One of my favorite parts of camping is getting to try out a new recipe over the open fire. We made these Pizza Nachos during a camping trip to Point Mugu a few weeks ago.
We got to eat them by the ocean at sunset, while dolphins and whales played. Seriously, California is the best state!
I love these as a camping recipe because you can do most of the prep at home then throw it together at the campsite with minimal dishes. Very easy. If you aren’t camping, you could also make this in the oven at home (just pre-heat your oven to 400 degrees).
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Ingredients
Garlic Cream Sauce Ingredients
- Unsalted Butter
- Olive Oil
- Garlic Cloves
- Heavy Cream
- Milk
- Parmesan Cheese
- Salt
- Pepper
- Red Pepper Flakes
Nachos Ingredients
- Tortilla Chips
- Onion
- Pepperoni
- Black Olives
- Bell Pepper
- Green Onions
- Colby-Jack Cheese
Directions
Garlic Cream Sauce: Melt the butter and olive oil in a saucepan Once the butter is melted, add the minced garlic. Stir. After a minute or two, add in the cream and milk. Stir until it comes to a boil. Add salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and cheese. Stir until sauce has thickened. Once it has thickened, remove from fire and set aside.
Nachos: Grab your cast iron skillet
and add the tortilla chips. Drizzle the garlic cream sauce all over the chips.
Top with the onions, pepperoni, olives, bell pepper, and colby jack cheese. The best approached is to layer it between tortilla chips so every bit gets plenty of toppings.
Place over the open fire and cover. Cook until the cheese is nice and bubbly and the veggies are warm, about 5-8 minutes.
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Campfire Pizza Nachos Recipe
Ingredients
Garlic Cream Sauce Ingredients:
- 1.5 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- ½ Tablespoons Olive Oil
- 2-3 Garlic Cloves (Minced)
- ½ cups Heavy Cream
- ¼ cup Milk
- 1/4 Cup Parmesan Cheese
- Salt
- Pepper
- Red Pepper Flakes
Nacho Ingredients:
- 1 Bag of Tortilla Chips
- ½ cups Garlic Cream Sauce (recipe below)
- ¼ cups Onion (diced)
- ½ cups Pepperoni (cut into quarters)
- ½ cups Black Olives (sliced)
- ½ whole Bell Pepper (diced)
- 2 Green Onions (sliced)
- 1 cup Colby-Jack Cheese (Shredded)
Instructions
Directions:
- Garlic Cream Sauce: Melt the butter and olive oil in a saucepan Once the butter is melted, add the minced garlic. Stir. After a minute or two, add in the cream and milk. Stir until it comes to a boil. Add salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and cheese. Stir until sauce has thickened. Once it has thickened, remove from fire and set aside.
- Nachos: Grab your cast iron skillet and add the tortilla chips. Drizzle the garlic cream sauce all over the chips.
- Top with the onions, pepperoni, olives, bell pepper, and Colby jack cheese. The best approached is to layer it between tortilla chips so every bit gets plenty of toppings.
- Place over the open fire and cover. Cook until the cheese is nice and bubbly and the veggies are warm, about 5-8 minutes.
Andrea Wyckoff says
These nachos look sooo delicious!! I love that you made them the perfect campfire food!
Del says
Direction for the cream sauce for the Campfire Nachos calls for cheese. The ingredients fails to include cheese as an ingredient. Please advise idea seems very tasty.
Jessica Pinney says
Sorry for the confusion, it is 1/4 cup Parmesan.
Camping Carol says
Can someone who actually made this tell me how the chips do not get soggy putting a cream sauce on and then heating for sometime until the stuff on the top gets hot. Wanting to check before I spend the time and $. Thx
Charles Brewer says
How many does the recipe serve with the amount of ingedients listed???
Jessica Pinney says
I would say this serves four adults.
Amy says
What do you cover this with to cook? Does your cast iron skillet have a lid?
Jessica Pinney says
Yes, I have a cast iron lid like this.
L says
can you make the cream sauce ahead of time?
Kathy says
I wish I could see all the ingredients and directions but it is covered by the left side banner for pinterest and facebook etc. I can’t even see the left side of this comment box.
