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Forget frozen pizza rolls! These 20-minute Homemade Pepperoni Rolls are made with refrigerated pizza dough, mozzarella cheese sticks, and pepperoni for an easy dinner or snack recipe! Made famous in West Virginia, these pizza rolls will become a family favorite.
For more pizza vibes, try my Pepperoni Bread Recipe, which is full of zesty flavor. You’ll also love this Homemade French Bread Pizza, which is so much better than frozen!
Why you’ll love this pizza rolls recipe!
Some people call these West Virginia Pepperoni Rolls—but I just call them delicious! The kids also call them pepperoni sticks as they’re gobbling them down.
The hardest part of this pizza recipe is being patient for them to bake. Even though this simple recipe takes just 10 minutes to assemble and 10 minutes to cook, you’ll be SO ready to dip that first bite in the marinara sauce!
- Quick and easy: Uses store-bought pizza dough for a quick, no-fuss dinner or snack in just 20 minutes.
- Crave-worthy flavor: Gooey mozzarella, savory pepperoni, and a butter-parmesan crust deliver classic pizza flavor in hand-held rolls.
- So many ways to serve them: Perfect for game day snacks, lunchboxes, after school bites, or a kid-approved family dinner.
- Perfect for meal prep: Great make-ahead or freezer-friendly option for busy weeknights or meal prep.
Table of Contents
Ingredients for Pepperoni Rolls
- Pizza Dough – I use Pillsbury pizza dough, which comes refrigerated in a tube.
- Pizza Sauce – Your favorite jarred pizza sauce is perfect for this recipe. You can even use spaghetti sauce!
- String Cheese – I like to use mozzarella string cheese for this recipe but you can use any variety of cheese that you want. Add in some cheddar cheese, Colby, or even some pepper jack for an added kick!
How to Make Pepperoni Rolls
- Assemble: Spread out the dough on a cutting board and cut it into 10 equal-sized rectangles. Arrange 4 pepperoni slices on each rectangle and top with a cheese stick.
- Seal: Roll up the dough and enclose the cheese stick. Pinch the seams closed. Melt the butter and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Brush the pizza sticks with the melted butter mixture.
- Bake: Put in the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy once cooled slightly with a side of marinara.
Storage & Reheating
- Refrigerator: Keep in a sealed container for up to 5 days. Reheat in a 350 °F oven for 5–7 minutes to crisp them up.
- Freezer: Wrap individually in plastic wrap and store in a freezer bag for up to 1 month. Bake from frozen, adding 2–3 minutes to cook time.
Serving Suggestions
Here are some easy appetizer recipes that are perfect with this pizza rolls recipe:
Frequently Asked Questions
Cooked hamburger can be a great alternative to the pepperoni, or try adding in some onions, black olives, and green peppers, too. As long as you’re adding in items that are normally found on pizzas, you can have fun mixing and matching options for this pizza rolls recipe.
Yes! If you have time, homemade pizza dough gives a more fresh-baked taste. Just allow extra time for rising and adjust the baking time if needed.
No. You can use shredded mozzarella (about ¼ cup per roll) or even sliced cheese.
Absolutely. Assemble the rolls, then freeze them unbaked. When ready, bake straight from frozen.
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Pepperoni Rolls
Ingredients
- 1 tube Pillsbury pizza dough
- 40 slices pepperoni
- 10 mozzarella cheese sticks
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
- marinara sauce for dipping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
- Spread pizza dough out on a cutting board and Cut the dough into 10 equal-size rectangles (a pizza cutter makes this job easier)
- Arrange 4 pepperoni slices on each rectangle and top with a mozzarella cheese stick.
- Roll up the pizza dough, enclosing the cheese stick, pinching the seams closed.
- Melt the butter and stir in the parmesan cheese.
- Brush the pizza sticks with the melted butter mixture.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.
- Eat immediately with a side of marinara for dipping
Video
Notes
- Seal well: Make certain to roll the rectangles tightly and pinch the seams. If there are any gaps, the cheese will melt out and they won’t have a gooey center or middle to them. You’re going to want to bake them with the seam-side down.
- Make a softer crust: You can also brush the melted butter mixture on again at the end of baking if you want. This will just make the pizza crust a bit softer and give a bigger parmesan taste and flavor.
- Allow the rolls to cool: Be aware that the inside of these pizza rolls is going to be very hot. Little mouths will get burned quickly if you don’t allow for a bit of cooling. Making a tiny tear and letting out some of the heat might help to speed up the cooling process.
Can these be frozen for another time?
