Pizza Rolls

I made a recipe very similar to this about a month ago, Pizza Pinwheels. The only main difference between these recipes is that the first recipe uses canned crescent rolls and this recipe uses a homemade dough. Both recipes are equally delicious, the first recipe is actually a little richer than this one. I think it's because of the crescent rolls vs. the homemade dough.

With this recipe, I also experimented with the fillings. I made two versions - a BBQ chicken version which used BBQ sauce in place of the Ragu, chicken and shredded cheese; and a cheese pizza version which used Ragu sauce and shredded cheese. I personally preferred the cheese pizza version. Hubs preferred the BBQ chicken version. Experiment around with different fillings and see what you like best!

I also found that this recipe made more than we needed for one meal, so I actually froze a few of the loaves. Then when I am pressed for time to make supper some night, all I will have to do is pull them from the freezer and into the oven.

I found this recipe over at Jamie Cooks it Up but only very loosely followed her recipe. I actually deviated away from her recipe quite a bit and made it my own. I'm very happy with the results and how tasty these came out!

Ingredients...

...1 T. shortening

...2 T. sugar

...1 T. salt

...1 c. boiling water

...1 c. cold water

...1/3 c. room temperature water

...1 T. yeast

...5-6 c. flour

...Filling ingredients of your choice

...1 egg

...Italian Seasoning

...Parmesan Cheese

Directions...

Dissolve yeast in 1/3 c. of water at room temperature. In the bowl of your stand mixer, mash together shortening, sugar and salt with a fork. Pour in the boiling water, followed by the cold water and then the yeast/water mixture. Start mixer and add in one cup of flour at a time until the dough is smooth and elastic, pulling away from the sides of the mixing bowl. Keep adding flour until the dough is no longer sticky (it may take less than the amount called for, it may take more). Once the appropriate amount of flour has been added, let the mixer run for 8 minutes on low speed to knead the dough. Once the dough has been kneaded for 8 minutes, remove from mixing bowl and seperate into 6 pieces. Let rest on a greased baking sheet for 5 minutes. Next, flatten dough into a rectangle. Cover with sauce and filling toppings of your choice. Roll up rectangle on the long side, making sure to crease the edge and pinch under the ends. Using a greased butcher knife, cut slits into the top of each loaf. In a small bowl, beat egg until frothy. Brush egg onto the top of each loaf, and then sprinkle with Italian Seasoning and Parmesan Cheese. Bake at 400 for 12-15 minutes. Upon removal from the oven, let each loaf cool for 5 minutes before slicing.

Bubble Pizza

This is an interesting take on pizza night. I actually quite enjoy it! Pizza in casserole form! This recipe is an old family favorite, we had this a lot growing up and I have loved it ever since. It seems like lately I've been falling back on a lot of old family favorites, mostly because they are all quick and easy...which is nice on busy nights when I'm too tired to cook when I get home from work (which, considering that I am in my third trimester, seems to be quite often lately...). I also like dishes like this because I can prepare them ahead of time and then just toss them in the oven when I get home and go about other things around the house. Like cleaning.

Except 9 times out of 10 I don't go about cleaning. I go about sitting in the chair with a mug of hot cocoa and watching Friends reruns until the oven timer goes off. And pray the whole while that hubs will offer to do the dishes. One of these nights he will make that offer....I hope...

Ingredients...

...1 lb. ground meat
...2 tubes refrigerator biscuits
...1/2 jar Ragu Sauce
...1/2 green pepper, chopped
...1/2 onion, chopped
...1 can sliced mushrooms, drained
...Pepperoni slices, you choose how many you want
...1 c. shredded cheese

Directions...

Brown the ground meat with the peppers and onions until meat is no longer pink. Drain. Combine in a large mixing bowl with all remaining ingredients and spread in a greased 9x13 casserole dish. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

To see more great recipes, be sure to check out the Ultimate Recipe Swap going on over at Life as Mom and the Recipe Swap going on over at The Grocery Cart Challenge!

Breakfast Pizza

I love breakfast pizza! It's an illness, really...but I just can't help it...it's love! In college, I worked at a convenience store as an assistant manager, and one of my duties was kitchen duty during the breakfast and lunch times. One of our claims to fame was our pizza...and our breakfast pizza just couldn't be beat! I would sneak a thin slice here and "accidentally" mess up a small section there, just so I could eat some (and if my former boss is reading this right now, there's my confession for ya!).