Jessica Pinney says
Kathy, try making your browser window larger. I just tried on two different devices and two different browsers and could not replicate your issue. If resizing your browser window doesn’t work, please email me and I will send you the recipe. hello@cookingwithjanica.com
Geo says
Major hit at our group camping trip. We went on a 4 hour kayaking trip, and everybody needed something to eat quick. Pizza nachos hit the spot! I’ll definitely use this again.
Jessica Pinney says
Glad you enjoyed them, sounds like an awesome trip!
MK says
Can you substitute the cream with anything else. I never use cream and would hate to buy it just for the one recipe.
Jessica Pinney says
You could try using milk, but the sauce will not be the correct consistency and not have as rich a flavor.
Tina says
This was great.
sharry@ shorisuperstore says
good article…i cant believe you can use nachos to create a pizaa. awesome.. the instruction when to tell if its alreay cooked is by looking at the cheese.
Where did you buy the cast iron?
Dominique | Perchance to Cook says
Oh wow! This takes camping to a whole other level! I want a bite of these nachos ASAP. They look so delicious!
Ashley @ Big Flavors from a Tiny Kitchen says
These nachos look outrageously good! What a fun way to upgrade camping food – I’ll have to try this the next time my family heads upstate!
Ben Myhre says
This looks really good. I am not sure what makes them pizza-ish, but I definitely wouldn’t kick them off my plate. Cheesy Nacho awesomeness!
Sarah says
I’m a little obsessed with campfire meals, and this one is such a great idea! We don’t always have a way to keep cheese cold when we camp, but when we do, we should make this!!
Sharon Rigsby says
What a beautiful place to camp! I suspect that anything would taste good cooked there! However, I love nachos and these look divine! Will have to try this next time we go camping!
Christine says
Yum! Such a great recipe idea. I’ve never tried pizza nachos, but they sound delish!
Tina says
I love cooking with cast iron. The cheese really makes this dish, how fun!
Helene says
I feel like going camping right away! this does sound like a smart and comforting camp fire food which everyone will enjoy. You got me super inspired right now, I want to plan our next road trip to the Himalayas.
Lisa Scott says
Made this in the oven, it was a big hit thank you. Its a keeper
Abby @ WinsteadWandering says
These nachos look beyond incredible, but I fear I’d just eat all the garlic cream sauce with a spoon before I ever got around to making them. What a fun family night recipe!
Karyl | Karyl's Kulinary Krusade says
Oh man, these nachos look so good. I love that you’re using garlic cream sauce instead of regular cheese sauce. Fabulous twist
Anne Murphy says
That sounds amazing!
No campfires in my immediate future – I’m just going to have to make this over a stove… Bet it’ll still be good!
Julie says
Welp, I love (LOVE) nachos, and I love pizza, so I’m basically ready to reach through my computer screen and grab a chip. Can’t wait to try these!!
Mary Bostow says
I love these nachos, delicious, quick and easy is the name of the game around here for snacks!
Gloria Mott says
I think I will add mushrooms, maybe some sausage too. It looks divine.
Nicole says
Could you make the cheese sauce ahead of time?
Joyce says
Can the sauce be made ahead of time??
Lindsey says
Asking the same as the others…can the sauce be made ahead of time?
Dawn says
My family doesn’t camp but I make this recipe and bake it in the oven at about 400 degreesand i. A 9×13 panda since I do not own a cast iron skillet. This is one of my absolute favorite recipes! The cream sauce is AMAZING!!!!!!! Thank you for sharing the recipe. ?
Nadine says
How long did you bake it for?
Barb says
I definitely give this a five star! I’ve made it a few times and everybody loves it. I added my own touches by sauteing mushrooms in the butter with the garlic and onions. I also added Italian sausage and only half the pepperoni.
Jacqueline says
Can you make the sauce ahead of time and just heat it up?
Jen says
Made this last week and the family loved it!
Bianca says
I see all the questions about people asking if the sauce can be made ahead of time, since this is a campfire recipe. has anyone tried it yet?
Lorri says
I will be trying this next month. I will get back to you with the answer.
Amy says
What do you cover the cast iron skillet with?