I’m all about using leftovers in creative ways. And, although you can buy the ingredients to make Fright Night Mini Pizzas, I didn’t buy a thing! I had all these ingredients already, in one fashion or another, and in the spirit of Halloween decided to create something fun for dinner!
I used leftover meat sauce from an earlier spaghetti dinner, plus ingredients I already had in the refrigerator or freezer and fresh basil and oregano from my herb garden. Plus, they were all surprisingly delicious!
I say “surprisingly” because I really wasn’t sure how these would turn out. And, as you can see from the photo above, they aren’t “picture perfect” mini pizzas made by a professional! The Goblin pizzas’ faces are lopsided, the red moon is about ready to fall off the Bat Under a Blood Red Moon pizza and the Jack-O-Lantern pizza in the upper right hand corner is about to lose his gnarly grin and his eyes!
But, I think that’s part of the charm of my Fright Night Mini Pizzas – the fact that they are “homemade” and not perfect. But, they are a perfect dinner to get your kids in the kitchen to cook with you!
They aren’t difficult – a few cuts with a sharp paring knife and all the ingredients are ready to assemble. Let your older children help cut out moons, eyes, grins, etc. and let your little ones decide what they want to make and help assemble. Then let the oven surprise you with the finished product!
Yes, I gave them Halloween names:
- Jack-O-Lantern Mini Pizzas
- Bats Under a Blood Red Moon Mini Pizzas
- Goblin Mini Pizzas
- Bloody Pus-filled Brains Mini Pizzas
Here are the Goblins and Bloody Pus-filled Brains Mini Pizzas assembled and on a baking tray ready for the oven. I used mini (4-inch in diameter) flatbreads that I brushed with olive oil. Then I added about 2 tablespoons of leftover spaghetti meat sauce on each and smeared it around with the back of a spoon. I covered the Goblins with shredded Mozzarella cheese, topped them with a half-moon shaped sun-dried tomato, a triangle of orange bell pepper and a black olive cut in half for the eyes. Voila’ – done!
For the Bloody Pus-filled Brains, I again brushed the flatbreads with olive oil, covered with spaghetti sauce, topped with quartered heirloom green mini tomatoes and then chunks of buffalo Mozzarella that I pulled apart with my fingers.
Here’s a close-up of the Bloody Pus-filled Brains Mini Pizza ready for the oven.
These are the Jack-O-Lantern Mini Pizzas and the Bats Under a Blood Red Moon Mini Pizzas, ready for the oven. For the Jack-O-Lanterns, again, brush with olive oil, smear on spaghetti sauce, top with shredded Mozzarella cheese. Then, use a pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter to cut out American cheese and place on top of the Mozzarella cheese. Use a paring knife to cut triangles and gnarly grins from an orange bell pepper. I used a piece of fresh oregano on each to represent the Jack-O-Lantern’s stem.
Here’s a close-up of one of the Jack-O-Lanterns.
For the Bats Under a Blood Red Moon, same thing: brush with olive oil, smear on spaghetti sauce, top with shredded Mozzarella cheese, top with a trimmed sun-dried tomato in the shape of a half moon, cut a black olive in half, lengthwise for the bat’s body, then use the remaining olive half to fashion “wings” with a paring knife.
I baked them in a preheated oven for 10 minutes and voila’, dinner’s ready!
Lopsided Goblin…
Happy Goblin…both Goblins with a bit of fresh basil for hair!
Double-cheese Jack-O-Lantern…
Bloody Pus-filled Brains with a basil chiffonade…(my personal favorite!).
Here’s the recipe:
Fright Night Mini Pizzas
Made with leftovers from your refrigerator and freezer, these mini pizzas are easy to assemble and delicious too! A great project to do with your kids at Halloween!
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 30 mins
- Yield: 12 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 2 packages (6 in each package) garlic oven-baked flatbreads (4″ in diameter)
- 1 cup pasta sauce or pizza sauce or leftover spaghetti sauce
- 2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese
- 3 slices American cheese
- 1 small (mini) orange bell pepper
- 6 black olives
- 3 whole sun-dried tomato halves
- 6 heirloom cherry tomatoes
- 6 mini fresh buffalo Mozzarella balls
- 3 leaves fresh basil, chiffonade
- 3 tiny stems of basil (for the Goblin’s hair)
- 3 leaves of fresh oregano leaves (for the pumpkin’s stem)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- Place flatbreads on cookie sheet (I used 2 cookie sheets – 6 on each).
- With a pastry brush, brush each flatbread with olive oil.
- Spoon approximately 2 tablespoons of pasta/pizza sauce onto each flatbread, spreading around with the back of a spoon.
- Divide shredded Mozzarella cheese over 9 of the flatbreads (you’ll have 3 with no shredded Mozzarella cheese).
To Make the Jack-O-Lantern:
- Cut out pumpkin shapes from 3 slices of American cheese using cookie cutter and place each on 3 of the flatbreads that already have shredded Mozzarella cheese.
- Cut mini orange bell pepper in half; seed and stem.
- Then cut 12 small triangles from the half of the pepper and place on top of American cheese with 3 triangles on each pumpkin for eyes (2) and nose (1) – you will have 3 triangles left for the Goblins’ noses.
- Cut 3 gnarly grins from the other half of the bell pepper and place on top of American cheese.
- Add an oregano leaf to each Jack-O-Lantern to represent the stem.
To Make Bats Under a Blood Red Moon:
- Cut 3 black olives in half lengthwise.
- Place half on 3 different flatbreads.
- Cut remaining 3 black olive halves in half again, trimming to fashion wings.
- Place wings on either side of bat’s body.
- Fold each of the sun-dried tomatoes in half, lengthwise.
- Using a paring knife, trim each to resemble a half moon (you’ll end up with 2 “moons” from each whole sun-dried tomato).
- Place one half moon on each bat flatbread (you’ll have 3 left for the Goblins’ grins).
To Make the Goblins:
- Place one half moon of sun-dried tomato on 3 flatbreads for the mouths.
- Cut 3 black olives in half and place on Goblin flatbreads as eyes.
- Add 3 reserved orange pepper triangles for noses.
To Make Bloody Pus-filled Brains:
- Quarter heirloom tomatoes and distribute on 3 flatbreads.
- Tear mini Mozzarella balls in pieces and place on and around heirloom tomatoes.
To Finish All Fright Night Mini Pizzas:
- Place in preheated oven and bake 10 minutes.
- Remove from oven.
- Garnish Bloody Pus-filled Brains with a scattering of fresh basil chiffonade.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
These are small pizzas (about equal to one slice of normal pizza). Serve 2 to 3, if serving adults.
These Fright Night Mini Pizzas are delicious and a fun lunch or dinner for the Halloween season!
Tootles,
Related Posts:
(other Halloween recipes)
It looks delicious and perfect for a spooky theme party. If I can’t find any flatbreads, what are the next best thing to substitute for them?
★★★★★
English muffins would work well in this recipe, too. Hope you enjoy them!
These are so fun – and I LOVE the names you gave them! I’m totally going to do these with the teens! Thx for the family fun idea.
I’m so glad you like them! It’s a perfect, fun family dinner idea!