Cheesy Pizza Roses #BreadBakers

Cheesy pizza roses are the perfect Mother’s Day breakfast (or gift!) for moms who are fans of savory pepperoni pizza. After all, who doesn’t love fresh baked bread rolls?

This month my Bread Bakers group is baking up breads inspired by flowers or Mother’s Day. A Google image search revealed all sorts of rose-shaped buns filled with jams but since my mom isn’t with me right now, I am going to have to eat these rolls myself. And I much prefer savory fillings.

Plus, doesn’t the pepperoni make them look even more like roses? I think so!

Ingredients for 12 cheesy pizza roses
1 package (¼ oz.) active dry yeast (I use Fleishmann’s Rapid Rise.)
About 4½ cups or 560g all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups or 355ml warm water
Olive oil
3/4 cup or 180ml pizza sauce
8 oz or 226g mozzarella cheese, grated
7 oz or 200g sliced pepperoni

Method
In a large bowl, combine yeast, 2 cups or 250g of flour and 1 teaspoon salt. In a microwaveable measuring pitcher or a saucepan, heat water until warm but not hot. With mixer at low speed, just blend water into dry ingredients.

At medium speed, beat two minutes, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Beat in 1/2 cup or 60g of flour to make a thick batter.  Beat two minutes more.

Stir in about 1 1/2 cups or 190g of flour to make a soft dough.  Knead dough by hand or with a bread hook for a few minutes.

Pour a little olive oil in the bowl and put the dough in to rest for 15 minutes (if using Rapid Rise yeast) or to rise for 30-45 minutes (if using regular yeast) covered with a damp cloth.

Note: If you want to bake these fresh in the morning, you can punch the dough down and rest it overnight in the refrigerator at this point. Cover the bowl in cling film so it doesn't dry out.

Punch the dough down and shape it into a round disk. Use a sharp knife to cut it into 12 equal pieces.

Shape each piece into a round dough ball.

Preheat your oven to 350ºF or 180ºC and lightly grease a 12-cup muffin pan with olive oil.

Use a rolling pin to flatten each ball out into a circle and cut it as shown (pic 1) with the tip of your sharp knife. Spread a couple of teaspoons of pizza sauce on the dough and sprinkle on some grated mozzarella. Add two pepperoni slices to one side of the cross and fold the dough up and around the pepperoni. (pic 2) Do the same to the opposite side, this time wrapping the corners of the dough around the first side. (pic 3) Repeat with the third side. (pic 4)

Finally, add two slices of pepperoni to the fourth side and bring it up and around the others. Pinch the edges to get it to stick.

Tuck the pizza rose into your greased muffin pan. Repeat the process until all the pizza roses are made. Top each with an extra teaspoon of the pizza sauce in the middle.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes or until the rolls are golden brown and puffy. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. Complete cooling on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to our host this month, Julie at Hostess At Heart. Check out the rest of the lovely flower or Mother’s Day inspired breads we have for you today!

• Almond Rose Bread by Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Apricot Sweet Rolls by Cook's Hideout
• Banana and Chocolate Chip Flower Cake by Sneha's Recipe
• Beetroot Cinnamon Rolls by Herbivore Cucina
• Blueberry Muffin Cups with Warm Lemon Sauce by A Salad For All Seasons
• Cherry Almond Kugelhopf by Hostess At Heart
• Cheesy Pizza Roses by Food Lust People Love
• Flower Bread with Savoury Onion Filling by Sara's Tasty Buds
• Lemon Poppyseed Muffins by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Orange Marmalade Rolls by Ambrosia
• Peynirli Cicek Pogaca/ Turkish Cheese Flower Bread by Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Pogaca -Turkish Breakfast Bread by Mayuri's Jikoni
• Pumpkin Lavender Coconut Biscuits by The Schizo Chef
• Sfoof by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Sunflower Crumb Muffins by Baking Sense

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the #BreadBakers home page.
We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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Grilled Pepperoni and Sausage Pizza Wraps

If you love fresh, hot homemade pizza, full of melty cheese and tasty toppings, but time is short, make these grilled pepperoni and sausage pizza wraps instead!

Seriously, these have all the flavor of pepperoni and sausage pizza in a fraction of the time real pizza takes to make. They are ideal for a weeknight supper or game night and would be great for a party as well. Let each person fill her own wrap, choosing from a selection of fillings. The ones below just happen to be my favorites but you do you.

