A Super-Simple Romantic Tailgate Pizza Date

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Thank you to Dr. Oetker USA LLC for sponsoring this post. Visit the store locator to find Virtuoso Pizza by Dr. Oetker in a retailer near you!

There are few things that my husband loves more than pizza. I'm pretty sure I'm one of them, and I'm fairly positive his truck is up there on the list as well.

Tailgate pizza date night in the truck bed

So when it was my turn to plan date night, I figured a romantic tailgate pizza picnic would put a smile on his face!

Date night idea for moms and dads who are a LITTLE pressed for time

I've mentioned a time or two that we live in the boondocks. A decent restaurant is hard to come by around here, and the one or two places that do serve reasonable food within driving distance have the s-l-o-w-e-s-t service on the planet.

Country folk ain't in no kinda hurry, y'all!

Up-close of pizza

If the kids are occupied at Oma and Opa's house for an hour or two, I don't want to spend that much-needed alone time just waiting around. Instead, we pop some pizza in the oven and take it to-go in our mobile cuddle-wagon.

Tailgate pizza date night when you have just an hour away from the kids

Since Nate put a cap on the truck, we also installed a rolling deck that pulls out to give us access to a floating platform. It makes for a pretty sweet picnic spot or even a standing table that's a BIG hit at football parties. That thing on top of our truck is a pop-up tent and the big, shiny metal box is a refrigerator. You don't need any of that, though!

Take whatever tailgate or trunk you have available, and head to the nearest lookout point like you guys are straight outta high school.

Everything necessary for a tailgate pizza date night

This here is everything you need. I make some Classic Crust Virtuoso pizza by Dr. Oetker at home and pop it in a warmer similar to what I did for our school pizza party. What you see on the package is what you get with this brand, which makes it super-easy for me to pick everyone's fave. I love that the brand uses wholesome, quality ingredients and creative combinations (this pic shows my fave flavor which includes a cream tzatziki sauce for an exotic punch).

For anyone wondering what's up with the grape juice…Nate's not a wine guy.

Husband eating pizza in the back of the truck

The candles are actually battery-operated. I know, they look impressively real, even in-person! The first time I “lit” them, Nate was legitimately freaked out that I was going to catch something on fire because I was folding clothes right next to them and kept haphazardly draping sweater arms over their “flames.”

I played oblivious for a full minute until the giggles got the best of me and I confessed that I was messing with him. Then I was mad at myself for not taking the opportunity to casually toss one in his direction.

THAT would have been priceless to watch.

Pizza picnic

With some ambience and the food taken care of, all that's left is to setup and chow down!

Oh yeah, we also took a few minutes away from our date time to take pics for the blog.

You know it's real love when you can step into “business mode” for a few minutes without killing the mood. I swear, we've been at it so long, we don't skip a beat.

Tailgate pizza date night looking out over the sunset

Date night DONE RIGHT.

How do you squeeze in a date night when you're short on time? Check the Virtuoso store locator to see where you can find Virtuoso Classic Crust or Thin + Crispy near you. For the latest updates, follow Virtuoso on Facebook or Instagram.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Dr. Oetker. The opinions and text are all mine.


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