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These puff pastry pizza pockets are completely customizable and make for a crispy, buttery, cheesy family meal!

Who says pizza is only best served by the slice? These pizza pockets are a less messy way for little ones to enjoy pizza flavors in a compact form. Fill them with your favorite pizza toppings for a completely customizable meal!

What You’ll Need

Here is what you’ll need to make these puff pastry pizza pockets:

• Puff Pastry: The main base and dough for these hot pockets.
• Pizza Sauce/Marinara Sauce: You can definitely make your own pizza sauce, but I love the quality and taste of the Raos brand pizza sauce or marinara sauce.
• Mozzarella Cheese: I used whole milk mozzarella cheese for these pockets.
• Spinach: To incorporate some added veggies!
• Pepperoni: For that classic pepperoni pizza flavor! This can definitely be omitted or replaced with toppings of choice.
• Butter: Used to brush on top of the pockets.
• Garlic Powder: Mixed with the butter to form a garlic butter topping.

Step By Step Instructions

1. Unroll a sheet of puff pastry dough on a lightly floured surface.
2. Use a pizza slicer or knife to slice the dough into 12 equal-sized rectangles. Most puff pastries come folded into 3 rectangles, so I usually use those as a guide for 3 rectangles down and 4 rectangles across. If you would like to make larger-sized pockets, you can slice the puff pastry sheet into 6 rectangles.
3. Place 6 of the 12 small rectangles onto a parchment paper-lined pan. Pour about 1 tablespoon of sauce into the center of each rectangle.
4. Sprinkle a few leaves of chopped spinach on top of the sauce on each rectangle.
5. Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon of cheese on top of the spinach. Top with a few slices of pepperoni and more cheese.
6. Place the remaining 6 puff pastry rectangles on top of the toppings and pinch down around the perimeter of each pocket. Use a fork to press and seal the edges.
7. Melt the butter in a bowl and stir in the garlic powder until it is well combined. Brush the garlic butter mixture on top of each pocket.
8. Bake at 400 degrees F for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown.

Ingredient Substitutions

• Puff pastry: The puff pastry may be replaced with pizza dough or crescent dough.
• Butter: The butter mixture may be replaced with an egg for an egg wash.
• Toppings: I used pepperoni and spinach for these pizza pockets, but feel free to use any toppings of choice or keep them plain for easy cheesy pizza pockets!

Storage Instructions

Once cooled, store the pizza pockets in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To freeze, store in a freezer-safe Ziploc bag or container for up to 1 month. To reheat, bake at 350 degrees F for a few minutes until warmed. You may also microwave them, but keep in mind that the puff pastry may become soggy.

Recipe Notes

• Do not overfill the puff pastry pockets with cheese and toppings as they will be difficult to close. If some of the fillings start to fall out, try to tuck them back in or remove some of the fillings.
• Cutting the puff pastry sheet into 12 rectangles makes 6 small-sized pockets. Use 2 full puff pastry sheets and double the other ingredients to make 12 small-sized pockets.
• Make sure that your pastry dough is thawed, but not too soft. If it is too soft, it will be difficult to work with.
• You can make your own pizza sauce, but I personally love the jarred Raos brand pizza sauce. It has clean ingredients and tastes great but any brand can be used!

Here are some other lunch recipes you may like!

• Easy Mini Pizzas
• Cheesy Carrot Bites
• Pizza Waffles