Who doesn’t love a homemade roll with pepperoni and mozzarella cheese nestled in it? Pepperoni rolls
are a perfect snack or meal that is not only easy to make, but also delicious. The pepperoni roll is
similar to Italian Stromboli; however, the origin of this recipe can be traced to the early 20th century when
Giusseppe Argiro created them at County Bakery in the Italian enclave of Fairmount, West Virginia. The rolls were created for the miners to have a quick lunch and being that they didn’t have to be refrigerated, they were quite convenient.
At the time, pepperoni and other Italian foods became popular in West Virginia when booming mines and
the railroad attracted Italian immigrants to the area. An interesting side note to this is that in the early 2000’s the US military began including a version of the roll in it’s MRE (Meals Ready to Go) that are provided to the troops. In fact, the US Army designated the pepperoni rolls to the First Strike Ration. These are the troops that are sent out within the first 72 hours of combat. The rolls were perfect because they are
compact and could be eaten on the move. They were used primarily in Operation Enduring Freedom in
response to the September 11th attacks. Fast forward to current times and these rolls make a great snack, meal or even as an appetizer for Football Sunday’s. Our recipe makes these rolls into bite size bundles and can even be dipped into some marinara. You can make your own pizza dough, but store bought works just fine. If you have leftovers simply freeze and reheat on a sheet pan. You can even play around and add different fillings if you wish. We hope you enjoy this delicious recipe. Buon Appetito!
Dena & Lisa
Pepperoni Roll
1 16 oz. Pizza Dough
5 oz. Pepperoni- Thinly Sliced
1 ¼ Cups of Shredded Mozzarella – We use Polly-O
1 tsp. Oregano
1 Egg – Beaten with a tablespoon of water
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Bring your dough to
room temperature. Lightly dust a flat surface with flour.
Roll the dough into a rectangle that is 16 inches long x
16 inches wide. Slice the dough in half and then cut the
dough into strips the width of a slice of pepperoni about
1 ½ inch strips. Place the pepperoni in even layers
over the top of the dough. Sprinkle the cheese and
oregano over the dough. Roll up each strip and place
the seam side down on a parchment lined baking
sheet. Brush each roll with the egg wash and bake for
about 20 minutes.
Dena and Lisa have an amazing Instagram page: @miciamammas. Follow them for professionally presented mouth-watering recipes. 