything on Amazon!
My item was packed in a dry ice cooler so it arrived nice and fresh. No complaints there!
I decided to go with the Karoun brand because they had these really fun braided string cheeses. Mine was original flavor with part skim milk for that whole milk taste without all of the fat. 1 oz of the cheese had 80 calories and 6 gr. of fat. I am thrilled when I can find some great tasting cheese for under 100 calories a serving. The braids looked like so much fun. When the packaged arrived I pulled out one of the thin strings that had been braided around and looped around again. It was like a cooked spaghetti noodle. It was crazy and thinking about it now I should have taken a photo! It was way more fun to eat. Slurping like a little kid, thankful no one else was home.
Since I was a little stressed about the whole late card , not being able to find cheese, and lucking out on Amazon at the last-minute I was wondering what I was going to do with the cheese that would make a fun and healthy recipe. I really wanted to make a snack because I don’t have a lot of snacks here on YUM eating.
I stood there with the refrigerator open and rummaged around for a minute before I shut the door. For a moment I felt as if my task was helpless. What was I going to do with this fun stringy cheese? It was so creamy so I knew it was going to melt great. And then I remembered I had some homemade sauce leftover from the homemade canned tomatoes we can up every year. Then, I had some turkey pepperoni leftover from the healthier pizza we created a few nights prior. Then, I pulled out a bag of leftover rye hoagies that the grocery store bakery had sliced and marked down to a whopping 50 cents. I purchased them the day before having no idea what I was going to do with them.
BAM!
I had my lightbulb moment. Healthy mini pizza bites. Rye bread is low glycemic and a better option than wheat and white according to my dietician. I’m ok with that since Rye is my favorite. So I put these little guys on a non stick baking sheet. I used a brush and brushed on a very thin layer of melted coconut oil.
I put them in the oven for a few minutes to toast them a bit. Then, using a spoon I put on my sauce, followed by one piece of turkey pepperoni.
I sliced the braid of cheese. When it comes out of the package its like a braided log. I put a slice on top of each bite.
Topped with a little sprinkle of pepper, oregano and some garlic powder. Put the whole pan in the oven until the cheese melted.
Instant mini pizza’s!
Since husband was working late, this made a nice dinner to snack on while I watched a movie. I had some leftover because despite their tiny size, they packed a lot of filling punch. They warmed up nicely the next day.
- 1 log of California Dairy braided cheese (Karoun)
- 2-3 rye hoagies, sliced
- 3 oz. turkey pepperoni
- ¾ cup canned tomato, blended in food processor
- 1 tsp coconut oil
- garlic powder
- oregano
- pepper
- Preheat oven to 350.
- On a non stick baking sheet place bread slices on tray.
- Melt 1 tsp coconut oil.
- Brush the coconut oil on the tops of the bread slices.
- Bake for 2-3 minutes, or until the desired golden brown.
- Take out of oven and set aside.
- Using homemade canned tomatoes, pour in food processor with a dash of oregano, pepper, and garlic powder. Blend.
- Using a spoon, place a small spoonful of sauce on toasted bread.
- Top with a pepperoni.
- Top with a slice of cheese.
- Sprinkle with garlic powder, oregano and pepper.
- Place in oven under oven broiler until cheese has melted.
If you enjoyed my recipe, please check out the other California Dairy creations from Recipe Redux members!
Disclosure: As part of Recipe Redux, from time to time we are given products to use in a recipe. I was given a gift card in order to purchase the California Dairy cheese mentioned here. All reviews, thoughts, ideas, photos and recipes are my own. For more information check out Real California Milk and the Dairy Council of California. To see more California Dairy recipes, check out #CADairyHealth
These look like they would make great appetizers for a party. The rye bread is an interesting choice for crust, I’ll have to try that.
I think any type of small bread would work ok. I have used hoagie rolls and sliced them. It just so happened this bread was on sale where I was shopping so I figured I would give it a try.
That is some nice creative pizza! I like pizza any way it is made, thanks for this healthy recipe!
Mitch
I love pizza too!
I’ve never heard of that cheese before! Those mini pizza bites look and sound amazing though!
I had seen it in the stores but never really knew much about it until I had to do this post. It was really good cheese.
These sound great. Really easy to make and makes a great snack. Will have to check out that cheese.
These are perfect movie night snacks! Thanks for sharing this recipe and the linky! Great collection of tasty recipes!
You are very welcome.
These look really tasty,my kids would love these for TV time snacks.
Healthy schmealthy – LOL. I actually love stuff like this for the kids. Everyone likes bite sized things like this and pizza is a favorite in our house!
With the appetites in this house, we had to make another pan for a meal. But it works and its way better than ordering pizza!
Yum, your pizza bites look so good! I am going to have to try your recipe and make these!
Let me know how it turns out for you Jenn!
Those are the cutest little pizzas I’ve ever seen. My kids love pizza, so these would be gone is seconds at my house.
They didn’t last long here either!
These look delicious and so simple! I will have to make them soon!
These look like they would make great appetizers for a party. I love that they are bite sized too, so a little more guilt free than eating a whole pizza!
This is SUCH a great idea and recipe! Perfect for my toddler AND husband. Thanks!
These look like a healthier option for sure. I love pizza!
Those look so good. I love that they are easy to make.
I use the same coconut oil – it’s great! Pizza bites would be a hit in our house!
Great recipe. Rye is really healthy, and it toasts so nicely.
Wow that looks so so yummy! I am putting these on the menu for this week!
This looks so tasty! I love that the cheese has part skim milk but doesn’t taste like it.
I am like you…I can’t imagine my life without cheese. I am sitting here eating string cheese as I type this. LOL
Your mini pizza’s look so good. I love finding recipes like these because this is the kind of thing I take to school when I am teaching. Thanks for sharing. 🙂
Looks like a great quick dinner. Great that it heated up nicely the next day.
These little pizzas look so good! The coconut oil is a nice touch.
These mini pizza bites are making my mouth water! That melted cheese… yummy!
I was just thinking I wanted to make mini pizzas with my girls this week. This is a great recipe. I have some of that coconut oil in my pantry to use right now!
This is such a great idea! I know my kids would LOVE this! Ok, we would all love this!
So easy! It looks delicious! I am such a fan of fresh mozzarella too. Love this recipe.
These look really good! I love the healthy mini pizza bites, I love how you used the manager special bread. That is a staple in our house, LOL!
I really like the healthier version my kids love the not so healthy one but we will have to try the rye instead of whole grain
That’s awesome that they even warmed up well. They do look tasty good.
Those look really simple and delicious. Does the coconut oil come through in the end flavor? Or can you not tell at all? I am always looking for great ways to incorporate coconut oil.
I love cheese. LOVE IT. I also love rye bread, but I would never have thought to use it like this! Looks absolutely delicious!
Anything with the word healthy in it is amazing! 🙂 I’m trying to change my habits!
Those look so good, especially for an after school snack! My son would love this
That looks so yummy! They would make the perfect appetizer for a get together!
I can’t wait to make these with my daughters! We love pizza in this house.
What a yummy little treat. These are perfect for kids in the kitchen.
These look really good! Perfect for my next girls night in!
This looks so good. Would be perfect when my kids have friends over.
I love pizza and so I know this would be a great thing to try to make here in this house. Pizza Pizza!
This sounds amazing! I’d have added mushrooms though 😉
These look really really good, my kids would especially love it if I made this. They could even help!
I had no idea you could order cheese via amazon! This looks pretty delicious!
Me either! It was shipped in a cold pack. Who knew?
Oh, I love gooey melted cheese! This is great for any party or after school snack!
This cheese was really amazing!