Tomato, Basil, and Mozzarella Pizza Wheels
Your favorite tomato, mozzarella, and basil pizza rolled up in single-serving pizza wheels.
My family and I are back from a long weekend in Austin, Texas where I attended this year’s BlogHer Food conference. It was a blast and I can’t wait to tell you all about it. But first up, these incredible margherita pizza wheels deserve their day in the sun.
There’s nothing incredibly fancy or difficult here, just a new way to eat an old favorite. I was inspired when I saw these pepperoni pizza wheels by Spoon Fork Bacon and I knew I had to give them my own spin with a little tomato, basil, and mozzarella.
First up, is my favorite pizza dough, followed by a super simple marinara sauce, and finally some fresh mozzarella and chopped basil. Put it all together, roll and slice, and bake! And the result is a perfect appetizer or light meal. I served this batch at a party recently with a little extra marinara for dipping and they didn’t even last 15 minutes.
I finally have a decent garden this year and I can’t wait to use my fresh basil and tomatoes. When they’re ready, I plan to bake another batch and do my best to devour them all myself.
baking tip:Tips for slicing rolls
Here are a few tips for slicing filled rolled dough, such as cinnamon rolls, savory-stuffed rolls, etc.:
- Use a ruler. Simply place it next to your log of dough and cut rounds in consistent intervals.
- Use a cutting board. If cutting with a knife, it’s best to do so firmly and with confidence, without worrying about what you’re cutting on.
- Use a sharp knife. Sharper knives make for smoother slicing.
- Try dental floss. Watch this tutorial to see how to slice filled rolls without a knife.
Tomato, Basil, and Mozzarella Pizza Wheels
Ingredients
- ½ recipe Basic Pizza Dough
- Easy marinara , recipe below
- 4 ounces mozzarella cheese , thinly sliced (113 grams)
- ½ cup basil leaves , chopped (10 grams)
- Yellow cornmeal , for dipping
- Coarse salt , for sprinkling
For the easy marinara:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ¼ cup onion , chopped (36 grams)
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 14.5 oz can peeled diced tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon fresh herbs such as basil, oregano and thyme (2 teaspoons dried)
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon salt , plus more to taste
Instructions
To make the easy marinara:
- Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium low heat. Add the onions and garlic and sauté until onions are softened and translucent.
- Add the tomatoes, herbs, red pepper, and salt. Simmer until liquid has reduced and sauce has thickened, about 10 minutes.
- Use a blender to purée marinara. Use immediately. Store any leftovers in the fridge.
To make the pizza wheels:
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- Roll the pizza dough into a rough 9x12 inch rectangle. Spread a layer of marinara sauce on top. Top with the mozzarella slices and chopped basil.
- Starting with the long end, roll the dough up towards you, making sure to keep it tight. The sauce and cheese may try to slide out, but try to keep them in place as much as possible.
- Use a sharp knife to cut into 1 inch rounds. Dip one end of the wheels into the cornmeal and place on the prepared sheet pan (cornmeal side down). Sprinkle with coarse salt.
- Bake until dough is golden and cheese has melted and started to brown, about 15-20 minutes. Serve immediately with extra marinara for dipping, if desired.
This looks yummy! I can’t wait to try this out.
Oh my goodness! These look amazing!! 🙂 I pinned for later!
These sound like such a delight!
Love these wheels, such a fun idea!
These looks so good.. There never a bad time for pizza
Wow, these look soooo good! Will put them on my to-make list! (and thanks, now I’m craving pizza instead of the pasta i had planned ;-))
They look simple and delicious !
Merci!
Such a genius idea! I saw these at my favorite bakery some days ago and wanted to make them ever since but couldn’t find the perfect recipe…I think I’ve finally found it. These look definitely the yummiest and cutest appetizer I’ve even seen! Thanks for sharing 🙂
xo, Elisa
These pizza wheels look incredible, Annalise. Your photography is so stunning, too! It’s just a mozz-tomato-basil kind of day, I think, haha! Thanks for sharing and have a great day.
OMG-This looks so good! I am going to have to add this to my menu as soon as my kids get back from their camping trip!
These are so fun and look fantastic 🙂
another delicious looking recipe that leaves drool on my keyboard!!! YUMMERS! Fun to see you this weekend, btw.
One of my favorites – now in wheel form! What a fun and delicious sounding idea, thank you for posting!
I wish we were neighbors. I mean, how totally awesome would that be? Deliciousness all day every day-from you that is. And please dumpster dive some of that wood for me!
I totally love this! Every Friday night is pizza night in our house so I am always looking for ways to change it up. I think Kellan would totally love this. And I’m with you on the homegrown tomatoes and basil, I just transplanted my tomatoes today and I cannot wait until they are ready. I’ve got 4 plants going so I, cross my fingers, will have plenty of tomatoes. 🙂
Yum. Margarita pizza is my favorite so I’m sure I’d love these. Can’t wait to give them a try. Thank you for this great recipe 🙂
Nice pictures and very yummy looking.
Could these be made ahead and frozen?