Some of my very best slumber parties in middle school were punctuated by the burn of too-hot pizza roll filling on my tongue. Pizza Rolls are little deep-fried nostalgia packets. Delicious and sentimental!
What do I need to make homemade pizza rolls?
The elements of pizza rolls are the same as regular pizza slices: a crust, toppings, cheese, and sauce. Let’s talk about each!
Pizza Crust
While we love a homemade pizza dough for a traditional pizza, we keep things fast and simple for pizza rolls by using wonton wrappers instead.
Wonton wrappers are typically used when frying, but they also bake up beautifully. They get crispy and golden and hold onto filling like a champ. My grocery store sells them in the natural foods cooler near the tofu and other meat substitutes, but we’ve also seen them in produce sections.
Pizza Toppings
Use your favorite pizza toppings to make your pizza rolls your own. Our recipe below outlines how to make supreme pizza rolls, with sausage, mushrooms, bell peppers, and pepperoni. But we’ve also enjoyed them as pepperoni pizza rolls, veggie pizza rolls, and just plain cheese pizza rolls. If you like it on a pizza, chances are you can use it in a pizza roll topping. Just be sure that you chop up the filling ingredients well so that they fit inside the wrappers and you get a little filling in every bite.
Wholefully Protip
The one kind of pizza we don’t recommend turning into pizza rolls is “Hawaiian” pizza. Pineapple can be so juicy that it can leave you with a soggy pizza roll.
Pizza Cheese
Mozzarella is the classic choice. If you’re sticking to a simpler filling, try adding a little Parmesan cheese for even more cheesy flavor.
Pizza Sauce
We’ve used marinara sauce and pizza sauce interchangeably in pizza rolls, and they’ve always come out delicious!
What do combination pizza rolls have in them?
In the frozen pizza world, “Combination” pizza typically means that the pizza has both sausage and pepperoni as the topping (or in the pizza roll filling). But really, you can fill these with whatever you’d like!
How do you make pizza rolls?
- Cook any pizza toppings that you can’t or don’t want to use raw—meats, peppers, and mushrooms all need to be precooked.
- Grease a baking sheet and preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Lay wonton wrappers out on the baking sheet, and put a few teaspoonfuls of filling in the center of each wrapper.
- Dip your finger in a bit of water and run it along the edge of a wonton wrapper. Fold the wrapper in half and press down to seal the seam. Repeat until the baking sheet is filled with pizza rolls.
- Spray the tops of the pizza rolls with cooking spray (you can also brush them with melted butter) and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the pizza rolls are golden brown.
Are pizza rolls precooked?
These pizza rolls are not pre-cooked, so be sure to cook them until they are heated all the way through and the outsides are golden and crisp.
Are pizza rolls better in the oven or microwave?
For homemade pizza rolls, you definitely want to bake them in the oven. The microwave will leave you with soggy, unevenly cooked pizza rolls, and nobody wants that!
What is good to dip pizza rolls in?
More pizza sauce or marinara is our favorite thing to dip pizza rolls in, but you can also go the classic Midwestern route and dip them in a bit of ranch. Or just eat them as-is—that’s the most portable and simple way to enjoy them!
How do I reheat homemade pizza rolls?
Store any leftover pizza rolls in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Refresh in a 375°F oven for a few minutes until warm. These can also be reheated in an air fryer. We reheated them at 390°F for 6 minutes, but your air fryer may differ.
Can I freeze these pizza rolls?
Absolutely! Homemade pizza rolls hold up best to the freezer if they are frozen before the baking step. Assemble the pizza rolls, but instead of baking them, arrange them in a single layer on a baking sheet and put them in the freezer. Once frozen, move the pizza rolls to a freezer-safe container or a freezer bag. Stash in the freezer until you want pizza rolls, and then bake them straight from frozen!
Homemade Pizza Rolls Recipe
Skip the unrecognizable ingredients, and make up a batch of Baked Homemade Pizza Rolls right in your own kitchen! Perfect for game day snacking.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 pound Italian sausage
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 large green pepper, diced fine
- 1 small onion, diced fine
- 4 ounces mushrooms, diced
- 1/2 cup diced pepperoni
- 2 cups marinara sauce
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- Cooking spray
- 1 package wonton wrappers (about 48 wraps)
Instructions
- In a medium skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat until hot. Add in the Italian sausage, garlic, green pepper, and onion. Cook until softened, about 6 minutes.
- Add in the mushrooms and pepperoni, and cook until the mushrooms have just released their water, about 2 minutes. Stir in the marinara, reduce heat, and simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes.
- Remove from heat, stir in the mozzarella, and set aside. Preheat oven to 375°.
- Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Arrange three wonton wrappers along the bottom edge of the sheet. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of filling into the middle of each wrapper. Using a finger dipped in water, run along the edge of each wrapper and then fold wrapper in half and press down to seal.
- Continue until baking sheet is filled with pizza rolls (spaced about 1″ apart). Spray tops with cooking spray and bake in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until rolls are golden and crispy. Repeat process with remaining wraps and filling.
- If pizza rolls are greasy, blot them with paper towels before serving. Let cool 5-10 minutes before serving (filling will be hot).
Notes
- Veggie-option: leave out the Italian sausage and the pepperoni when making the filling. You may need to add more olive oil to keep the mushroom mixture form sticking while cooking.
- These reheat great in the air fryer! Six minutes at 390°F worked well, but you might need to experiment with your air fryer to find the right time and temp.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 4 pizza rollsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 157Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 22mgSodium: 477mgCarbohydrates: 7gFiber: 1gSugar: 3gProtein: 7g
At Wholefully, we believe that good nutrition is about much more than just the numbers on the nutrition facts panel. Please use the above information as only a small part of what helps you decide what foods are nourishing for you.
i’m loving it. and its really great for me i can made it at home. thanks
They look great! Could you start cooking the sausage first and then add the veggies, so you could reduce or skip the oil? Drain on paper towels before adding the sauce. The idea of saving some of the sauce for dipping sounds good.
You could try it! Let us know how it works out!
Can I fry this instead of baking it?
I’ve never tried it, but I don’t see why not!
Dear god, these are beautiful. I’m doing Whole30 now but plan on making these next month. Thanks for sharing!
this just reminded me that I have been wanting to try these since I first saw them years ago, happening in my kitchen this weekend for sure
What a genius idea! I love these little pizza rolls!
I am 57 y.o. and used to make these for my son and family since the early 80’s, I am now going to make them for my 15 y.o. grandson’s birthday.
These look so tasty and even better than anything from the frozen aisle!
I just found you while googling for a healthy version of Totino’s Pizza Rolls! 🙂 LOVE your blog!!
I was wondering if using fresh lasagna sheets would work too? And I echo the question about how to prepare them for a school lunch. My best guess would be to freeze them unbaked and bake them first thing in the morning then pop them into a thermos. Hopefully they wouldn’t turn to mush. I might add an extra granola bar to the lunch bags the first time I try that.
I’ve never used lasagna sheets for it, but I imagine they’d not crisp up very well (just judging by how lasagna sheets act in a lasagna).
My sister told me about this recipe. Living in the UK now, and I usually gorge myself on Pizza Rolls when I’m visiting the States. Now I can make them anytime I want. I’ll be sure to introduce them to my neighbours. *g*
Has anyone tried to freeze these? Can they be microwaved from frozen instead of baked, or would I need to bake them, let them cool and then freeze for that? I’m trying to find a healthy alternative to Totino’s that my son can take to school. Any feedback is appreciated!
I made these for us last week and we were really happy with them. I halved the recipe and can’t want to use the rest of the wonton wrappers this week to make more! Thanks for a yummy new lunch treat.
These look fantastic! I love the spin on this – definitely need to try it. After reading the side of some of the foods from my youth, I just have to shake my head at the stuff in it. I’d rather learn more “from scratch” cooking.
Made these tonight and they were a success!! Being added to the Super Bowl spread 🙂
Do you think these would work with layered phyllo dough? I have some I would love to use up.
Hmmmm, maybe! I do think the phyllo dough will make for a flakier texture, but it’s worth a shot.
I am so excited to try these tomorrow!!
I love you so much for this! I was recently diagnosed with lupus nephritis (of the kidneys) and have a ton of dietary restrictions (when I have never once been on a diet in my life). I nearly lost it about 2 weeks ago when I realized I could never, ever have a totinos pizza roll ever again. I mean, I only had them like twice a year now that I’m an “adult” but when you want them, you HAVE TO HAVE THEM!
So I’m super excited to try this recipe!!!!
We made these last night after I pinned them on Pinterest. Wow! Amazing!
We stopped buying prepared foods a few months ago and we try to find healthy alternatives. Pizza rolls are one thing we were missing. These are wonderful! We added some other veggie options and cooked up some turkey sausage too. We froze a handful of them for future use too.
Thanks so much!
I tried making these today but mine came out all soggy looking, nothing like the picture shown. I folowed the recipe exactly. I dont know what went wrong.
Hmm, that’s weird! If anything, wonton wrappers usually bake up TOO crispy and hard. I’m not sure what went wrong either. My batch was super crispy on the edges and a little softer in the middle. Sorry they didn’t work out for you!
My first batch came out the same way. I think a lot depends on your oven and the humidity where you live. I’d say cut back a lot on the sauce, which I’m pretty sure caused mine to be soggy, and save it for dipping!