Homemade Pepperoni Pizza Bites Recipe + Video
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My Pizza Bites recipe results in soft, cheesy, pepperoni appetizers that taste fantastic and are fun to eat! Make this recipe for game day snacks or lunch boxes! Add your favorite pizza toppings to put a fun spin on pizza night!
Pizza Bites Recipe
Pizza Puffs are the perfect appetizer for your next party. Who can resist tiny bite-sized pepperoni pizza bites?
For something a little more work but totally worth it, give our homemade stromboli a try!
If you enjoy bite-sized pepperoni appetizers, you might want to try a few more of my recipes.
These Chicken Parmesan Sliders are a simple recipe that’s absolutely heavenly and party-ready.
Or, these Sriracha Slower Cooker Honey Meatballs are hot, sweet, tangy, and wildly addictive.
Tips for Perfect Pepperoni Bites
- On the go. To send these pizza bites to school or work, just fill a thermos with hot boiling water while you warm up the pizza puffs.
Then, pour out the water and place the pepperoni appetizers in the thermos. Seal, and they will stay warm until lunchtime! - Make it cheesy. You can also stuff a cube of mozzarella cheese in the center of the puff before baking for a cheesy ooey-gooey center!
- Save time. You can use a premade roll of biscuits. Just cut each one into 4 pieces and use two pieces per muffin cup. It’s a great way to save time on a busy day.
- Swap pans. You can make these in a cake pan or a bundt pan, but you will need to cook them longer to make sure that they are done.
- Use different seasonings. If you don’t have Italian seasoning, substitute 2 parts of oregano, 2 parts of basil, and 1 part of thyme.
- Try different meats. If you prefer not to use pepperoni, you can substitute Italian sausage.
Or, you can make these with chopped peppers, onions, olives, and mushrooms for a vegetarian option. - Don’t forget the dip. When they are done, you can dip them in spaghetti sauce, cheese sauce, or even ranch dressing.
How to Make Pizza Bites
This pepperoni bites appetizer can be made in 30 Minutes — just like your favorite pizza, but bite-size! A simple recipe and a scrumptious lunch or game day appetizer.
Simply combine the ingredients to make the batter. Then, add a scoop to a muffin pan.
Add pepperoni and cheese and top with more batter. Finally, bake them until they are golden brown. You can even add a tiny bit of sauce on top if you want to.
If you want to, you can prepare these the day before your party.
Then, just keep the pizza puffs in the refrigerator until you want to bake them. Continue with the recipe as stated.
Pizza Puffs FAQs
Fresh herbs
Onions
Pepper
Mushrooms
Bacon
Chicken
Mini pepperoni
Red pepper flakes
Garlic butter
Canadian bacon
Simple seasoning blend
Parmesan cheese
Plus, anything else you like! Have fun with your favorite toppings!
My favorite way to freeze these pizza bites is to let them come to room temperature and place them on a jelly roll pan lined with a Silpat mat.
They flash freeze, and then I pop them in a freezer gallon storage bag. That way, I can enjoy them whenever I want a quick snack or a light lunch.
Spritz them with water and either microwave them until heated or defrost them and pop them in a 350°F oven for about 10 minutes.
I highly recommend using a muffin tin for this easy recipe. Muffin trays help to hold the shape of the homemade pizza bites much better than a baking sheet could. And the best part? They pop right out, making them the perfect party appetizers to put right onto a serving platter.
Don’t forget the dipping sauce. Pair with a butter mixture, marinara sauce, or even a little bit of olive oil and garlic powder.
This pizza puffs video will show you everything you need to know to make this easy appetizer recipe. You won’t believe how easy they are to make in just a few minutes.
Enjoy!
With love, from our simple kitchen to yours.
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Other Appetizer Recipes
Homemade Pepperoni Pizza Bites Recipe + Video
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 tablespoons Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, crushed
- 1 cup fresh shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, extra virgin, plus more to grease pans
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 2 cups shredded 4-cheese pizza blend
- 5 ounces mini pepperoni rounds, 1 5-ounce package
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Reserve a hand full of pepperoni (about 1/4 cup).
- In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, seasoning, red pepper flakes, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, sugar, milk, and egg. Stir together with a fork. Mix in the pizza blend cheese and remaining pepperoni. Set aside.
- Prepare (2) 24 cup mini-muffin pans by greasing with olive oil (or spray with cooking spray).
- Mix batter and add 1 heaping tablespoon scoop to each muffin cup. Top each muffin with 2 or 3 of the reserved pepperoni. Bake until golden brown, approximately 20 minutes.
- Allow to cool for 5 minutes, remove from muffin tin and serve with favorite marinara sauce.
Video
Nutrition
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe’s nutritional value will vary depending on the ingredients used, measuring methods, and portion sizes.
