it's what's cookin: Pizza Bites

Why this blog??

Why this blog?? I often find myself stressing over what to make for my family for dinner. We live a busy life and some meals need time to prep, cook and let's not forget shopping for everything you need. I love cookbooks and websites, but there are so many recipe's at times it is overwhelming. The recipe's I will be posting are things I actually made. I will tell you if they are easy or more time consuming. I will also tell you if they are good. Most of these are recipe's I have made for years and continue to make because they are easy or quick and my family loves them and i know yours will too! I will also try to at least once in a whlie try a new recipe I've found on line or in a book and honestly rate it. I always encourage others to send me their favorite recipe's as well! I am a mom... not a chef. But I am a mom who enjoys cooking for her family and making a somewhat healthy meal (some days more healthy than others:) ) In each recipe I will share how I recommend serving it, any substitutions I can think of that are also good, or ways to prepare ahead of time to make the cooking part seem quicker! I am not a photographer, as you can see... most of these pictures are taken from my phone camera, so may not be the best! I love to hear from others who have made these recipes and what they have done to change the recipe... please post comments! Thank you! To "like" me on facebook, go to this link... It's What's Cookin

Sunday, February 5, 2012

Pizza Bites

I found this recipe on pinterest and made a double batch for a super bowl party we went to. I doubled this recipe and I made one batch plain cheese and one batch pepperoni and cheese. These went SO fast I barely even got any! And we loved them so much my husband made them the next day for us for lunch! This recipe came from "Kristine's Kitchen" blog.

Ingredients:
* 1 pizza dough (I used Pillsbury pizza crust)
* 4 oz mozzarella cheese, cubed (I used a pinch of shredded instead)
* Sliced pepperoni (I made some with and some without)

For Topping:
* Olive oil
* Italian seasoning and garlic salt
* Grated Parmesan Cheese

For Dipping:
* Jar of Pizza sauce (I used Ragu Pizza Sauce)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400. Lightly grease 9-inch pie plate or cake pan.

2. Divide dough into 20-24 roughly equal sized pieces. Top each dough piece with a slice or two of pepperoni and some of the cheese. Pull edges of dough around the fillings and pinch closed. Place seam-side down in baking dish. Repeat with each square.

3. Lightly brush tops of dough balls with olive oil. Sprinkle with seasonings and parmesan cheese. Bake for 20 minutes or until tops are golden brown. Serve warm with dipping sauce as desired. (I poured half my jar of Ragu into a glass bowl, placed a paper towel over the top, and microwaved 1-2 minutes until sauce is warm to hot. Serve on the side for dipping or people can spoon the sauce over theirs.)

Sorry for how sloppy this looks... I had the hubby helping me out in the kitchen today and he doesn't cook very pretty:) JUST KIDDING HONEY... You are great! Thanks for the help!
So... pictured here are about 6 of the squares topped with pepperoni and cheese. Pull them apart and then start folding sides up around topping...

Pinch sides of dough around topping

Make sure you pinch together good to close

Place balls in buttered (or use Pam) baking dish, seam side down

Here are my two batches... one with cheese only in the middle

I used a brush and brushed olive oil over the tops of them, Then I sprinkled with seasonings and generously sprinkled with fresh grated parmesan cheese.