Pillsbury Refrigerated Pizza Crust: Satisfying and Cost Effective

I'm always looking for simpler ways to make foods for myself and my boyfriend. Pizza is one of our favorite foods, but sometimes it's not in our budget to get delivery. Instead, I found a suitable alternative to pizza crust that doesn't involve making your own dough. It's Pillsbury's refrigerated pizza crust!

There are so many different recipes you can make with the Pillsbury pizza crust, including pizza, calzones and appetizers. I like the fact that there is no preparation involved in making this crust, all you have to do is pop open the can, and roll the dough out onto your baking sheet or pizza pan. Once you roll the dough out, the possibilities are endless!

Before making anything with the dough, be sure it's cold. Cold dough is much easier to work with than room temperature dough. Dough that has been sitting out on the counter can be sticky and too difficult to work with. You're supposed to refrigerate it anyway! Pillsbury doesn't recommend freezing the unbaked dough in the can, but you can freeze baked dough, up to a month. Once the can has been opened, you should use the dough immediately. If you want to use some of the dough now and some later, you can wrap it in plastic wrap for a maximum of 2 hours and store it in the fridge. After those 2 hours, the dough won't be any good.

One of my favorite recipes with this crust is Buffalo Chicken Pizza. Before assembling any pizza, I would recommend baking the crust by itself for a few minutes, in a 425 degree oven, just enough to allow the top of the crust to get lightly browned. Once the crust has been pre-baked, add the toppings. For my Buffalo Chicken Pizza, I add some ranch dressing for the sauce, shredded chicken coated in hot sauce, then a mix of mozzarella and cheddar cheese. Next, I bake it for about 10-15 minutes until the outer edges of the crust are browned, and the cheese is melted on top.

One thing I don't like about the crust is lack of flavor. It's very plain compared to homemade crusts and delivery crusts. One thing you may want to do is add your own seasonings to the top of the crust before baking it, such as garlic powder and oregano, to add some flavor. The pizza crust itself can be thick if you don't roll it out enough. I think this crust is more than enough for a large 8 cut pizza, and could probably stretch out to an extra large 12 cut pizza.

The Pillsbury pizza crust is versatile; you don't have to make just pizza with it. Although I have yet to try calzones, stromboli and pepperoni rolls with it, I'm sure those would turn out great too. I've read so many recipes for appetizers that call for the Pillsbury pizza crust; you make so much with just 1 can of dough!

Pillsbury refrigerated pizza dough is not expensive at all. The average price is about $2 to $3 per can. Check your Sunday paper for coupons, there are always coupons for Pillsbury Italian breads, which includes the pizza crust. You don't have to spend $12 on delivery pizza, when you can make your own pizza at home for much less. Try this product out; you won't be disappointed.