So excited to share this one, but also sad that this is the last recipe of this series, “Versatile Crock Pot Chuck Roast”! This was so much fun to do, and it kept both my hubby and myself completely happy with no bickering over what was being made for supper!

My hubby and I, like most families, have quite different palates, spice level tolerances, likes and dislikes, and frankly, the willingness and curiosity to want to try new things.

I kept this series simple, easy, and designed to fit any-sized family on a low to moderate budget. And if you’re single, you’ll love making this as well. A different meal each day from the same starter beef so it never gets tiring, boring, and monotonous!

Nothing fancy, nothing over-the-top, just good food that at least has a lot of different styles and flavors to make each one delicious, interesting, and a nice change from the same-old-plain-old. Sound good?

I simply started with a well-seasoned chuck roast that I cooked until super fall-apart tender in the crock pot. The broth was strained and clarified, and most was added back to keep the pulled beef moist and juicy. The rest was frozen and saved for another use.

From there, I have already created 4 different pita sandwiches including Mexican-Style, Mediterranean-Style, American-Style and Asian-Style, that were all a smash hit!!

My hubby actually had two of the Mexican ones mid-series, which left one last pita round and one last serving of beef.

After searching through the fridge and freezer, I discovered that I had all the fixings for an Italian-style pita “pizza” of sorts! And this is what I did….

I started with the last pita bread round and 1 1/2 Tbl. of jarred basil pesto from the fridge!

Next, I piled on the rest of the still juicy, still tender, pulled beef!

I used 3 thick slices of fresh mozzarella that I pulled from the freezer….

…..and four slices of fresh tomato!

Looking good already, isn’t it? 😀

I wanted to add just a bit more cheese to the top, so I used one of the end pieces of the pre-sliced fresh mozzarella that everyone avoids because it’s “too small”. “Small” worked beautifully for this! 😉

I popped it into a preheated 375º oven for 20 minutes until the cheese had melted and was just starting to brown in small patches. I cannot even TELL you how good this smelled baking…OMG.

Just walk away from the kitchen for a few minutes.

Trust me.

Uhm. Yeah.

That’s what I’m talkin’ about!

Remove it from the baking sheet, and place it onto a cutting board….

…sprinkle it nicely with black pepper, a little salt, and drizzle it lightly with some sweet, aged balsamic vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil.

Lastly, I popped out to the deck and picked a couple of basil leaves from my herb garden, stacked them, rolled them lengthwise, and thinly sliced them into chiffonade ribbons.

Sprinkle them evenly over the top, and you are seconds away from caprese pita pizza heaven!

I just used a big, sharp knife and cut the “pizza” into fourths, plated them, and watched my hubby’s reaction to this one….

…..what he said, I’ll never forget.

He was quite overwhelmed, but in a surprising way. He actually got a little emotional, and said that it just took him back 35 years to when he was in the Navy and they were in Italy. They used to head out super early into the streets in search of these types of caprese pizzas being made fresh.

And this remind him very much of those.

(Sans the beef of course.)

But what a nice compliment!!!

He raved, literally, for HOURS over this one.

And in turn, I walked on air all afternoon.

All those memories came flooding back.

And all starting from a simple chuck roast and a package of pita bread.

I always find it amazing how food can transport people back in time, take you to a special time or event in your life, be a bond between two people who don’t even speak the same language, and bring everyone together.

Simply. Food.

It truly can be a wonderful thing, can’t it?!

So, I hope that these 5 recipes help you and your family out when everyone wants to enjoy the things that they personally like without having to lose your mind trying to make 3, 4, even 5 different things to please everyone.

Start with an inexpensive cut of beef that turns melt-in-your-mouth tender, a simple package of pita bread, some lettuce and tomato, and a few odds and ends from the fridge, freezer and pantry, and you can create 4 totally different, mouth-watering sandwiches, plus 1 gorgeous pizza, that will surely bring smiles all the way around the table!

Dinnertime truly can be a fun thing.

Even when everyone wants something different. 😉

Here are the links to the rest of the series so that you can find them quickly and easily:

Versatile Crock Pot Chuck Roast Part 1 / Mexican-Style Pulled Beef Pitas!
Versatile Crock Pot Chuck Roast Part 2 / Mediterranean-Style Pulled Beef Pitas!
Versatile Crock Pot Chuck Roast Part 3 / American-Style Pulled Beef Pitas!
Versatile Crock Pot Chuck Roast Part 4 / Asian-Style Pulled Beef Pitas!

Versatile Crock Pot Chuck Roast Part 5 / Italian-Style Pulled Beef Caprese Pita Pizza!

Ingredients

For Beef:

2½ - 3 lbs. chuck roast, (mine weighed 2.71 lbs.)
2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. coarse ground black pepper
2 tsp. onion powder
2 tsp. garlic powder
4 tsp. dried oregano
1 (10½ oz.) can beef consommé
4 large garlic cloves, grated

For 1 Italian-Style Pita Pizza:

1 - 6" pita bread round
1 1/2 Tbl. basil pesto
1/2 - 1 cup pulled beef
3 thick slices fresh mozzarella
4 semi-thin slices roma tomato
1 small piece (end piece) fresh mozzarella
pepper to taste
extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), a light drizzling
sweet aged balsamic vinegar, a light drizzling
2 large fresh basil leaves, stacked, rolled lengthwise, and sliced thinly into chiffonade ribbons

Instructions

Pat one side with half of the seasonings.

In crock pot, add beef consommé and grate in garlic. Stir.

Place roast in seasoned side-down.

Season other side with rest of seasonings.

Place on lid and turn crock pot on to High for 15 minutes.

Reduce heat to Low, and continue cooking until fall-apart tender, about 6 hours.

Remove meat to a baking sheet, pour juices from crock into a large glass measuring cup, and refrigerate juices.

Shred meat with 2 forks, or leave in bite-sized chunks if preferred. Cover to keep moist.

When fat has solidified on top of juices, remove, then pour most of the juice over the meat to keep it from drying out.

Use what you need, and freeze the rest for later uses.

For 1 Italian-Style Pita Pizza:

Preheat oven to 375º F.

Warm beef a little to melt any fat left, drain, and set aside. Place pita bread round onto a small baking sheet. Spread with basil pesto almost to the edge. Pile with beef. Top with slices of fresh mozzarella, then tomato, then one last small piece of mozzarella.

Pop into oven and bake for 20 - 25 minutes until cheese has fully melted and just starting to brown in small patches.

Remove from oven and transfer pizza to a cutting board. Sprinkle with black pepper. Drizzle with EVOO and balsamic vinegar. Sprinkle with fresh basil chiffonade.

Cut into fourths, serve hot, and enjoy!