AKA (Party Pizza Buns)
Homemade Pizza Wheels (aka Party Pizza Buns) are a fun hand held pizza that are fun to make. These aren’t difficult to make, and they are terrific for a party or just a hand-held snack. The dough isn’t terribly difficult to make. Pepperoni pizza rules in our home, but these are adaptable to any of your favorite fillings.
The dough for these pizza wheels is really quite easy to make. A stand mixer helps, if you own one (which I do, and wouldn’t part with for anything in the world). Otherwise, roll up your sleeves and exercise your fingers with some kneading.
One of my favorite resources is “King Arthur Flour“. I subscribe to their blog and I love their monthly “Bakealong Challenge“. King Arthur Flour posts step-by-step instructions so that anyone–beginner or advanced– should be able to successful replicate their recipes.
This particular recipe was perfect for two reasons. 1) It was Super Bowl weekend and 2) I had leftover pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese and pepperoni. What a perfect way to use up ingredients and feed my hungry men!
The dough is quite easy to make– especially if you have a stand mixer (which I do, and wouldn’t part with for anything in the world). Nice! Beautifully puffed up dough, (aka “proofed”) in a little over an hour. The dough is so easy to work with. Shape and roll it into a 12″x18″ rectangle and brush on the leftover pizza sauce…
Now, to add the filling. This is where you can become as creative as you like. Homemade pizza is almost a weekly thing, in our home and I’ve posted several on my blog here.
My current favorite pizza toppings are sausage, mushroom, sliced black olives, bell pepper and onion. But, today, I would make the favorite pizza of my men. Here, I am rolling up the dough and filling into a tight log– pinches the ends. This reminds me of the King Arthur Flour Cinnamon Roll recipes that has become a family favorite!
Using a very sharp knife, make shallow knife cuts so I would be able to gauge slicing the log into 12 pieces.
Here’s a really cool tip: use unflavored floss to slice each roll! This works so much better than using a knife, which can flatten the log.
Pizza Wheels (Pizza Party Buns)
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 1 1/4 cups lukewarm milk
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 3 1/2 cups Unbleached Bread Flour 14 3/4 ounces
- 2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
For the filling:
- 1/2 cup pizza sauce use your favorite
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella or Monterey Jack cheese
- 4 ounces about 1 cup chopped or shredded pepperoni
- shredded Parmesan cheese optional
Garlic butter*
- 1/2 cup butter 1 stick
- 2 cloves garlic finely minced
Instructions
*For the Garlic butter:
- Melt 1/2 stick butter and add 2 garlic cloves together on low heat. Allow the garlic flavor to infuse. Any leftovers can be used to slather sliced French bread for a delicious garlic bread. Set aside
For the dough:
- Place all of the dough ingredients into a bowl, and mix and knead the mixture — by hand, using a stand mixer, or in a bread machine — to make a smooth, soft dough.
- Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover it, and allow it to rise until doubled, 60 to 90 minutes.
- Gently deflate the dough, and transfer it to a lightly greased work surface.
- Roll the dough into a 12″ x 18″ rectangle.
- Spread evenly with the sauce, cheese, and pepperoni.
- Starting with a long end, roll the dough into a log. Cut the log into 12 to 18 pieces, depending on how large you want the buns to be.
- TIP: I use a string of unflavored dental floss that I slip under the log, wrap around and then close together. These make great slices without flattening the log!
- Space the rounds on two parchment-lined or lightly greased baking sheets. If you’ve cut 12 rounds, flatten them gently to about 1″ tall.
- Cover the pan(s), and allow the buns to rise for 60 to 90 minutes, until they’re nicely puffed.
- Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.
- + Before baking, brush the melted garlic butter over each bun and (also optional) add a little shredded Parmesan cheese on top.
- Bake the buns for about 25 to 30 minutes, until they’re a light golden brown.
- Remove the buns from the oven, and serve warm, with additional pizza sauce on the side if desired.
- Store any leftovers in the refrigerator. Reheat for about 10 minutes, covered, in a 350°F oven; or very briefly in a microwave.
Notes
Glad you're back. I know how life gets in the way, sometimes. I think your pizza buns would be a terrific snack or even a meal, with a salad added.
You are back! Fabulous Pizza wheels. Perfect appetizer or light meal.
Velva-Tomatoes on the Vine
Happy to see you back in the blog world. You have taken a good recipe and made it better…nice job.
Hello Foodie Wife, Debby. SO glad that have returned and *may* be posting a bit more often. But please, don't beat up on yourself is you miss a weekend. This weeks Pizza Rolls look like fun and I confess to enjoying that kind of thing. And finally, I too am a huge fan a KAF. They are thee real deal experts in many areas and all of their catalog items are first quality. That said, their non-grain/flour products tend to be extremely expensive. I have bought catalog items from KAF, but to fork over that much, I have to really – REALLY want the item. I also note that their Baker's Hotline assistance service has saved my posterior more than once. Again, nice to see you back in the saddle, cooking and baking again,
-Craig (Aka: Cook@….)