Newman's Own Alfredo Pizza Pockets

Newman's Own Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce doesn't have to only be eaten with pasta. In this recipe, which I created to feature Newman's Own products as part of the Foodbuzz Tastemakers, I use the Alfredo sauce as part of a delicious filling for homemade pizza pockets.

I wanted to create a hearty, meaty pizza pocket, so I made my own Italian sausage-esque filling with ground turkey, garlic, and Italian blend herbs. Ground turkey appears in many of my recipes not just because it's healthier than ground beef, but also because it has a lighter taste that I feel pairs better with other flavors in recipes. With ground beef, I've found that it is often rather prominent and doesn't blend well.

After the turkey has cooked, tomatoes, pepperoni, and the Alfredo sauce are added. It's then simmered until the mixture cooks down, and removed from heat to cool.

In the recipe, I said to use a prepared pizza dough to speed the recipe along, though in reality I prepared a Quick and Easy Pizza Crust recipe I found from AllRecipes.com. It's not a recipe I normally use for pizzas. However, it's quick, taking just 30 minutes to rise, and a good recipe to have on hand when you don't want to wait more than an hour, or overnight for pizza dough.

Once the pizza pockets have all been shaped (or the sheet is filled), they are brushed with an egg glaze and immediately baked. I didn't let it rise again because it's not necessary.

The pizza pockets bake up until they're nice and golden, and the undersides have browned. They're very tasty and easy to eat. They're great to pack for lunches since all the sauce is contained on the inside, which means less mess! Who wouldn't want that?

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Newman's Own Alfredo Pizza Pockets
Recipe by Christina Provo

Individual pizza pockets make it easy to take a slice of pizza to go.

Top Five: Pizza dough, ground turkey, pepperoni, Newman's Own Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce, tomatoes
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Servings: 6

Ingredients:

26 ounces prepared pizza dough, or your favorite recipe
1 pound raw ground turkey
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons salt free Italian herb seasoning
½ teaspoon coarse salt
pinch of red pepper flakes
1 14 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained, reserving 1/4 cup liquid
½ teaspoon granulated sugar
4 ounces pepperoni slices, quartered
¾ cup Newman's Own Roasted Garlic Alfredo Sauce
½ cup plus 3 tablespoons shredded Italian blend cheese
1 large egg, beaten

Directions:

1. Divide pizza dough into 13 pieces. Roll into balls onto a floured surface and cover until ready to use.


2. In a large skillet over medium heat, cook turkey with garlic, Italian seasonings, salt, and pepper flakes until no longer pink, about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and reserved liquid. Turn up heat and cook until liquid is just about completely reduced. Stir in sugar and pepperoni slices, then Newman's Own Garlic Alfredo Sauce. Remove to a bowl and let cool.


3. Preheat oven to 425°F. Prepare two baking sheets by greasing lightly and sprinkling with cornmeal. Working on a lightly floured surface, take a round of dough and pat it into a 3 – ½ to 4-inch circle. Place ¼ cup turkey filling onto the dough circle, about half an inch from the bottom and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon Italian blend cheese. Fold top half up and over and press together. Fold up the bottom of the dough circle over the top, crimping to adhere the dough together. Carefully place on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.


4. When one sheet is full, brush tops of pockets with beaten egg. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven; transfer to wire rack. Let cool slightly; serve.