When Carlos, an international student, from Chihuahua, Mexico lived with us from 1999 – 2000, I learned as much as I could about authentic Mexican food. His mom used to over-night fresh cheese (queso fresco), picante and torillas to us almost on a monthly basis!

We were spoiled to say the least.

As much as I love traditional, mainstream uses for the tortilla, I also love to experiment – it’s good to try something new every now and again.

This weekend I made thin crust pizzas on the BBQ (with the kids) and cinnamon coated ice cream bowls for dessert… all out of tortillas!

Gourmet Thin Crust Pizzas (on the BBQ):

Using tortillas as your pizza crust, add the toppings you’d like. I don’t recommend a heavy tomato pizza sauce as it could make the tortilla soggy. You’ll lose that crispness which is oh so yummy!

I made a Greek Chicken, Margherita, and Chicken Alfredo.

The boys made themselves a tomato and mozzarella cheese with chicken pizza.

What you’ll need (in order):

Greek Chicken:
* Olive Oil (drizzle on tortilla first)
* Sliced Olives
* Feta Cheese (crumbled)
* Precooked Chicken (chopped)
* Greek seasoning (a pinch sprinkled)

Margherita:
* Olive Oil (drizzle on first)
* Mozzarella Cheese (sliced)
* Tomato (sliced)
* A few fresh Basil leaves

Chicken Alfredo:
* Alfredo Sauce (lightly spread on first)
* Parmesan Cheese (sprinkled)
* Precooked Chicken (chopped)
* Dried Basil (sprinkled)

What you’ll do:

Pre-heat BBQ, grill the pizzas on low to medium heat and long enough to melt the cheese, about 2-3 minutes. Be careful not to burn the tortillas.

Margherita Pizza – Dave’s Favourite

And for dessert….

Cinnamon & sugar tortilla bowls with ice cream and fresh fruit:

You can mix cinnamon and sugar and spread softened butter on the tortillas, but I skipped a step and used prepared cinnamon spread.

What you’ll need:

* Tortillas (I used Dempster’s Original – Small)
* Cinnamon Spread
* Fresh Berries
* Ice Cream (I used Vanilla)
* Mint (optional)

What you’ll do:

* Pre-heat oven to 350F
* Spread cinnamon spread (or mixture) on both sides of the tortillas.
* Place tortillas in muffin tins, carefully pushing down so as not to break them. (Using a smaller ramekin will hold the tortilla in place while it bakes to form a bowl.) No matter what you do, make sure there is an opening big enough for the ice cream. 🙂
* Bake for 15-20 mins or until tortillas are nice and crisp.
* Let cool before adding ice cream to the middle of the newly formed bowl.
* Add fresh fruit.
* To garnish, add a few mint leaves (optional)

VOILA and ENJOY!

My family loves being part of meal time, right from the preparations to the cleaning up. Today’s meal was a big hit! So much so, my husband was still talking about the Margherita Pizza at midnight. 😉

For more Dempster’s Ideas, follow their Pinterest boards or search on Appehtite, Canada’s Kitchen, for more great recipes like my Pizza & Ice Cream Bowls.

Disclaimer: I will receive reimbursement from Maple Leaf Foods to help cover my expenses for the ingredients I purchased to create these recipes.