I’d like to tell you about my new best friend. Her name is Gisela. She likes Harry Potter, U2, and hot teen vampires. Okay that’s really about all I know. And I may or may not have learned it from reading her blog profile. There’s also a good chance she thinks I’m psycho for sending her half of my broken heart BFF necklace seeing as we’ve never actually met. Or spoken. Or emailed. Or even twittered (gasp!) However, dear Gisela did make a big impact in my life when she uttered 3 little words in the comment section of my Stuffed Pizza Rolls post: Chicken. Bacon. Ranch.
I haven’t stopped thinking about those 3 words since. I’ve spent my days just imagining how good it would be and wondering how on earth smarty-pants Gisela thought of it before I did. I finally got around to trying it out today and it was soooo worth it. I actually like them way better than the marinara version. I know tons of you have tried and loved the stuffed pizza rolls, so peeps- put this stuff on your grocery list NOW! And thanks a ton for a great idea Gisela. I’ll stop sending you flowers now.
This is a great way to use up leftover rotisserie/fauxtisserie chicken. You know when you pick all of the meat off the bones and then the next day your kids won’t eat it because they say it looks icky? Well once it’s slathered in cheese, bread, and ranch dressing, the only thing they’ll be saying is, Mom you’re freakin‘ rad.
Chicken-Bacon Stuffed Pizza Rolls
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1 roll refrigerated pizza dough* (or make your own)
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing mix
2 T grated Parmesan cheese
1 T olive oil or melted butter
sharp cheddar cheese (I used 75% sharp cheddar and 25% mozzarella)
8 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
about 1 C shredded, cooked chicken.
3/4 C mayo
3/4 C milk
First take 1 teaspoon of your ranch dressing mix and combine it with 1 1/2 T parmesan cheese. Set aside. Combine the remaining ranch mix with 3/4 C mayo and 3/4 C milk and place in the fridge to chill.
Preheat oven to heat specified on pizza dough package. Usually it’s 400-425 degrees.
Unroll your pizza dough onto a lightly floured surface. Pat or roll the dough so it’s about 12″ by 8″. You’re going to want to cut it into 24 squares, so just eyeball it if you need to. Use a pizza cutter to slice the dough into 24 squares.
Place cheese and desired toppings on each square.
When all of your dough squares have cheese and toppings on them, carefully lift up each square and wrap the dough around the toppings.
I grab the four corners first and then squeeze the seams shut. Then place them seam side down in a lightly sprayed pie pan (or similar sized dish). Brush with melted butter or olive oil and sprinkle with the parmesan-ranch mixture.
Time out for a sec. I tried a few new things this time around. One was to cook some of my rolls in a mini-muffin pan. This might work better for serving depending on the situation. They turned out great. You’re making 24 rolls, so it fills up the pan perfectly. They cook quicker this way than in a pie pan so keep an eye on them. Mine only took about 8 minutes whereas the ones in the pan took about 13-15.
Okay, back to our regularly scheduled programming. Place your rolls in the oven. I’ve noticed baking time really depends on the type of dough I’m using. Whether it’s different brands from the store, or homemade dough, they all take different amounts of time. Set your timer for 10 minutes and check on them after that. They may take up to 15 or 20 to be done. Take them out when they’re lightly golden on top.
Serve them warm with a side of freshly made ranch dressing for dipping.
I’m serious when I tell you these are amazing. They were actually way better than I had imagined them. Although how could you possibly go wrong with warm dough, gooey cheese, and crispy bacon, dipped in ranch. You can’t. You just can’t.
The other great thing is that these are freezable! Before baking, flash freeze individually, or together right in a disposable foil pan. Bake from frozen until golden brown.
Has anyone tried using Rhodes Dinner Rolls for these?
I just made these pizza rolls and we loved them! THey’re so tasty and worth the time it takes to make them. I think I might also try to make these into calzones which will be a tad faster to make next time. It was such a good flavor! I would have never thought of using the ranch dressing packet that way! Thanks Best Bites! Your website is revolutionizing my kitchen. Each meal I’ve tried is a hit with the hubby (and me for that matter, which may or may not be contributing to this strange weight gain) When I was getting the ranch packet out I noticed some spaghetti packets and laughed to myself thinking about how often I used to make Spaghetti. Not anymore!
home run!
