For a fun twist on pizza night, make a Pizza Braid. This is an easy recipe made with crescent roll dough, pepperoni, and cheese. The filling is inside the braid and baked until the crust is golden. Then, slice and serve it for a great dinner or snack.
We’ve made this pizza braid for so many different occasions. It’s great for dinner if you’re craving pizza, but you can also serve it as an appetizer or snack for parties.
It’s similar to a calzone with the pizza fillings baked inside the dough. But instead of pizza dough, it’s made with refrigerated crescent rolls, which makes it really easy. The dough is sliced into strips that are braided over the filling. It’s a fun presentation, and it tastes just like pizza.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- Refrigerated crescent rolls
- Sliced pepperoni
- Shredded mozzarella cheese
- Pizza sauce
- Dried oregano
How to Make Pizza Braid
Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper. Unroll the crescent roll pizza dough and place it on the baking sheet. Seal the perforations by pressing on them, so you have one large piece of dough.
Slice one-inch strips down the length of the dough on both sides. Leave the center of the dough for the filling, so only slice the strips
1/3 across the dough.
Spread the pizza sauce down the center of the dough. Top it with some of the cheese and then the pepperoni. Add the rest of the cheese and sprinkle the oregano over the top.
To make the braid start at one end. Fold one strip at an angle over the filling and pinch it where it meets the bottom dough to hold it in place.
Stretch the strip on the opposite side the same way, layering it over the other strip and the filling. Continue this process with the rest of the strips. When you are done, the filling should be covered.
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Bake the braid at 375°F for 15 to 25 minutes or until it’s golden brown. Let it cool for a few minutes before slicing and serving.
Recipe Tips
If we make this crescent roll pizza braid for dinner, we like to add a salad on the side or a healthy vegetable like roasted broccoli or asparagus.
You can use all kinds of pizza toppings you like. The important thing is not to overfill the dough. You should be able to cover the filling with the braid – otherwise, they could leak out while it bakes.
Other Filling Ideas
Here are other ideas you might like to try. Just remember not to overfill the dough with too many fillings.
- Sausage: Crumbled cooked Italian sausage, chopped green peppers, shredded provolone cheese, or mozzarella.
- Veggie: Cooked mushrooms, chopped peppers, sliced olives, and shredded cheese.
- BBQ Chicken: BBQ sauce, shredded cooked chicken, diced red onion, and shredded chicken.
- Chicken Alfredo: Alfredo sauce, shredded chicken, mozzarella cheese, chopped parsley.
- Bacon Cheddar Chicken Ranch: Crumbled cooked bacon, shredded cheddar, shredded chicken, and ranch.
Once you try this pizza braid recipe, it’s fun to switch up the filling to create new flavors. We love the pepperoni pizza braid the best – it’s always great. Enjoy!
More Pizza Alternatives You’ll Enjoy
Pizza Braid Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 8 oz package crescent dough
- 1 6 ounce package pepperoni
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
- ¼ cup pizza sauce
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
Instructions
- Preheat over to 375° F
- Remove crescent dough from package. Cover a large cookie sheet with parchment paper and spread out the dough. Using your fingers, pinch the roll perforations so the dough has no perforations. The center of the dough will be where you put the pizza ingredients. On either side of the center, you will cut about 1 inch strips 1/3 of the way across the dough. Do this on both sides.
- In the center of the dough put pizza sauce spread across the middle. Then add a small amount of cheese, place pepperoni on top of that (you won’t use the entire 6 ounces). Now add another thicker layer of cheese and finally sprinkle the oregano over the top of the cheese.
- Starting at one of the ends, fold one strip (at a slight angle) over the pizza ingredients and lightly pinch it on the other side. Then switch sides and fold the strip over the ingredients and the other strip you just folded. Continue folding strips over and alternating sides until all the strips have been folded and all pizza ingredients are covered.
- Place the cookie sheet in the oven. Cooking times will vary. Check every 10 minutes. You want the braid to be golden brown and all cheese melted. It will take between 15-25 minutes depending on your over. Remove and let cool for a few minutes. Slice into 2-inch-wide slices and serve.
Recipe Notes
This Pizza Braid is a fun way to present your favorite pizza! The dough is sliced into strips that are braided over the filling, it’s really simple to do.