Inspired by Papa John’s Double Cheeseburger Pizza recipe

Inspired by Papa John’s Double Cheeseburger Pizza recipe -


I read many of the reviews on line about this pizza – I’ve been making cheeseburger pizzas my whole life – it’s amazing what you can do with one. And I have never had a Papa John’s cheeseburger pizza – so I cannot and will not judge.

Many said the “secret” sauce sucked – similar to Thousand Island but yet different – some say it’s just a mix of ketchup and mayo (similar to BK’s Whopper dressing) – too “pickle-y” with an overwhelming dill pickle flavor which some said too much pickle juice. YUK! But that is something that is supposed to be controlled by the one making the pizza. For instance - I love anchovies on my pizza – ordered one from a local pizzeria many years ago – picked it up and brought it home (mind you – this was “back in the day” when you didn’t have all these commercial pizzerias and a pizzeria next to a pizzeria next to a pizzeria on the same city block – and they didn’t drain the anchovies and flooded it with anchovy juice – grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr)

I prefer homemade dough – but that is me. And I love a thick, soft dough! To me it’s the best part of a pizza. And flavoring my dough with herbs is something I do depending on the type of pizza I am making. It’s not unusual for me to make a rye crust (preferably seeded!) or a cracked wheat crust or potato bread crust or egg crust bread, etc. I love to stuff my crust on certain pizzas; especially my cheeseburger pizzas.

Once I make my dough I get ready to make my pizza which can be a stromboli or a calzone or individual pizza pockets.

For my stuffed-crust pizzas I like the convenience of string cheese. Save times and easier than cutting a block of cheese! I like to buy cheeses in chunks. Especially my Italian cheeses. I still chunk because I don’t keep string cheese in the house unless the babies are coming to see me. (Babies! I’m an “adopted” gram and my “babies” are now 17 and 15!) But any Italian cheese chunked will do!
My ground meat (usually ground round or ground sirloin – great flavor) is thoroughly fried and seasoned, drained and cooled. Depending on the pizza – my meat can be flavored Italian, Greek, Mexican, etc. (It is so worth cooking large batches of ground meats and freezing in portions – flat portions not balls so they thaw quicker for many recipes!)
Spread my “sauce” (once again – of choice) – sometimes it’s mayo and ketchup jazzed up – sometimes it’s my cheese sauce – all depends. Top with my flavored ground meat (leftover roast beef is sooooo good – especially with leftover gravy as the sauce!) and any additional toppings I want to add. I may even stuff the crust with a cheddar or cheddar/mozzarella cheese stick they sell if I don’t chunk my own blend.

My sauce can be any sauce I want – my toppings are anything I want – my crust is what I want.

Toppings can be cheeses (of course) or my cheese sauce – tomatoes, peppers, onions, bacon – the list is endless. And you can make a pizza out of anything – any leftover – just create!