Mozzarella & Tomato Pizza Pockets

There are many who love to make their own pizzas by buying a base and adding your own toppings. Well what if you could do just the same, only using your sandwich maker to make delicious "pizza" pockets.

Mozzarella & Tomato Pizza Pockets

All the flavours of a pizza in tasty hot pockets. This recipe uses 50/50 white / wholemeal bread as the "base" with a very simple tomato and cheese filling, but you can always add your favourite pizza "toppings" to make a variety of delicious snacks.   

What you will need for the perfect Mozzarella and Tomato Pizza Pockets

As always, my preference is for thick sliced bread for my toastie or grilled sandwich everytime. Thick sliced bread is a must as, in my opinion, the bread is the most important part of any sandwich. White sliced, or a 50/50 white/wholemeal combination always works well. For these toastie pockets I have chosen a thick sliced 50/50 to provide the perfect replacement for a pizza "base".

The cheese I have chosen for these toastie pockets is a grated Mozzarella. Mozzarella is the cheese of choice for many pizza toppings such as a basic Margherita, or even when there is a mix of cheeses present, Mozzarella is always there as one of the main choices. There are of course many different types of Mozzarella, and a fresh Mozzarella is very different from the shop bought packet type used here, but of course, you could use any type of cheese in these pockets and even vary the recipe by using a strong flavoured mature cheese or whatever you prefer.

 As I am always "unready" and also, I hate grating, I find it much easier to buy the cheese ready grated from my local supermarket. I always have a few bags of different kinds of cheeses in my fridge so I'm always ready for that craving for sandwich or snack. These are usually supplied in resealable bags so you can just use the amount you want and keep the rest for later (up to 5 days so no need for waste).

To replicate the pizza sauce you can of course use a jar of ready made sauce, but I prefer to make my own. This is great fun, as you can use whatever you want and tweek it to your own taste.

I use a mix of tomato puree, tomato ketchup, garlic puree and mixed herbs to give a strong tomato base flavour and add some sliced cherry tomatoes to the grated cheese to top off my mozzarella and tomato pizzas. 

Making the perfect Mozzarella and Tomato Pizza Pockets

Firstly, take the 4 slices of thick 50/50 bread and lightly spray one side of each slice with a 1 Cal oil. This will give your bread a golden "pizza base" flavour and texture when placed on the hot plates. I prefer to use a 1 Cal Extra Virgin Olive Oil spray as this will give a more authentic pizza flavour than using butter.  

Then, turn over the slices to start preparing the "pizza topping" on the dry side. First with about one tablespoon of tomato puree and a couple of teaspoons of tomato ketchup on each slice. 

Then add half a teaspoon of garlic puree to each slice and mix all together by spreading over the full area of each slice right up to the edge. 

Now sprinkle a pinch of mixed herbs over each slice, then carefully place the Mozzarella cheese on the 2 slices that will sit on the bottom hot plate, arranged to match the triangular sections of the plates so that a good seal (without too much leakage) can be formed. Then add a slice or two of cherry tomatoes to each stack of cheese. 

Finally close your sandwich by carefully putting the top slice in place.   

With your sandwich now assembled, once the appliance is up to temperature, carefully place the completed sandwich onto the bottom grill plate (taking great care as this is very hot and will sizzle noticeably upon contact). 

Now close the top plate slowly, being careful not to move the assembled sandwich, then lock the handle.  

Cook for approximately 5 minutes or until golden. 

Once your Mozzarella & Tomato Pizza Pockets are ready, switch off the appliance at the socket. NEVER lift your finished sandwich out with your fingers as the plates will still be extremely hot! Always use wood or plastic tools to loosen and lift away your sandwich, which usually comes away from the non-stick surface easily. Allow to cool slightly for a minute before cutting and serving.

The Recipe

Mozzarella and Tomato Pizza Pockets

EQUIPMENT

• 3-in-1 snack maker with sealed toastie plates

PREPARATION TIME : 5 minutes

COOKING TIME : 5 minutes (approx.)

SERVINGS : 2

INGREDIENTS

• 4 slices of thick 50/50 white/wholemeal bread
• 1 Cal Extra Virgin Olive Oil spray (1/2 tsp approx.)
• 1 tbsp of tomato puree
• 2 tsp of tomato ketchup
• 1/2 tsp of garlic puree
• 60g of grated Mozzarella cheese
• 2 cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp of mixed herbs

 For more information on weights, measures and simple conversions in both metric, imperial (and US) read ... DO SPOONS, MILLILITRES AND CUPS ACTUALLY MEASURE UP?

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS

1. Turn on the snack maker
2. While the appliance is heating up gather the remaining ingredients together
3. Spray one side of each slice with a 1 Cal oil
4. Turn the slices over (sprayed side down) and cover with 1 tbsp of tomato puree
5. Add 2 tsp of tomato ketchup and 1/2 tsp of garlic puree
6. Spread the ketchup and puree mix over all slices and sprinkle over this dried mixed herbs
7. Add the Mozzarella cheese shaped in stacks corresponding to the plate recesses
8. Put the slices of cherry tomatoes on top of the cheese
9. Cover with the top slice (sprayed side uppermost)
10. Carefully place the completed sandwich onto the grill plates
11. Close the top plate gently onto the sandwich and close handles and lock
12. Cook for approximately 5 minutes or until golden

Or you could try...

  Why not try a BBQ sauce (or even a tangy brown sauce) instead of tomato ketchup. This will give a tasty alternative to the purely tomato "pizza topping". 

Perfect with...

 The Mozzarella & Tomato Pizza Pockets are perfect on their own as a snack at any time of the day, or whenever the fancy takes you.

Or simply add some baby salad leaves and choice of dressing for a quick and tasty meal. 

How does your sandwich maker compare?

For most of the recipes shared here I use my trusty Tower Deep Fill 3-in-1 Sandwich Maker, so obviously you may need to adjust your ingredients slightly if you are using a different appliance. Having said that, most sandwich makers are very similar in design and size, and the amount of each filling is a guide only and you can increase or decrease, add or subtract, according to your personal taste.

Never be afraid to experiment, and remember you won't always get the perfect result first time, so if at first you don't succeed try, try and try again. It's great fun!

If you want to check out some of the alternative 3-in-1 machines available check out our guide...

More than just cheese toasties  -  The best reasonably priced 3-in-1 sandwich makers