Lower Fat Pepperoni Pizza Crescent Roll Ups

My mom has been treating us to wonderful pepperoni pizza crescent roll ups for a while now, and they get devoured faster than you can say “pizza!”  Since I have been dieting to lose some weight before my oldest son’s wedding this summer, I have been counting every calorie.  I’ve tried several different “diets,” and the only thing that I seem to stick with, is counting my calories.  That way I can still eat the foods I love, without giving up carbs or some other whole food group.  However, I do try to lower the calories and sometimes fat, by making substitutions in my recipes.

I’ve lost 11 pounds since the beginning of the year, but still have a ways to go.  I keep telling myself “slow and steady wins the race,” and I’m taking the time to form new habits along the way.  I’ve been using an app to calculate the calories for my dinner recipes, and then a food scale to weigh my portions.  It sounds tedious, but it really hasn’t been!  My exercise consists of basketball in the afternoons with my 10 year old son.  😛

This recipe came from my mom at Growing in Grace, but I changed the key ingredients to lower fat products, and used much less butter on the tops, and you know what…they were still scrumptious!

Here is what you need:
5 ounce package reduced fat turkey pepperoni
8 ounce tube reduced fat crescent rolls
4 “light” mozzarella cheese sticks
1 Tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Optional:  Parmesan cheese to sprinkle on tops
Optional:  Marinara sauce for dipping

Unroll your crescent rolls on a lightly greased baking sheet.
Lay 5 or 6 pieces of pepperoni at the wide end, and then top the pepperoni with half of a cheese stick.

Starting at the widest side with all the toppings, roll the crescent roll as you tuck in the ingredients.  Make sure the tail of the crescent is pushed into the dough so it doesn’t come unrolled while it’s baking.
Now melt your butter, and then add the Italian seasoning and garlic powder to the butter, and stir.  Using a pastry brush, brush the tops of the rolls with the mixture.  If you like, sprinkle on some Parmesan cheese as well.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for around 9 minutes.  I also broiled the tops for a few seconds to get mine a pretty golden color.  I estimated each one to have around 160 calories.  That didn’t include marinara sauce for dipping.

These are so quick and delicious, and perfect for when you’re in the mood for pizza, but don’t have a lot of time to make it!

Here are some other delicious pizza related recipes you might like to try out!  🙂

Easy Peasy Pizza Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Our family’s Favorite Pizza Dough and Stromboli Recipe

Simple but yummy Pizza Bread Salad

Wonderful Taco Pizza