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Refrigerated dough is one of those glorious shortcuts that turns “I have nothing to make” into “Look what I made!” in minutes. Whether it’s crescent rolls, biscuits, pizza dough, or puff pastry, this excellent supermarket staple can become pull-apart breads, tarts, appetizers, or more, all without dragging out a stand mixer, kneading, or proofing yeast.
These recipes show how a few smart hacks and pantry ingredients can transform refrigerated dough into something that tastes like you spent hours making it from scratch.
Whether you head in a sweet or a savory direction, it is hard to think of a more interesting springboard packaged ingredient that can take you so far. These refrigerated dough recipes are particularly lifesaving during the holidays, when you want warm breads, lots of pies, flaky treats, and don’t have a lot of extra time. Here are some of the recipes I’ve come up with for this workhorse of a shortcut ingredient.
Pizza Quattro Stagionni literally means four seasons pizza. It is typically divided into quadrants, with the toppings on each quarter representing each of the four seasons. The artichokes represent spring, the peppers summer, mushrooms for fall, and the olives and prosciutto speak to winter. Refrigerated pizza dough makes it easy.
Studded with ham, cheese, mushrooms, and other veggies, and encased in a flaky store-bought pie crust. Make ahead, reheats like a dream, portable, and comforting.
Hello, beautiful refrigerated pizza dough. A flavorful black bean puree takes the place of the tomato sauce, then you have layers of ground meat with Mexican seasonings, a blend of cheeses, and scallions, tomatoes, and sliced black olives bring even more flavor and color. The whole thing is finished with a drizzle of creamy avocado crema.
A sheet of pre-made puff pastry plus a handful of just-ripe pears turns into this. You’ll feel extremely pleased with yourself when you flip that pan over, and this is what pops out.
Creamy, sweet, and fluffy, this Italian-style cheesecake takes 10 minutes to pull together (thank you store-bought crust!). Ricotta pie is a simple, perfect ending to a holiday meal!
Katie Workman is a cook, a writer, a mother of two, an activist in hunger issues, and an enthusiastic advocate for family meals, which is the inspiration behind her two beloved cookbooks, Dinner Solved! and The Mom 100 Cookbook.
