Pizza Pinwheels have all the pizza goodness you love – pizza crust, pizza sauce, and cheese – but it’s in bite-size, rolled-up, appetizer form! These pizza pinwheels with pizza dough are the perfect party or game-day food.
They’re super kid-friendly and easy to adapt with your favorite ingredients, or take it to one-dish-two-ways town with one batch for the meat-eaters and another for the vegetarians.
Make these pizza pinwheels ahead of time and just warm them up for the big game. Though honestly, they’re delish served cold, too.
Oh, and don’t forget the marinara for dipping!
In this Article
- The Story Behind the Recipe
- Pizza Pinwheels Ingredients
- Ways to Adapt this Recipe
- How to Make Pizza Pinwheels with Pizza Dough
- Make-Ahead Notes
- More Game Day Recipes
- More Pizza Recipes
The Story Behind the Recipe
At first, I found myself brainstorming all of the Taylor Swift themed foods I could bring to the Super Bowl celebration. We watch the game every year, but my kid and I are 100% Certified Swifties®, so I’d be lying if the possibility of catching a few glimpses of our favorite musician plus our now favorite tightend makes Superbowl Sunday all the better, right?!
But then I realized that T.S. wouldn’t want to make this about her. Because it’s clear she’s there for him and it’s his time to shine. And so I shouldn’t either. Yes, I did think about it that deeply.
But before I decided to be all respectful and stuff, I did think of a few foodstuff possibilities. For instance, these Pizza Pinwheels could be Peace-a Pinwheels. Long Pizza Short? It’s Time to Go Eat Some Pizza?
Those are a stretch but the best I could do.
I may have also considered these possibilities for the menu:
- Now That We Don’t Tacos
- Invisible String Cheese
- Getaway Carnitas (these look amazing for the carnivores!)
- Fry Infidelity
- Champagne Problems
- Corny-Elia Street (if only I had a Mexican street corn recipe, because that would be perfect – this salad looks pretty spectactular though! Or we’ve got this cheesy corn dip.)
- Karma-ffins
- If you’re a meat-eater, there are so many possibilities. All Too Well (Done), I Bet You Think About Meat, and My Sears Ricochet, perhaps? Or, simply, MEat! Okay, I’ll stop now.
Oh, but one last thing. Last weekend, for the Grammys, I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you we had Should’ve Said Nachos for dinner. But that was her night. So I’m okay with that.
Ready for some peace-a pinwheels? Chiefs-a pinwheels? They ARE rather Chiefs colored.
Okay, fine. Pizza Pinwheels. How about that. So boring. So much better.
Pizza Pinwheels Ingredients
- Pizza dough – You’ll need one pound, about 16 ounces. My go-to for easy pizza dough is the Trader Joe’s stuff, but I love to make it from scratch too, when I have the time.
- Olive oil – For brushing the dough.
- Italian seasoning – Adds zesty flavor to these pizza rolls. You can also add a bit of garlic salt if you like a bit of extra garlic flavor, but it’s optional.
- Marinara or pizza sauce – Use your favorite tomato-based sauce. Grab a jar from the store, or if you’re up for homemade, I love this pizza sauce recipe. This fresh tomato pizza sauce is great too!
- Mozzarella cheese – Grab the low-moisture stuff and shred it yourself for the best melting.
- Parmesan – Grated parm adds such great flavor!
Ways to Adapt this Recipe
- To make it meaty, add a few slices of pepperoni or Canadian bacon before rolling.
- For extra flavor and color, add some fresh herbs like basil and/or parsley.
- Dice up some onions and green bell peppers for a bit of added veggie goodness.
- Make it cheesier with a bit of cheddar, asiago, romano, and/or smoked provolone.
- Honestly, you can add whatever you want to these bad boys! I’d say just add lower-moisture toppings + use chunkier toppings sparingly so that they actually roll up and hold their shape when baking.
How to Make Pizza Pinwheels with Pizza Dough
Divide your pizza dough in half and pat/stretch and/or roll one half into a rectangle approximately 11 inches long and 6 inches wide. Brush with a bit of olive oil, then sprinkle with half of the garlic salt and Italian seasoning.
Use a spoon to spread out half of the sauce, then top with half the mozzarella and a little sprinkle of Parmesan, if you like.
Now is when you get to pretend you’re making pizza cinnamon rolls! Because you basically are. Starting at the long end so that you have the longest roll possible, roll your pizza up. You want to use a firm, confident hand but don’t roll it so tightly that the toppings and sauce squeeze out!
Cut into approximately 1-inch slices.
Lay your pizza rolls flat on a parchment-lined baking sheet and brush with olive oil.
Bake your pizza pinwheels until the dough is golden brown and the cheese and sauce are bubbly.
Serve with marinara or extra pizza sauce for dipping!
Make-Ahead Notes
Bake your pizza pinwheels up to three days ahead of time, allow to cool, then transfer to an airtight container and place them in the refrigerator. You can freeze them for up to one month too! To warm them, place on a baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for 4-5 minutes, then serve. If they’re frozen, allow them to thaw at room temperature for about 30 minutes before baking.
More Game Day Recipes
- Cheesy Mexican-Inspired Corn Dip
- Spicy Black Bean Burger Sliders
- Crock Pot Buffalo Cauliflower Chili
- Buffalo Cheese Ball
- Creamy Spinach Dip with Water Chestnuts
More Pizza Recipes
- Heart-shaped pizzas for Valentine’s Day or any time you want to show the love!
- Individual pizzas for mixed diet families, or just for those who like to make their own pizza their way!
- White Pizza with Spinach & Roasted Garlic
- Broccoli & Meyer Lemon Pizza (trust me!)
- Brussels Sprouts Pita Pizzas
Pizza Pinwheels
Ingredients
- 1 pound pizza dough (16 ounces)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt (optional)
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 2/3 cup pizza sauce or marinara sauce (plus more for dipping)
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 2 cups)
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400℉ and line your baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Divide the pizza dough in half, roll out one half to about 10 to 11 inches long and 5 to 6 inches wide.
- Gently brush some olive oil on the dough, add Italian seasoning and garlic salt if using, spread half the sauce on, and add half of the cheese.
- Roll up the short way so you get a long roll of pizza. Slice into about 1 inch pieces and place laid down on baking sheet. This is a bit of a messy process and you'll likely want to reshape the rolls a bit once they're on the pan. Repeat with the other half of the dough.
- Brush the rest of the oil on the top of the pizza rolls and bake for 12-15 minutes or until the dough is golden brown and the cheese and sauce are bubbly.
- Cool slightly and enjoy with some Parmesan on top and some extra sauce to dip them in!
I’m so glad you’re here! I’m a vegetarian home cook, certified plant-based pro, and mom. I’m married to an enthusiastic carnivore, and my mission is to achieve peace in the kitchen – one tasty recipe at a time. These days, with a name like mine, I also try not to ask to speak to the manager.
