Make Pizza Pinwheels for your next party as a hearty appetizer option. They are super easy to make and a crowd favorite for any game day get together!
If you are looking for another game day appetizer, make this easy sausage rotel dip or Italian hoagie sliders.
30 minutes
Party favorite
Quick Look: Pizza Pinwheels
- ⏱️ Prep Time: 10 minutes
- 👩🍳 Cook Time: 22 minutes
- 🕖 Total Time: 32 minutes
- 🍕 Servings: 9 servings of pinwheels
- ⚡️ Calories: 229 calories per serving (based on nutrition panel)
- 🔥 Cooking Method: Bake in oven at 400F
- 🛒 Main Ingredients: pizza dough, pizza sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni
- ⭐️ Difficulty: Easy! It’s quick to assemble and requires just a bit of finesse to roll the pinwheels.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Flavor of pizza in a bite – These pinwheels are the perfect appetizer for a party because they bake in one pan but pull apart so easily.
- Easy to make – There are just a few ingredients in these pizza pinwheels. Assemble everything in the dough, roll it and bake!
- Versatile recipe – You can mix up the toppings in your pizza pinwheels depending on your eaters! Opt for cheese only, sausage, mushroom, anything you enjoy.
Ingredients you’ll Need
Here’s a quick look at the ingredients you need to make this pizza pinwheels recipe. For a full list of ingredients and amounts please head to the full recipe.
- Pizza dough: I use the refrigerated dough in the tube but you can use regular pizza dough.
- Pizza sauce: you can use store-bought or make your own at home. It creates the classic pizza flavor for these pinwheels.
- Shredded mozzarella cheese: I used pre-shredded to make it easy but you can also shred your own. The mozzarella melts perfectly in the oven.
- Pepperoni: I added pepperoni to our pizza pinwheels but you can omit it or swap it for another pizza topping.
If you enjoy this recipe, try these ham and cheese pinwheels or sausage pizza dip next.
How to make Easy Pizza Pinwheels
Step 1: Remove pizza dough from the fridge and preheat oven to 400F. Lightly flour a large cutting board or counter. Roll the pizza dough into a rectangle. Spread the pizza sauce evenly over the surface of the dough.
Step 2: . Starting on the long side, layer the pepperoni all along with long length, but only about ⅔ of the short length. Roll the dough up into a tube starting from the pepperoni covered portion of the long side.
Step 3: Using a sharp knife or unscented dental floss, cut the tube into 9 evenly sized rolls. Arrange in an even layer in the baking pan.
Step 4: Mix the melted butter with the garlic powder, oregano and basil. Brush it on the tops of the rolls and sprinkle the grated parmesan cheese on top. Place in the oven and bake for 22 minutes.
Mad’s Expert Tips for the Best Pizza Pinwheels 🍕
- Only put pepperoni on two thirds of your dough – in order to keep your pinwheels together, make sure not to cover all of the dough in pepperoni. The cheese melts and holds together the pinwheels.
- Use the melted butter to brown your pinwheels – a bit of melted butter on top of your pinwheels is the secret to perfectly brown and crispy crust
- If it’s not brown enough, you can broil at the end – if you want a crispier, golden brown crust, you can put the pinwheels under the broiler for 2-3 minutes.
If you are looking for more game day appetizer, make these Philly cheesesteak sliders or mini pretzel dogs.
Recipe FAQs
What kind of dough is used for pizza pinwheels?
You can use any pizza dough. You could use refrigerated dough or make your own.
Can you make pizza pinwheels a day ahead?
Yes! You can definitely make these pizza pinwheels ahead of time. You can roll everything in the dough, then wrap in plastic wrap and store in the fridge. The next day, slice and bake.
What kind of cheese is best for pizza pinwheels?
Mozzarella cheese is the best because it gives the classic pizza flavor and melts perfectly in the pinwheels.
Other Delicious Appetizer Recipes
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
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Recipe
Pizza Pinwheels
Ingredients
- 14 oz roll of pizza dough refrigerated in tube you can also use regular pizza dough
- ⅓ cup pizza sauce + more for dipping
- 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- ½ cup pepperoni
- 3 tbsp melted butter
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp dried basil
- 2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese + more for topping
Instructions
- Remove pizza dough from the fridge about 30 minutes before assembly. Preheat oven to 400F and grease or line an 8×8 baking pan with parchment
- Lightly flour a large cutting board or counter. Roll the pizza dough into an 11 inch x 14 inch rectangle
- Spread the pizza sauce evenly over the surface of the dough – be sure to cover all the way to the edges.
- Starting on the long side, layer the pepperoni all along with long length, but only about ⅔ of the short length.
- Roll the dough up into a tube starting from the pepperoni covered portion of the long side.
- Using a sharp knife or unscented dental floss, cut the tube into 9 evenly sized rolls.
- Arrange in an even layer in the 8×8 baking pan.
- Mix the melted butter with the garlic powder, oregano and basil. Brush the tops of the rolls with the butter mixture and sprinkle the grated parmesan cheese on top.
- Place in the oven and bake at 400F for 22 minutes.
- Serve immediately with a bowl of warm pizza sauce or marinara sauce for dipping.
Recipe Notes
- Make sure to only cover two thirds of the pizza dough with pepperoni so that the cheese can act as a glue to hold your pinwheels together.
- If you don’t have a sharp enough knife, you can use unscented dental floss to cut the pinwheels.
- You can prep the pinwheels a day ahead. Follow all steps until you have the dough rolled up. Wrap it in plastic wrap and store in the fridge. The next day, slice and bake!
- For a vegetarian option, you can omit the pepperoni or swap it for another pizza topping.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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