Whenever I need an easy tailgate or football party food I go for these handy roll ups. They are easy, versatile and you can eat them room temperature which are all good party food qualities.
There’s not really a recipe for these, it’s more like a list of ingredients to assemble. First off, grab some pizza or bread dough, whichever you prefer to work with. If I know in advance I plan to make these I even buy it frozen and just defrost it in the freezer until I’m ready to use it. You can make dough too if you are so motivated. When I’m going to make a bunch of party food I sometimes give myself a break and buy it. Roll it out into a rectangle (as much as it’s possible to do that) until it’s pretty thin. It’s going to roll over itself a few times, so thin is better. Let the dough rest and come back to it in a few minutes if you need to.
Next – Some sort of dressing for inside the dough. I just get store bought Italian dressing and brush a layer over the dough. Just olive oil or flavored butter will work too, depending on the rest of your ingredients. As much or as little as you like is how to roll here. I might add some crushed red pepper, granulated garlic, Italian seasoning and/or some Parmesan cheese. Whatever you want to do here that will go with the rest of your ingredients is good as far as seasoning.
Meats and cheeses – Most of the time I get whatever I plan to stuff these babies with in the deli. That’s right, more help from the store. In the picture above I have done two types of rollups. One has genoa salami, pepperoni, Parmesan ham along with provolone and mozzarella cheese. The other I left more plain with just pepperoni and mozzarella. I got inspired for this dish from all the different kinds of hot slider sandwiches you can make with the Hawaiian sweet rolls. I figured all those different combinations would probably work with the dough rollups. I’ve not found one I haven’t liked yet.
Once you get your dough all loaded up with your choice of fillings, start on the side closest to you and roll up as tightly as you can. Pinch the sides to the roll and tuck the ends under. Cut the roll in half, then in slices. What’s important to make them the same size so they cook evenly, not the actual size of the slices. I do about 1″ slices and that seems to work great. As you can see they don’t need to look perfect. They will taste great no matter what.
Butter or use some non stick spray to make sure you can get these back out of the pan. And due to my lack of loving to do dishes, I go aluminum cake pans here. Who wants to clean up a bunch of baking dishes after a party? Lay the slices cut size up until you get the pan full. Next, melt a sick of butter (about half a stick per pan shown above). I throw in some minced garlic with the Italian meats and cheeses, but you can leave it out if you choose some milder ingredients. Once the butter is melted brush it on the slices making sure they are all covered. Note: When I have a filing that is more pizza like, I serve these with some marina on the side for dipping, but that’s totally optional.
Good news! At this point you can cover them and leave them in the fridge until party time! I’ve found that after like 24 hours they start to dry up a bit, so I wouldn’t make them too far ahead. I usually assemble them in the morning, pop them in the fridge then bake them off at party time.
When you are ready, bake uncovered at 350 degrees for about 25-30 minutes. They are ready when they start to brown and look bubbly and yummy in the middle, kind of like pizza looks. Enjoy!
Amy’s Kitchen 