So I finally decided that it was high time to try and recreate this breakfast pizza on my own. I was very happy with how it turned out, this recipe is a keeper!

Ingredients...

...Pizza Dough to make crust
...scrambled eggs (I used about 4 eggs and some skim milk to whip some up)
...cheese sauce
...ground sausage
...mozzerella cheese
...cheddar cheese

Directions...

Form pizza crust with dough to desired size. Spread cheese sauce over the dough, following with a sprinkling of ground sausage and the scrambled eggs. Top with mozzerella cheese until toppings are covered. Sprinkle a small amount of cheddar cheese on top of the mozzerella cheese. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes.

Note: You can also use crumbled bacon in place of or with the ground sausage.

For more great recipes be sure to check out Mouthwatering Monday, Tempt my Tummy Tuesday and Tasty Tuesday!

Pizza Pinwheels

There is only one word to describe this recipe. Delicious. Seriously, amazingly delicious! These will make a great addition to your big game day spread this Sunday, and I guarantee there will be none left when the game is over (or even the first half for that matter).

I found this recipe in an old issue of Taste of Home. I have over 50 old issues of Taste of Home sitting in my cookbook cupboard dated everywhere from the early 90's to present day. I love them! They are just as fun as a hometown cookbook, written by church ladies and farm wives, because it is just good old down home cooking...which is what I like! Nothing too fancy, nothing that calls for ingredients you can't find anywhere...just basic ingredients in a delicious and simple recipe that anyone can pull off! This recipe was no exception. This is probably one of the easiest things you will ever make in your cooking lifetime. Seriously.

Ingredients...

...2 tubes crescent rolls
...pepperoni
...Pizza Sauce
...Shredded Cheese

Directions...

Unroll crescent dough and pinch together perforations to form one large sheet of dough. Spread pizza sauce over dough, and then layer pepperoni slices to cover. Roll up dough, and slice into rolls. Place on baking sheet, and sprinkle shredded cheese over each individual roll. Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes.

To see more great Super Bowl recipes, check out the Ultimate Recipe Swap going on over at Life as Mom!

Pizza Dip

I love using my crockpot. I'm pretty sure I've confessed that love of mine to you all before. I have two crockpots, a larger sized one and a smaller one. (and I've asked for two more for Christmas!). I've never really used the smaller one before except to make a nacho cheese dip once, I usually make that recipe in the microwave, but I had to travel with it, so the mini crockpot just made good sense. I finally decided after cruising around A Year of Crockpotting that it was high time my mini crockpot got some lovin'. So I made Steph's version of the Pizza Fondue Dip. She has really made me want to make fondue and dip in my mini crockpot every day now!

Ingredients...

...1 cup pizza sauce
...handful of pepperoni
...1/2 tsp. italian seasoning
...1 cup shredded cheese

Directions...

Cut pepperonies into pieces. Dump all ingredients into mini crockpot and stir together (if you don't have a mini crockpot, just place a small, oven safe dish, into your normal size crockpot.). Plug in and let cook for about an hour before serving (most mini crockpots don't have heat settings. If yours does for some reason then, a) use the high heat setting and b) TELL ME WHAT BRAND IT IS!!!!)

Spiral Pepperoni Pizza Bake

This. is. amazing. Not even kidding you, I loooovvveeeedddd it! This was a big 'ol serving of pizza in a dish. Minus the crust. You just must simply try it. Tonight. Eh, why wait. Try it right. now. This was a Taste of Home recipe from one of the 2007 issues, and I made just a few of my own tweaks, as I do with every recipe I make.

Ingredients...

...1 pkg. (16 oz.) Rotini (or spiral) pasta

...1 lb. ground meat

...1 onion, chopped

...1 tsp. salt

...1/2 tsp. pepper

...1 jar pasta or pizza sauce (about 15/16 oz.)

...1/2 tsp. garlic salt

...1/2 tsp. italian seasoning

...2 eggs

...2 cups milk

...1/2 cup parmesan cheese (not pictured)

...16 oz. shredded cheese

...sliced pepperoni

Directions...

