These burger or sandwich pockets, are great to make and then freeze, and with summer break coming up it's a great time to stock your freezer with quick and easy food that the kiddos can grab and heat up on their own.
These are also great for appetizers, just make each pocket smaller so it can be eaten in a bite or two!
When I make these I wrap each one individually in foil, then label them and write down the time to microwave them on the foil, then put them all together in a big plastic bag in the freezer.
I don't have an air fryer (yet!) but I think these would probably re-heat wonderfully in one, if anyone tries it please let me know so I can add the instruction to the post, and maybe send you a little gift!
I use my pizza dough recipe for these, but you can use refrigerated pizza dough from the store to make it easier.
I'm going to give you three filling recipes that I like, but you can mix things up with different meats, chesses, sauces, etc. One tip, you don't want your filling to be too watery as it can make in inside a bit soggy, so if you are using a lot of vegetables make sure to drain the liquid before adding any sauces or final seasonings.
I'm hoping to test some sweet fillings soon and will let you know how they turn out.
All recipes, including the pizza dough, can be cut in half.
Burger and Sandwich Pockets
Makes 12 or more depending on size
For all pocket recipes you'll need:
1 batch of my easy
pizza dough (plan ahead as it takes at least 1 hour to rise)
OR refrigerated pizza dough, enough for two pizzas (about 14-16 Ounces)
Egg Wash Mixture: 2-3 Egg Yolks with 2-3 Tablespoons Cold Water whisked together
Bacon Cheeseburger:
Ingredients:
2 Pounds Ground Beef
12 Slices Uncooked Bacon
2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
2 teaspoon Onion Powder
1 teaspoon Black Pepper
1 teaspoon Salt
4 teaspoons Worcestershire
16 Ounces Cheddar Cheese (Shredded)
4 Tablespoons Dijon Mustard (Or your favorite mustard)
Preparation:
Chop bacon into small pieces, mix together uncooked meats, garlic, onion, pepper, salt, and worcestershire sauce, cook until meat is cooked through, remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
Mix in shredded cheese, mustard, and season to taste.
Buffalo Chicken:
Ingredients:
2 Pounds Chicken Breast (Cooked and Shredded)
16 Ounces Cheddar Cheese (Shredded)
8 Ounces Crumbled Blue Cheese
4-5 Stalks Celery (Finely Chopped)
Preparation:
Once shredded chicken has cooled to room temperature mix all ingredients together, add additional seasonings if needed.
Serve with Ranch or Blue Cheese Dip and Carrot Sticks
Beef French Dip:
Ingredients:
16 Ounces Thinly Sliced Ribeye, or Shaved Roast Beef
2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon Black Pepper
1 teaspoon Salt
1 Medium Yellow Onion (Sliced)
2 Green Peppers (Sliced)
12 Ounces Cheddar (Shredded)
12 Ounces Monterey Jack (Shredded)
Preparation:
Season meat and set aside.
In a large pan sauté onions and peppers until soft and slightly browned, remove from pan into a large bowl, Add meat to pan and cook just until it's cooked through, remove and give it a quick rough chop so meat is in bite size pieces, add to onions and peppers and let cool until room temperature.
Mix in cheeses, and add any additional spices if needed.
Serve with or horseradish sauce or beef au jus (I always have a bottle of
Johnny's Au Jus in the fridge and an extra in the pantry!).
For all pockets:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees, prepare
baking sheets with
silicone mats or parchment paper. (You can also use a cast iron pan like pictured above, however this causes small holes where they touch and isn't good if you'll be freezing them.)
Divide pizza dough into 12 or more balls depending on the size you want the pockets to be. (12 will make large pockets, good for a filling dinner with a salad, if you are doing appetizers I'd cut it into 36 balls. I usually do a few big for dinner that night, then some smaller to freeze for lunches. Keep dough balls covered with plastic wrap so they don't dry out.
Taking one ball at a time roll it out until it is a thin round circle, add filling of your choice to the center covering about 2/3 of the dough (I use my cookie scoops for the filling,
this set has three sizes and works great for all sizes of pockets.)
After filling pull up each side of pocket and have them meet in the center above the filling and pinch so that it is sealed with no holes, flip over so seam is down on prepared baking sheet, leave at least an inch between each pocket. (I promise I'll add pictures or a video of this soon!)
Using a pastry brush gently brush egg wash onto the top of each pocket, I like to sprinkle them with Everything Bagel Seasoning, Sesame Seeds, or Dried Minced Garlic.
Bake for about 20 minutes until tops are golden brown. (If you are making appetizer sized pockets check them at about 12 minutes, tops should be golden and bottom slightly browned around the edges.)
Remove from oven and serve with dipping sauces. If freezing cool completely on a cooling rack before wrapping in foil to freeze.
Reheating Instructions: From frozen, microwave 2 minutes, then wrap in a moist paper towel and microwave another 2 minutes. When I pack these in lunches I put them in the fridge the night before, then you can just wrap it in a moist paper towel and microwave about two minutes.
Please let me know if you have any questions, or what fun fillings you come up with!
Follow Us on Social Media:
