Wing Night!

I guess I told you all a little bit about this yesterday, but I will give you a little bit more detail.

Usually about once a month, our friend Eric hosts a wing night. We have been doing this for several years now and it never gets old. Eric is from Buffalo, New York, which is why I think he loves Buffalo wings so much. Oh wait, John and I are from Utah and we love Buffalo wings just as much… so,  I guess scratch that thought ;)

When we have wing night, Eric busts out his turkey fryer and makes gobs and gobs of Buffalo wings, Buffalo chicken fingers, and tater tots. Having a wing night yesterday was perfect because it was “International Hot and Spicy Food” day - just a random fact I stumbled upon while reading a food blog yesterday. Anyway, here is a picture of the wings:

And here is a picture of John getting excited to eat the wings (what a goof):

And here is a picture of Eric, the Wing Master:

For our contribution to wing night, we made up some mini pizza pockets because what goes together better than pizza and wings?

Finished Product

Making the pockets

A closer view

Crimped Edges

I pre-made the pockets, but if you are doing this for dinner, it is fun to get everyone involved and making their own pizza pocket. I made these at work one day and my co-workers took this idea home to do with their kids. They loved it - see, I can be kid friendly :)

Ingredients

• Pre-made pizza dough - I use the Pillsbury stuff in the can - each can makes 2 large pockets or 4 small pockets
• Your favorite toppings diced small (shredded Italian or pizza cheese, pepperoni, Canadian bacon, mushrooms, green peppers, onion, olives, chicken, bacon, spinach, zucchini, etc. etc. etc.)
• Italian seasoning
• Red pepper flakes (optional)
• Cooking spray
• Marina, Alfredo, or Ranch for dipping (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and spray a cooking sheet with cooking spray. Roll out your dough on a floured surface. Cut your dough in half or fourths - depending upon how big you want your pockets. Sprinkle dough with a little bit of Italian seasoning and red pepper flake. Top the bottom half with cheese, then your favorite toppings, then cheese again (I love cheese). Fold top half over bottom half and crimp to seal. Spray top with cooking spray and sprinkle a little bit more Italian seasoning and red pepper flake. Bake for 17-20 minutes. Serve with your favorite sauce.

A couple of things to note: You could put your sauce inside. I am not a big fan of sauce on pizza, so I do not do that. I also think it makes the crust a little bit soggy. If you have multiple people making pockets, place something on the top to differentiate whose is whose. I filled these with cheese, mini pepperoni, Canadian bacon, green pepper, onion, and of course, more cheese. Mini pepperoni are about the cutest things ever. I think I ate more than I put on the pizza pockets themselves :)

Well, that is wing night in a nutshell. It is just a great way to hang out, eat fried food, and have some fun. I am sure glad we met Eric from buffalo, so we can participate in the fun!