My kiddos would eat store-bought bagel bites everyday if I allowed them, but I don’t. It’s a treat once in a great moon. However, I’ve found a new treat that they enjoy just as much. It involves pizza ingredients: crust, cheese, turkey pepperoni and simple marinara on the side if desired. My sons devoured these and didn’t leave any for my daughter.
I start with a homemade pizza dough, but you can use store-bought in a pinch. Pillsbury or even Rhodes frozen dough works. A friend of mine told me pizza dough made with white wheat flour doesn’t rise as well as the all-purpose, so I’ve stuck to mostly all-purpose flour the past couple of times I’ve made these. I roll the dough into a 9×13 rectangle, about 1/4 inch thick.
Then I cut them into squares with the pizza wheel and topped them with chopped turkey pepperoni. I use my kitchen shears to chop the pepperoni. This is where you can get creative and use whatever meat filling you have on hand. Leftover turkey, sausage, chicken or hamburger would work. The options with meat and cheese are endless. Think of it as a mini pizza pocket.
Then I pull the four corners together and pinch to seal.
I proceed to pinch all of them. Grease your round pan with cooking spray or butter or whatever you have on hand. Aren’t they cute? Place them slightly a part.
I brushed mine with olive oil and sprinkled on a combo of garlic salt and parmesan cheese. Butter works too. Allow them to set out for about thirty minutes or while you preheat your oven.
Bake at 450 for twelve to fifteen minutes or when they are golden brown. You pull the hot bites a part like rolls and they are stuffed with hot cheese and pepperoni. I’m thinking a small piece of cheese stick would be pretty clever for another round. It would pinch easily and the shredded cheese wouldn’t be as messy. Dip in warmed marinara if desired. My kids ate them for dinner with carrot sticks, but they would be a cute appetizer for a party.
I used Ourbestbites pizza dough recipe below. This recipe will make 2 batches of pizza bites. Or make an appetizer platter of pizza bites and a pizza with adult works (this is what we did). This dough is freezer friendly or you can freeze the cooked bites and throw them in a lunch box for kiddos.
1 1/2 c. warm water
1 T. sugar
1 T. yeast
1/2 tsp. salt
3-4 1/2 cups flour (I incorporated 1 cup white whole wheat flour)
Combine water, sugar, and yeast. Let stand for ten minutes. Add salt and stir. Add 1 1/2 cups flour and mix well. Gradually add more flour between 3-4 cups until dough starts to pull away from the sides of bowl.
Spray a large bowl with cooking spray and place dough in bowl. Cover and allow to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk. Punch down and divide in half for pizza bites. Roll each half into a rectangle and cut into squares for pinching. See the specific directions above.
What are your stuffing ideas?
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