Two important things to remember when filling 1. Do not overfill and 2. Start and end with cheese – this helps seal the wrap when grilling.

Ingredients to feed one
1 large wrap
1/2 cup or 55g grated mozzarella
Jalapeño slices
Onion slices
1/4 cup or 60ml pizza sauce
7-8 small cooked Italian sausage meatballs
6-7 pepperoni slices
3-4 fresh basil leaves

Method
Sprinkle half the cheese in the middle of the wrap. Top with a few slices of jalapeño and onion.

Add the sausage and spoon on half of the sauce.

Next comes the pepperoni, basil leaves and the rest of the sauce.

Finally, sprinkle on the rest of the mozzarella.

Fold in the top and bottom of the wrap.

Then fold in one long side and roll to close the wrap.

Grill the wrap, over a medium low heat, overlapping side down for 1 1/2 – 2 minutes. Place something heavy on top. I use my kettle filled with a cup or two of water.

Turn the wrap over and grill the other side for another 1 1/2 – 2 minutes, weight still in place.

Enjoy!

Did you know that October is National Pizza Month? Yeah, I missed that memo too. But it really is and has been since 1984 when late entrepreneur Gerry Durnell launched the first trade publication about pizza called Pizza Today. His first issue came out that October, so he designated it National Pizza Month as well.

Sunday Supper cannot resist the opportunity to celebrate such a great occasion so we've got close 60 pizza or pizza-inspired recipes to share today. Many thanks to Coleen of The Redhead Baker who is hosting the event and our event manager Cricket of Cricket's Confections for all of their hard work.

Appetizers

• Cauliflower Crust Pizza by Monica's Table
• Cool Veggie and Ranch Pizza Appetizer by Positively Stacey
• Pepperoni Cheese Pizza Sliders by Family Around the Table
• Pizza Beef Wontons by Asian in America
• Pizza Potato Skins by Casa de Crews

Breakfast

• Cinnamon Roll Pizza by Recipes Food and Cooking

Condiments

• Home Canned Pizza Sauce by What Smells So Good?

Mains

• Bacon Jam, Pear and Butternut Squash Pizza by Caroline's Cooking
• Bagel Pizzas by And She Cooks
• BBQ Bacon Mango Pizza by Fantastical Sharing of Recipes
• Candy Corn Pizza by Palatable Pastime
• Chicago Deep Dish Pizza by Bottom Left of the Mitten
• Chicken Pesto Calzone by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Chicken Pot Pie French Bread Pizza by A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures
• Chicken Vegetable Pizza (Low-Carb) by My Life Cookbook
• Copycat UNO's Pizza by Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Deep Dish Fondue Pizza by Momma's Meals
• Deluxe Imo’s Pizza Lasagna Rolls by Crazed Mom
• Easy French Bread Pizza by Confessions of a Cooking Diva
• Everything Pizza Tartin by Sunday Supper Movement
• Fall Veggie Pizza by The Culinary Compass
• Gluten Free Curried Pumpkin Chicken Pizza by Gluten Free Crumbley
• Grilled Pepperoni and Sausage Pizza Wraps by Food Lust People Love
• Hawaiian Pizza Salad by Cricket's Confections
• Homemade Pan Pizza by Cosmopolitan Cornbread
• Lahmacun (Turkish Pizza) by Curious Cuisiniere
• Lunchtime Pizza Muffins by Jane's Adventures in Dinner
• Meatball Sub Pizza by Life Tastes Good
• Mexican Pizza by Moore or Less Cooking
• Mexican-Style Corn Tortilla Pizzas by Home Sweet Homestead
• Mom's Family Style Cavatini by Powered by BLING
• Onion Tart by Wholistic Woman
• Philly Cheesesteak Flatbread Pizza by Family Foodie
• Pizza Grilled Cheese by Eat, Drink and Be Tracy
• Pizza Pot Pies by Brunch-n-Bites
• Pizza Steak Hoagie by The Freshman Cook
• Pizza Toscana by Cooking with Carlee
• Roasted Garlic and Spinach Pizza with Balsamic Onions by Helpful Homemade
• Rustic Bacon & Citrus Pizza by Gourmet Everyday
• Sausage and Peppers Pizza by Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Sausage Arugula Pizza by The Bitter Side of Sweet
• Shaved Brussels Sprouts and Bacon Grilled Pizza by Our Good Life
• Spinach and Feta Stuffed Pizza Bread by Mindy's Cooking Obsession
• Supreme Breakfast Pizza by The Crumby Cupcake
• Taco Dip Pizza by Hardly a Goddess
• Tandoori Chicken Pizza with Fresh Basil and Mozzarella by Sue's Nutrition Buzz
• The Mac Pizza by Seduction in the Kitchen
• Vegan Margherita Pizza by Simple and Savory