If i use the thin pizza crust from a can should I adjust the heat and/or time I cook them?
We recommend following the package instructions for baking, and adjusting as needed. Hope this helps!
Sounds like a great, quick idea for dinner regardless of their name and origin. Making them tonight and may change them slightly according to the suggestions of others. Constructive criticism is usually helpful, but haters gonna hate even on Pinterest!
Although I like your easy concept and will give it a try the way I make mine is out of frozen bread dough. I cut each loaf into fourths for large rolls or fifths for smaller size. I flatten each out into a circle, place 7-8 pepperoni slices in the middle then top with either mozzerella shreds or Pepperjack shreds. Pull one side over, then the opposite side, and fold over the ends pinching to seal. Let them rise for about an hour then bake them at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Remove them from the oven and while they are still hot butter the tops and sides of them. When cool enough to handle remove them from the baking sheets and place them onto paper towels and let fully cool. Store them in Ziplock bags in the freezer if you wish. We serve ours by cutting a slit in the side of the roll and filling it with Oliverio peppers in sauce. Top it with more cheese shreds and zap it in the microwave. At least that is how I make them and I’m a born and bred West Virginian.
sooo yummy
Didn’t like the pizza dough
Use Rhodes bead dough rolls.
These were so fun and easy! I did it with homemade bread dough and they were not messy! It was Pizza at your fingertips! My whole family loved it! Will be making this again!
These turned out wonderfully! Entire family loved them. I used the pop-biscuit pizza dough and cut the rectangle into 6 pieces. Layered about 8-10 pepperoni slices and the mozzarella string cheese stick. Baked up beautifully and dipped in pizza sauce. Quick and easy dinner after a long day of grocery shopping. Even easier cleanup! Thank for the recipe! Definitely a keeper since my teens can make this easily on their own.
Can these be made ahead, put in the refrigerator, then baked the next day?
Can I make these up the day before??
This one got rave reviews from the whole family! After only one bite, my son proclaimed “Oh I can totally eat this all the time!!!” I added extra pepperonis, so I only cut my dough into 8 rectangles so it would seal. Thanks for the suggestion about adding some garlic powder to the butter and Parmesan mix – such great flavor! And I am glad I read your tips because I started to bake them seam side up. Delicious and easy recipe, made for a great quick lunch after church before the football game! Thank you!
Oh, and served with marinara and ranch! My family thanks you Kasey!
I’m giving this only a 2 star simply because you called it a West Virginia pepperoni roll. I’ve lived in WV my entire life and although these look and sound good, these are NOT WV pepperoni rolls. For one, WV rolls are not crunchy, they are soft, For another thing, they do NOT have all that cheese, if any, in them. If cheese is in them, it’s a very slight amount. Also, a bit of sauce goes into the roll so dipping it isn’t necessary, just grab and go. And lastly, they definitely have more pepperoni than what is in the ones shown here. After all, it IS called a pepperoni roll. The amount of cheese in this recipe would overpower the pepperoni. Like yours though, you can eat them room temperature, or heat them if you like. I’m going to pin this to Pinterest to try, but will add more pepperoni and a lot less cheese.
Adding 2 tsp of your preferred sauce to the dough before assembling the rolls, plus sprinkling a dash of dried parsley after you’ve applied the butter mixed coating helps to elevate these wonderful servings. Give it a try!
hi i want to make ahead of time to freeze but did not see the instructions on reheating.
Thank you!
Hi, I would like to try to make a carrot cake roll. I thought it sounds delicious
Could I use pureed carrots, and possible shredded carrot and raisins.
What are your thoughts? .any suggestions for ingredients.
Thanks for any thoughts you can provide.
Sherri Spring.
Buckilvrss1@gmail.com
Kim, I actually just cooked these from the freezer in my air fryer on 400 for 8-10 minutes. So good.
If I were to make ahead of time and freeze, I would bake 5-6 minutes to give the dough a “crust”. Cool completely, wrap well in plastic wrap then into a ziplock bag. Then to reheat, I would thaw the rolls, preheat the oven to the temp noted in the recipe and back for 6-8 minutes. You want to make sure the inside is hot but watch carefully that the crust doesn’t get too brown.
Quick and easy
Can you make these ahead of time and freeze? Would you just prepare & freeze? Or prepare & cook , then freeze?
I think either way would work. If it was me, I’d make and then bake when ready to eat.
These are absolutely AMAZING! I usually never leave reviews, but I had to on these because they are absolutely delicious and so easy to make. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!
That is so great to hear!! Thank you!