Over the years I've made pizza pockets but I guess by the time our family was full of teenagers it was just easier to make pizza into... pizza.
This time, instead of large rectangles, they were made into smaller 2-bite rounds. I used mozzarella sticks because they are easier to slice and fill the bites, whereas grated or shredded mozzarella tends to go all over and want to poke out the edges. You can use smaller Hormel style pepperoni which will fit perfectly, but I use deli pepperoni, which is large so I had to quarter mine.
Homemade Stuffed Pizza Bites
1 can refrigerated pizza dough or homemade dough for 1 crust
6 mozzarella sticks, string cheese or about 1 1/2 cups of grated or shredded
Pepperoni pizza slices (or your choice of filling; sausage, etc.)
2 T butter
1 garlic clove, minced (or 1 scant teaspoon of minced garlic)
1/2 t dried Italian Spice mix
3 T grated Parmesan cheese
Roll out the crust to a rectangle on parchment paper or a lightly floured surface. Cut it in half, then each half in half, and again. This gives you even columns. Now slice into 3 rows. You should have 24 pieces roughly square shaped. Top each with a couple slices pepperoni or a little bit of your favorite filling and about 2 or 3 pieces of mozzarella cheese, depending on how small you sliced them. Fold the corners together and pinch the edges to form a ball. Make sure they are sealed so the cheese doesn't leak out when cooking. Place seam side down in a greased or sprayed 9X9 ish sized baking pan. I used a round deep dish pizza stone. Now melt the butter, garlic and seasoning in a small cup or dish in the microwave and spoon or brush over the balls of dough in the pan. Sprinkle with Parmesan and bake in a pre-heated oven at 425 for about 16 minutes or until golden brown and done. Serve with pizza sauce for dipping.
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| Filling each dough square/rectangle with pepperoni and mozzarella |
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| Sealed into little balls, in a baking dish, topped with butter and ready to bake! |