Desserts

• Caramel Apple Dessert Pizza by The Foodie Affair
• Cheesecake Pizza by The Redhead Baker
• Coconut Macaroon Pizza by Pies and Plots
• Fresh Fruit Pizza by That Skinny Chick Can Bake

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Pesto Pizza

As I mentioned the other night when I made pesto from my overgrown basil plants, I had leftover pesto at the end of our pasta dish. Here’s a simple pizza dough recipe that goes great with leftover pesto and mozzarella to make delicious homemade pizza in just about the time it takes Domino’s to deliver.

Ingredients 
For dough enough for two regular crust (12 in or 30cm) or three thin crust pizzas

1 package (¼ oz.) active dry yeast (I use Fleishmann’s Rapid Rise.)

About 4½ cups or 560g all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups or 355ml warm water

1 tablespoon olive oil - coat the bowl during rising

For toppings:
Leftover pesto - homemade or otherwise
Mozzarella cheese - amounts will vary with taste and number of pizzas you make

Or make a more traditional traditional pizza with tomato sauce and toppings such as pepperoni, olives, etc.

Method

In a large bowl, combine yeast, 2 cups of flour and 1 teaspoon salt. In a microwaveable measuring pitcher or a saucepan, heat water until very warm (120 ºF - 130 ºF – it should be pretty hot but you should be able to hold your finger in it for a count of 10 without pain.)

With mixer at low speed, just blend water into dry ingredients. At medium speed, beat two minutes, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Beat in ½ cup of flour to make a thick batter.

Beat two minutes more. Stir in about 1½ cups of flour to make a soft dough.

Knead dough by hand or with a bread hook for a few minutes. Pour a little olive oil in the bowl and put the dough in to rest for 15 minutes (if using Rapid Rise yeast) or to rise for 30-45 minutes (if using regular yeast – but then all promises of a 30-minute delivery are off.)

If using Rapid Rise, at this point preheat your oven to 450ºF or 230ºC.  (If you are using one, put your pizza stone in while the oven is still cold.)

Ready to rest for 15 minutes

Risen and ready to punch down and roll out

Your dough is now ready to punch down and roll out to top and make two 12-inch pizzas! (Or three, if you like the crust thin.) 

My usual instructions say to make sure to oil your pans first, to make the bottom bake up crunchy but I tried something new this time. Finally, I have a kitchen item that I have been wanting: a baker's peel. I bought it online at the Bakers’ Catalogue, which is connected to King Arthur flour and this was the first time I attempted to use it.

Add flour to the counter top and roll the pizza dough out, 

Transferred the dough by the rolling pin to the peel, which I sprinkled with cornmeal. (See note below if you don't have a pizza peel.) 

At this point add the pesto and spread it around. 

Then add the mozzarella liberally to the top.  

Very liberally

With a quick flick of your arm, quickly transfer the pizza to the baking stone that is in the preheated oven and bake for 10-15 minutes.

NOTE: If you don’t have a peel but would still like to use a baking stone, put your rolled dough on the greased underside of your baking tray so it is on a completely flat surface. Add your toppings and pop the whole thing in the oven on top of the stone.

After just a few minutes, perhaps as many as five, remove the tray from the oven and run a long knife around under the pizza to make sure it is loose, then slide the pizza off the tray straight onto the baking stone. Those few minutes of cooking harden the underside enough to unstick it from the pan. 

When your pizza crust is browned and the cheese is golden and melted, the pizza is done. Remove it from the oven and place on a cutting board. Divide into slices with a sharp knife or pizza cutter. 

We actually made three thin crust pizzas. Not all show here. 

Enjoy!