Originally published July 2013, updated and republished January 2024
Disclosure: Posts may contain affiliate links. If you purchase a product through an affiliate link your price will remain the same and The Slow Roasted Italian will automatically receive a small commission. Thank you for supporting us, it helps us keep creating new recipes.
I'm with your daughter on this one, bite-sized food is the best! These look great Donna! 🙂
Thank you Ashley! Quick, easy and a great option. I think these may make an appearance at out Christmas party this year. <3
No yeast! Perfect morsels indeed. My husband has been asking for pepperoni pizza. I might make this to appease him. 😛
Fantastic and easy! Enjoy them. If your feel adventurous I have a 30 minute pizza recipe that is so easy you won't believe it… You can top it with whatever you like.
No rise time required. http://www.theslowroasteditalian.com/2013/04/lemon-herb-margherita-pizza-30-minutes.html
Do you have an easy recipe for Marinara sauce to dip them in?
Thanks, Linda
Absolutely. We love this Easy Peasy 5 Minute Marinara. http://www.theslowroasteditalian.com/2013/04/5-minute-easy-peasy-marinara-vitamix-giveaway.html
Enjoy!
I make bento-style lunches for my kindergartener and love recipes that can be frozen and reheated well. It really cuts down on lunch prep time in the mornings. My son also adores pizza and I will definitely be using this recipe in the upcoming school year! Thanks so much for so many easy lunch recipes.
I make bento-style lunches for my kindergartener and love recipes that can be frozen and reheated well. It really cuts down on lunch prep time in the mornings. My son also adores pizza and I will definitely be using this recipe in the upcoming school year! Thanks so much for so many easy lunch recipes.
So glad to hear it will come in handy. We love this recipe! Enjoy.
I'm making these for a birthday party, for the kids…. I need to make them ahead of time and freeze them as I have lots to do. My plan is to re-heat them in the oven and then place them in a hot/steam tray to keep them warm. (sauce on the side) Can I ask why you spritz them with water, or is that only if you microwave them. Any advice will be helpful. Thank You
These are perfect for a kids party! I spritz them with water so they stay moist. The steam penetrates the food. It works for me. Enjoy! Let us know how it goes!
Made these for work and they were a hit. My husband also made them for his work and actually added sliced black olives to his….still a hit.
This recipe has been tested and is super easy and quick to make and yummy too!
Made these for my little one's lunches at daycare. Problem, they might not make it to Monday, definitely not the entire week! Next, I'll sneak more veggies for my picky eater. Just what we need, thanks!
What a great party food idea! Lovin' that it's all put together in one bowl. Great keeper recipe!!
I have a 4month old grandson he and him mom are both living with us. I can't wait till he's old enough to try these bite size meals you're making for your 3 year old. Also thinking there is no reason I couldn't reduce some of my own "muffin meals" to bite size. GREAT IDEA!!
YUMMMMMMMMMY!
Made these yesterday! They are awesome and were a huge hit – especially with the kids!
Love them. Made them today. The baking time for me was more like 25-28 minutes to completely cook inside and brown outside. Thanks for the recipe
My 4 & 6 year old loved these!!
Can I make these with regular size muffin pans? Will I have to increase the recipe? Can you tell me what to increase?
I just noticed it says "mini muffin pans!"… I used regular, and they're in the oven now.. I pray they come out ok 🙁
Just made it…awesome recipe…Thanks Donna 🙂
I was thinking to saute veggies to use instead of pepperoni for my vegetarian daughter. Would that work?
As long as the veggies are precooked, it should work out great. I have not tried it myself so please let us know how it goes. Enjoy!
Would leaving out the teaspoon of sugar affect the recipe?
It would not be detrimental to the success, but it does add something in flavor. You could also replace it with honey, brown rice syrup or a sugar substitute. Of course you can omit it if you choose. Enjoy and let us know how it goes.
I plan to use Bisquick mix instead of flour and the baking powder. I will let you know how they turn out.
Awesome. Look forward to hearing back! Enjoy.
Did you ever make these with Bisquick? Just curious how they would turn out using it…thanks!
Can you use Bisquik
Just made these this evening to sample the recipe. Awesome!! Simple, yet great. Plan on including them in my Super Bowl menu tomorrow. FYI: didn't have a mini muffin pan, but used the same heaping TBS in regular muffin tin. Very nice 2 bite puffs. This will definitely become a regular recipe
I know sharing is a good thing to do, but I really doubt that I will share these cheesy pizza puffs with others. It looks so delicious. Thinking to roughly chop the pepperoni, and add a bit more, I like it very much. 🙂
Would you happen to have nutrition facts on this or the number of calories per pizza puff?
do you have to use the crushed red pepper flakes thanks lisa
Hi Lisa,
You can leave them out if you don't have any. 🙂 They don't make the puffs spicy, if that is your concern. They just add a dimension of added flavor.
Enjoy and let us know how it goes.