I make a couple recipes from your site a week, and this one is probably my husband's favorite. It's one of the few times he ever says, "Oooohh…thank you for making dinner, it's SO good!" So thank YOU for making my husband say thank you. 🙂
Mmmm throw some red onions and bbq sauce in these and we're in business!
Made these tonight for dinner…they were really good but my cheese wasn't gooey enough inside. I will use more cheese next time and also add some buffalo sauce or BBQ sauce to the chicken. My husband thought they were great but agreed that adding something with a "kick" would be nice. We will definitely try these again!
Jaime- are you sure you added enough of the seasoning packet? The proportions here are the same as for the dressing, just a smaller batch so it should taste just like normal.
Made these last night and they were absolutely fantastic!!
The only minor errors we had were with the ranch dressing. It never thickened and the taste or mayo was like super noticeable. Could this be because we used 2% milk? I normally use whole milk when I make ranch dressing from the hidden valley packets and it turns out fantastic, so I didn't know if that had anything to do with it.
Keep with the brilliant recipes! Love your blog!
OMGEEEEE!!! Made these for me and husband AND the pizza version for my girls. My daughter loves pepperoni so I put mini pepperonis in them along with the pizza sauce instead of leaving it for dipping… my 3.5 yr old is the worst/pickiest eater who doesn't like to dip stuff. Isn't that terrible? EVERY kid likes to dip!!! So frustrating, but these "pizza balls" were a major hit, so happy. My husband is also a 'pickiest eater in the world' and he loved the chicken/(turkey)bacon/ranch version a lot. Success!! Thank you so much!!!!
Sognograndi- of course! You can put whatever you want in there!
Hi – I came across this recipe through Stumpleupon, and to be honest.. I am a vegetarian, but those pizza rolls are indeed drool-worthy! Think you could make a vegetarian version of those rolls? Let me know! 🙂
wow! these are soo delicious cute AND kid friendly. I ran out of bacon half-way through and just did chicken with Alfredo sauce instead and dipped them in the left-over Alfredo sauce. I'm sure there's a million combinations one could do…THANKS for sharing such fun AND delicious recipes!
Kerri- Flash freezing is just when you place something in the freezer in a single layer, just for a couple of hours so they don't all stick together. After they've become partially frozen you can then toss them in a ziplock bag or other container.
How do you falsh freeze?
Tried them and loved them!!! Big hit especially with the kids.
endless possibilities? spinach, chicken, and feta? or buffalo sauce, chicken, and cheddar?…i'm going to experiment =]
nope, you're not blind Kara- I just added them at the very end!
Were the freezer directions ever added?? I'd love to get them. But maybe I'm just missing them.
Were the freezer directions ever added?? I'd love to get them. But maybe I'm just missing them.
Laura- marinara would be fine inside. I'm not sure how the ranch would cook up, but it might be just fine too!
would they be soggy if you put the marinara/ranch inside before you cook them?
Hmmm…I am imagining these with: shredded chicken, spicy BBQ sauce, ranch powder, smoked cheddar, and cilantro…oh and BACON too!
I've made these a few times and absolutely L-O-V-E them. I've made them when we've had people over and they've been a big hit. To save time I make them the night before, they hold up really well in the fridge overnight.
I've also made some that were sauteed mushrooms and goat cheese that were phenomenal!
That’s exactly what I was going to ask as I was reading the comments, hoping someone has tried that! THANK YOU!!!
So…I have a rotisserie chicken left over in the fridge…
Bacon, Chicken, Chessy Pizza Rolls HERE WE GO!!!
Yes!
Thanks sooooo much for this!
By the way, what kind of dish are you baking these in?
I am nooooo cook. seriously, hate it. But I am definitely going to try this tonight. You make cooking sound fun:) can you make me love it?
I just came across your blog from 2peas which started me off on the pies in the containers and then found this recipe. I was SOOO happy I had all the ingredients!! They are cooling off right now and I can't wait to eat them!! They look SOOOOO YUMMY!!!
These are great! I had to boil my chicken to shred it so I doctored it up with Buffalo sauce for half and BBQ sauce for half, just enough to add flavor but not be drippy. They were wonderful! Thanks for the recipe and for the website.
lindsey, you can flash freeze them individually, or right after you put them in the pan. Do it before cooking. I'm not positive on the baking time after because I just do it by watching it. I'll have to make them again and time it for ya.
These look so yummy but I was just wondering about freezing directions. Do you freeze them before or after cooking?
Those pizza rolls look really tasty!