A pizza roll for people over the age of 24...

I love pizza rolls. Specially the Tortoni's Brand kind that you aren't totally sure what all is in there, but hey are so good that you burn your mouth, but that only slows you down a little....

Sorry, that got a little away from me. I like junk food is all I'm trying to say. Now that I am 30, I must think about setting good examples for my nieces and nephew as well as my someday maybe children. Thus I decided to try to figure out some way of making Junk Food a little healthier/more nutritional. Pizza is never going to be on of those things, but making it myself, will keep it more wholesome and less preservativey.

These pizza rolls aren't quite as bad (health wise or mouth burny wise) as the store brought ones. Like I said before, they are made by me so I know what is making it in there and can control that. Also, because of the bake and slice-i-ness of it, the cheese and sauce have a little bit of time to cool and not continue to bubble and boil within the packaging.

Pizza Roll

Ingredients:

1 thing of Pizza dough (either homemade or from a maker you trust)

2 teaspoons olive oil

2/3 cup pizza sauce (homemade or store-bought)

ground basil, to taste

garlic powder, to taste

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (I had cheese sticks so that I what I used)

60-65 pepperoni slices (you can sub this for veggies if you are vegetarian)

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

Method:

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Line two large baking sheets with silicone baking mats (preferred for ease) or parchment paper.

Divide dough into 2 and roll out dough onto a lightly floured surface or directly on silicone baking mats. I found it easiest to roll directly on the silicone mat-lined baking sheets. Roll each into a large rectangle, about 9 by 12 inches.

To prevent the filling from making your pizza rolls soggy, brush the tops lightly with 1 teaspoon olive oil each. Using your fingers, push dents into the surface of the dough rectangles to prevent bubbling. See photo above for visual. Spread 1/3 cup pizza sauce on top of each dough rectangle. Sprinkle each lightly with ground basil and garlic powder.

Sprinkle 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella evenly over sauce. Add up to 2 Tablespoons more shredded cheese per dough rectangle if you'd like. Top the cheese with pepperoni slices. About 30ish slices per dough rectangle. Carefully roll dough rectangles into long tight logs. Place logs onto 1 prepared baking sheet, seam side down, and place baking sheet in the refrigerator to chill for at least 25 minutes. Read above for why chilling is so important.

Remove from the refrigerator and cut each log into 12 1-inch slices. Pour cornmeal into a plate or into a bowl. Dip the bottom of each roll into cornmeal and place 12 on each baking sheet, cornmeal side down. Sprinkle the tops of the rolls with parmesan cheese.

Bake each batch for 20 minutes or until the sides are lightly browned. Allow to cool for 5 minutes and serve with extra pizza sauce for dipping. Pizza rolls should be enjoyed immediately, though they may be covered tightly and stored for 1 day in the refrigerator. If you plan to make them ahead, make them up until the point where you chill the logs in the refrigerator (be sure to cover them, though). Then the next day, bake as directed.

I didn't add any sauce on mine.

...extra cheeeeeeeze...

I baked mine like this verses slicing them first.

Pizza Sauce is for dipping.

These are rich and delish. I feel like the way I did these was a bit easier than cutting and dipping into corn meal. Either way, these are much more filling than you would think, but just as yummy and addictive as Pizza Rolls should be.