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, brown ground meat and onion in a skillet. When meat is no longer pink, drain. In a medium bowl, stir together eggs, milk and parmesan cheese. Add in pizza sauce, garlic salt, salt, pepper, italian seasoning, cooked pasta and ground meat/onion mixture. Spread into a 3 quart oven safe casserole dish. Cover top of casserole with pepperoni, overlapping each pepperoni slightly. Top pepperoni with shredded cheese. Cover casserole dish with aluminum foil and bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 20 minutes.

BLT Pizza

My across the street neighbor is obsessed with his gardening. Let me repeat that...obsessed. He is out in his garden 24/7 taking care of things, and I always have to giggle when it's raining and he's standing outside with a hose watering it. Now that's some garden devotion. So when he showed up at my door with a grocery bag full of tomatoes, I was giddy! They were huuuuggee! And so red and juicy! I had to figure out recipes to use them up without having salad every night, so I finally decided to make up this BLT pizza that's been on my menu plan for weeks. And I'm not disappointed one bit! One of the great things about this pizza recipe is it's so easy to make ahead, unlike most pizzas! The crust can be tossed in the freezer until you're ready to use it and the toppings can all be chopped and refrigerated until it's time to eat. Now that's convenience...no more excuse for take out with simplicity like this!

Ingredients...

Dough

...3/4 cup water
...1 tablespoon olive oil
...1 teaspoon salt
...2 1/2 cups flour

Place ingredients in bread machine in order listed. Run machine on dough cycle. Roll dough out with rolling pin to desired size/thickness. Place on pizza pan and bake for 18 minutes at 350.


Toppings

...Tomato
...6 slices bacon, cooked until crispy
...Mayonnaise
...Lettuce
...Cheddar Cheese

Thinly spread mayonnaise onto baked pizza crust and lay bacon on top. Cover with cheese and bake an additional 10 minutes. Top with lettuce and tomato.

The Verdict...

SO good! I love homemade pizza and I love BLT's. This was the perfect marriage of the two. It doesn't get any better than this! And what a great summer recipe! Garden produce on a pizza, delish!

To see more great recipes, check out the Ultimate Recipe Swap over at Life as Mom. And for more recipes showcasing tomatoes, check out In Season Recipe Swap over at Tammy's Recipes!

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Mmmmm! This was so good! We have homemade pizza night and I was eager to try this! It was good, and hubs liked it too!

I swear I took a picture of the ingredients, but it disappeared off my camera *shrugs*

Ingredients...

...Pizza Crust (I used a Jiffy Mix)

...Cooked, Shredded Chicken (I used about a half of a chicken breast)

...BBQ Sauce

...Shredded Cheese

Prepare crust according to directions. Spread BBQ sauce evenly on crust. Add shredded chicken. Top with cheese. Bake 15-20 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese is melted.

I served this with fresh pineapple and homemade garlic bread, which was just some buttered hamburger buns and sprinkled with garlic powder and cheese. I just threw it into the oven for the last five minutes of the pizza time.

DELISH! I give this 5 stars!!

To see more great recipes using 5 ingredients or less, check out Five Ingredient Fridays over at Paige's Place!

Homemade Hot Pockets

We love hot pockets! But we don't love the price! I began thinking a month or so ago about how I could homemake them, and stumbled upon a recipe just a few days later (which, by the way, was basically the same as I was planning them out in my head....)

(sorry, I didn't get a picture of the ingredients...I didn't even think of it until after I got them all mixed up, so, below you will see a picture of the filling...)

Ingredients

Pizza Crust (I used a Jiffy mix...)
Pizza Sauce (one jar, but you won't use all of it)
Cheese (however much you want)
Fillings of your liking (veggies, pepperoni, sausuage, whatever you want! We used pepperoni and sausage...)

Directions

Make crust according to directions. Do not bake yet. Roll out and cut with biscuit cutter (I just tore mine in half as I only wanted to make two bigger ones for our supper). Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, place the meats/veggies and cheese. Pour in just enough sauce until it's kind of "pasty"...you don't want it too runny or it will be messy!

Place a scoop of the mixture on each cut out circle. Place another circle on top and pinch the edges together.

Bake at 425* for about 10 minutes (keep an eye on it as ovens all cook differently!)

The finished product! This was DELISH! Hubs told me he gave it a 10 on a scale of 1-10 and he asked me to please make it again (and thats only a request I get on my REALLY good meals!). I thought that these were by far better than store boughten Hot Pockets!