This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Carando®. The opinions and text are all mine.
A tasty Meatball Pizza Bites recipe made with authentic Italian meatballs, pizza dough, mozzarella cheese, and homemade meatball sauce or marinara sauce. These pizza bites are the perfect game day finger food to feed a crowd, and it’s very kid-friendly.
Meatball Pizza Bites Recipe:
Are you hosting a gathering or looking for great game day appetizer recipes? Or maybe, you are thinking of what to bring to a game-watching party? Well, then look no further as today I am going to show you how to make these delicious Meatball Pizza Bites or meatballs wrapped in pizza dough.
The pizza bites can even be brought for tailgating. An easy game day appetizer that is so delicious!
MEATBALL PIZZA BITES SECRET INGREDIENT:
A flavorful football party food is as important as the game itself. Therefore, a quick, easy and especially crowd-pleasing game day food is something that I always look for.
One of the special, secret ingredients of this Meatball Pizza Bites recipe is the classic Italian style Meatballs by Carando. I purchased the meatballs from my local Winco store.
Carando Meatballs are available in 3 flavors:
- Carando Abruzzese Fresh Italian Meatballs
- Carando Sicilian Fresh Italian Meatballs
- Carando Mozzarella Rustica Fresh Italian Meatballs.
With Carando Meatballs, I can create an Italian style meal for the whole family without the hassle. As a result, I don’t have to spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Also, I don’t have to miss the important parts of the game!
Carando Meatballs are a great addition to any occasion and work well with a wide variety of recipes, from appetizer to the main course, or just as a snack.
HOW TO MAKE MEATBALL PIZZA BITES:
This pizza bites recipe is very easy to make. We are going to use Carando Abruzzese Fresh Italian Meatballs and store-bought pizza dough to reduce our preparation and cooking time.
There are 5 important steps to make these yummy Meatball Pizza Bites:
- First, cook the homemade marinara sauce.
- Second, place the uncooked Carando Meatballs in the oven and cook.
- Third, cut the dough into sections (enough to cover the meatball and cheese)
- Fourth, wrap each portion of dough around a meatball and mozzarella cheese.
- Lastly, cook the Meatball Pizza Bites in the oven.
MEATBALL PIZZA BITES SEASONING:
Here’s another reason why I chose Carando Meatballs: They are made with classic herbs and seasonings. Each meatball is loaded with amazing flavor! That said there is no need to add seasoning to the stuffing, except for some garlic and parmesan butter oil on the bun top to give it a nice garlicky, cheesy, and shiny finished look.
HOW TO MAKE MEATBALL SAUCE – HOMEMADE MARINARA SAUCE:
To make the homemade marinara sauce you will need a few seasoning ingredients to infuse a ton of fresh flavor. It’s incredibly easy to make, and flavorful too! This marinara sauce contains crushed tomato, garlic, onion, and a simple seasoning from basil, oregano, salt, and pepper.
Even though it takes about 20 minutes of cooking time, you can actually cook this tomato-based sauce while baking the meatballs and pizza bites in the oven. The best part is you can use the leftover marinara sauce for any pasta dish, pizza or soup!
There is no doubt that many of us love Italian food. Italian food is delicious for many reasons, including simplicity and the quality of the ingredients used in recipes to make the finished product special. If you haven’t tried Carando Meatballs, don’t wait any longer. Be sure to visit the refrigerated meat section of Winco to find these Carando Meatballs. You can also find more recipes just like this one on the Carando recipe website here.
Meatball Pizza Bites
Ingredients
Meatball Pizza Bites:
- 1 package refrigerated classic pizza crust (about 13.08 oz)
- 1 package Carando Meatballs (12 pieces total)
- 6-12 slices fresh mozzarella cheese (cut in a quarter per slice)
Meatball Sauce or Marinara Sauce:
- 1 can (28 oz) San Marzano Tomatoes
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves (loosely packed)
- ¼ tsp dried oregano
- 4 cloves garlic (sliced)
- ½ cup chopped onion
- ½ tsp salt (use more according to your liking)
- optional: a pinch of red pepper flakes
Garlic Parmesan Butter Oil:
- 1 tbsp unsalted Butter
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
Cook the Carando Meatballs:
- Cook the meatballs in the oven according to the product packaging.
Cook the Meatball Sauce:
- In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat and when it’s hot, add onion and garlic. Keep stirring for about 2 minutes then add tomato, oregano, basil, the optional red pepper flakes and bring the sauce to a simmer on low heat until the sauce is thickened (takes about 20 minutes). Don't forget to stir to prevent burning. Remove basil leaves before serving.
Cut the Pizza Dough:
- Let dough stand at room temperature until softened or follow the dough product packaging instructions.
- Cut the dough into 4 sections of about 3.5-4 inches wide by 3.5-4 inches tall (or enough to cover a meatball and cheese)
Cut the Mozzarella Cheese:
- Cut each mozzarella cheese slice into 4 sections.
Wrap the Meatball and Cheese with Pizza Dough:
- Place each dough section on the table and add at least 2 slices of the mozzarella cheese. Then add a meatball on top and use your hand to fold the dough/cheese fully around the meatball so it’s nice and round.
Cook the Meatball Pizza Bites:
- Place meatballs on greased baking sheets with the seam side down, then pinch dough firmly to seal. Cook for about 10-12 minutes (or according to the pizza dough product packaging).
Make the Garlic Butter:
- Combine garlic, butter, and oil in a microwave-safe dish and heat for 1 minute.
To Serve:
- Remove from the heat and brush with garlic butter oil and sprinkle with some Parmesan cheese. Serve the Meatball Pizza Bites with marinara sauce.
You had me at meatballs but adding cheese and dough makes them a real great meal. Those already made meatballs seem like the key to those great pizza bites.
These look incredible! I will have to be sure to try them for dinner one night. I can almost bet my kids will love them.
Oh my gosh this is so happening! I already have meatballs I just need to get the dough. This is going to be perfect for the next game night we have.
ok i had to take a double take at how amazing these looked! YUM! def adding this to my list for what to make next week when the kids are home!
This is such a fun way to elevate meatballs! My kids would go crazy for this recipe. I know they will love the cheese and bread wrapped around these yummy meatballs.
This would be a huge hit with my family! They would be so great to take tailgating too. I cannot wait to wow my crowd with this recipe!
This is GENIUS! I love how it has the perfect bite, cheese, dough, and a perfect meatball. My kids would go gaga for these.
These meatball pizza bites are exactly what my dreams are made of! Lol jokes aside, they look absolutely delicious – I want them in my belly… now!
Those look good! I’m going to save your recipe and make those meatballs next week. I bet my boys would love them. Nom!
These sure do look delicious. I need to make them real soon. I think my family is going to love this recipe.
These pizza bites sound so awesome. I love how easy they are to whip together. I totally need to make a batch for the kids.
This is going on my list of things to make for the freezer! I make tons of different breakfast and some pizza ones, but these meatballs ones have never crossed my mind!
My kids would love these meatball pizza bites. Mom loves them too because they aren’t packed full of preservatives and who knows what. I’ll have to give these a try, thank you for sharing.
What a fun idea! These would be a hit in our house and when the kids have their friends over. I’ll have to make these soon!
What a great idea! These look so delicious and easy to prepare.
Oh this is genius! I would love to try this so I can taste this meaty pizza bites!