Pizza Pinwheels

Earlier in the summer, I was getting ready to be gone for a whole week. My husband is actually a pretty good cook, so I wasn't worried about him, but I knew that he would appreciate a few things that he could take to work or throw together with little effort. Enter the pizza pinwheel.

The grocery store next to where we live sells these things all the time, and I have been wanting to make them for a while. If you have all the pizza ingredients on hand (like I usually do), then pizza rolls are easy and fast to make with little notice. We put the leftover rolls in the freezer and found that they were great when reheated in the oven OR the microwave.

I used the same method for these rolls as I use when making cinnamon rolls. Roll out the dough, season it a bit, add some toppings, roll, and cut! That simple. Next time I make these, I might actually bake them all in a pan like cinnamon rolls. I think it would make for a fun presentation!

The dough for pizza pinwheels is the same as my easy whole wheat pizza crust, but this time I left out the whole wheat flour. Feel free to add it back in if you like. This pizza dough is really perfect for something like this. It gets crunchy on the outside, but stays very soft on the inside.

Pizza Pinwheels
Makes 10 to 12 rolls

For the dough:

2 cups all purpose flour, plus 1/2 cup more

1 Tablespoon sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons (1 packet) active dry yeast

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup warm water, about 115° 

2 Tablespoons olive oil 

For the filling:

olive oil

1 teaspoon each dried basil, oregano, and parsley

1/2 garlic powder

salt and pepper

20 to 25 slices pepperoni

4 to 5 strips crispy bacon

4 to 6 oz. shredded cheddar cheese

4 to 6 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese
1-2 Tablespoons melted butter

tomato sauce, for dipping

1. To make the dough, whisk together the 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast, and salt in a large bowl. In a liquid measuring cup, combine the warm water and the olive oil. Pour the water on top of the dry ingredients all at once, but do not stir. Allow the bowl to sit untouched for 10 to 15 minutes. 

2. When the time is up, stir the dough together, then move the dough to a well floured surface. Knead for about 5 minutes while adding up to 1/2 cup more flour. You might end up needing more than the 1/2 cup flour, just add the extra slowly as you are kneading. The dough should be smooth and slightly stretchy and still a little sticky. Transfer the dough to a bowl drizzled with olive oil, cover with plastic wrap, and allow it to rest for at least 30 minutes and up to 60 minutes.

3. While the dough is resting, gather your filling ingredients. While not necessary, I like to break the ingredients into smaller, bite-sized pieces so that they spread around easily.

4. When the dough has rested, roll it out into a large rectangle, at least 12 inches wide and 15 to 18 inches long. The dough should be an 1/8 inch to a 1/4 inch thick. Brush the dough with the olive oil and sprinkle with the basil, oregano, parsley, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Add the rest of the ingredients along the length of the dough making sure to space them evenly. Leave several inches of dough uncovered at the edge furthest from you. Roll the dough the long way, just like you were making cinnamon rolls. Roll slowly, making sure the dough is tight and completely covering the filling at both ends.

5. When you get to the end, pinch the edge of the dough to make a seam. Use a sharp serrated knife to slice the roll into sections that are about 2 1/2 inches wide. Transfer the wheels to a lightly greased cookie sheet. You might need to gently push some of the filling back inside the roll to keep it all together.

6. Bake in a preheated oven at 400° for 12 to 15 minutes. When they are done, they should be dark golden brown. Immediately after removing them from the oven, brush the tops with melted butter and sprinkle with additional dried herbs. Serve with warm tomato sauce. Enjoy!