These quick and easy pizza rolls are a delicious twist on a beloved classic. Keep the few ingredients on hand and you can have glorious, cheesy finger food ready in a flash!

My husband Justin has many, many good qualities. Of course he does, I married him! He is intelligent, funny, understanding, hard-working, crazy handsome and an all around sweetheart. There is no one else with whom I would rather spend my life. But… If I had to pick one minor, teeny tiny little flaw, it would be this: he forgets to fill me in when he’s inviting people over to our house. It throws me for a loop every time. I obviously want to be showered and presentable when we have guests. More importantly, I want to be gracious. I get it from my grandma, who was completely unable to allow people to enter under her roof without feeding them. Every time we would visit, she had sodas for the kids, beer for my dad, tea for my mom and cookies in the cabinet above the microwave. If you wanted something more substantial, all the better. An impromptu Italian feast would be placed in front of you before you could blink. I witnessed her casual hospitality so regularly that it is ingrained in me. It’s a reflex. If you come over, you’re going to eat.

So, I tend panic when I learn last minute that we will have guests. What can I offer them? These pizza rolls are an easy and delicious answer.  Made with a mere handful of pantry and refrigerator friendly staples, they require only 5 minutes of hands-on prep time and under 30 minutes in the oven. That leaves just enough time to do a quick tidying up and to put on a fresh coat of mascara before the guests arrive.

Start by rolling out a refrigerated can of pizza dough onto a cutting board or countertop. Use your fingers to press the dough into a roughly 11×13 inch rectangle. This is not the time to break out the ruler. Spread some jarred pizza sauce over the dough, then layer on pepperoni and mozzarella cheese. Provolone would work, too! Roll it all up, jelly roll style, and cut into 12 equal pieces. Place in a 9×13 baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. Slather them with a savory mixture of butter, garlic and Italian herbs, then toss ’em in the oven. Once they come out, sprinkle with a little Parmesan cheese and serve! I like to have some extra pizza sauce on hand for dipping. And there you have it- a no-brainer, back pocket kind of recipe for easy, cheesy, delicious pizza rolls that will be ready in the time it takes you to shove all of the counter chaos into a drawer before company arrives.

Easy Pizza Rolls

Ingredients:

• 1 can refrigerated pizza dough, such as Pillsbury
• 1/2 cup jarred pizza sauce, plus more for serving
• 5 oz. sliced pepperoni
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella OR 12 slices of mozzarella cheese
• 1 stick butter
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×13 baking pan with cooking spray.
2. Roll pizza dough out onto work surface. Use fingers to press dough into a roughly 11×13 rectangle.
3. Spread pizza sauce in thin layer across dough.
4. Place pepperoni on top of sauce in an even layer. Sprinkle or place cheese evenly on top of pepperoni.
5. Starting with the long side of the rectangle, roll the dough jelly roll style into a cylinder. Pinch closed at the seam.
6. Cut the cylinder into 12 equal pieces. I do this by cutting the cylinder in half, then each half in half, then 3 pieces from each quarter.
7. Place cut pieces into pan.
8. Melt the butter and stir in the garlic and Italian seasoning. Pour over the pizza rolls.
9. Bake pizza rolls 25-30 minutes, until cheese is bubbly and dough is puffed and lightly browned. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over pizza rolls while warm. Serve immediately.

Makes 12 pizza rolls