A lot of my family’s favorite recipes are born out of necessity, when I’m simply forced to pull something together from whatever I can scavenge in the fridge and pantry when groceries are running low. And many of the very best recipes are most simple ones! I made homemade pizzas for my kids last week so I had half a jar of sauce left and some turkey pepperoni in my fridge. I wasn’t in the mood to do pizza all over again, but I did have a good loaf of bread in the pantry so I came up with these Cheesy Grilled Pizza Sandwiches. It’s like a little pizza, smashed between two pieces of buttery garlic bread. Paired along side a simple green salad, this is a great (and quick) weeknight meal that both kiddos and grown ups will love. I think these would even be great on baguette slices as a party appetizer too!
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
- Rustic style sandwich bread – Start with a good loaf of rustic style bread. The bakery section of the grocery store should have plenty of options, but it’s important for a sandwich like this, you don’t whip out something like Wonder Bread. Get something with a little more oomph that will hold up to the fillings and grilling.
- Butter – Or olive oil.
- Pizza sauce – Store bought or make your own Pizza Sauce.
- Garlic bread seasoning – Store bought, or make your own Garlic Bread Seasoning.
- Pepperoni – Turkey pepperoni works well here, too.
- Mozzarella cheese – I like using a good quality whole-milk mozzarella, grated fresh at home, for maximum melty cheese goodness.
How to Make Cheesy Grilled Pizza Sandwiches
- You’ll start by buttering or oiling one side of your bread slices. Then sprinkle on some garlic bread seasoning.
- Then flip those over and spread on some pizza sauce. I’m pretty generous with the sauce because it starts to soak into the bread. I also like my pizza practically oozing with sauce, so just put on as much as you like.
- Add some freshly grated or sliced mozzarella and pepperoni slices, and top with another slice of saucy bread.
- Cook in a skillet or panini press until the outside is golden and crispy and the cheese is gooey and melted. Enjoy immediately!
Storing and Other Tips
- These sandwiches are best eaten freshly made!
- If you need to make a bunch of these at once, you can cook them on an electric griddle or under the broiler in the oven.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure! I would just recommend sautéing any veggies first before adding them to the sandwich. Mushrooms, peppers, Canadian bacon, pineapple, sausage, etc. would all be great.
These are best made fresh! To ease the prep, you can definitely make garlic bread seasoning ahead of time and grate or slice your cheese so it’s all ready to go.
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Cheesy Grilled Pizza Sandwich
Ingredients
- Rustic style sandwich bread
- Butter or olive oil
- Pizza sauce
- Garlic bread seasoning
- Pepperoni or turkey pepperoni
- Mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Lightly butter one side of each slice of bread, or brush lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle garlic bread seasoning on each slice and gently pat on with clean hands.
- Turn slices of bread over. Spread pizza sauce on each slice and sprinkle with cheese. Place pepperoni slices on one of the sandwich halves and then place the two pieces of bread together.
- Grill on a panini press or hot skillet, or place under a broiler in the oven, flipping once, until both sides of bread are toasted and golden brown and cheese is melted.
- Cool for 3-5 minutes before slicing in half and serve.
Notes
- These sandwiches are best eaten freshly made!
- If you need to make a bunch of these at once, you can cook them on an electric griddle or under the broiler in the oven.
Questions & Reviews
This looks like our kids “style” they would love this!!!
It looks SO good! Great idea!
This looks good, and just the style of my uber-picky family. Thanks for sharing!
Sara, the bread alone makes my mouth water! My kids would love this for lunch! love your blog!
These are great! I make something similar for an easy weekday lunch for my kids, minus the pepperoni. Basically just a grilled cheese sandwich with marinara sauce and mozzarella or provolone instead of American cheese. Delicious and easy!
I did something similar the other week after I made pizza and have leftover sauce and pepperoni, but didn’t want to make pizza again…except I made pizza rice! I just added some sauce, cheese, pepperoni, and olives to rice, and it was delicious!
Holy goodness. You so totally hit this one out of the park. I’m going to be a rock star at my house this week for sure. Thanks!
These look Yummy and Fun 🙂 I’m putting this on our menu for this week, I think it will be a hit with our 6 and 9 year old kiddos. Thanks for sharing so many great recipes, it is awesome to have a little help in the kitchen 🙂
Oh my goodness! If I were into eating midnight snacks this would be it! My husband (who is sitting here drooling over this with me)and I will be eating some of these very soon. Thank you for another amazing recipe.
This looks amazing! Definitely will be making these this week for dinner. 🙂
We love Grilled Pizza Sandwiches! The best is adding Lawry’s Garlic Salt on the outside.