I created this recipe for “Pizza Cupcakes” a few years ago and I thought it was time for an updated post. They are really pizza muffins, flavored with mozzarella cheese, mini pepperoni and Italian seasoning. However, Mr. K called them pizza cupcakes the first time he saw them and the name stuck. I actually briefly considered letting Mr. K name all my recipes, but then I thought better of it. 
Speaking of things Mr. K has done, this weekend he (we) installed a new sink in the kitchen. It ended up being a much bigger ordeal than it should have been. Looking back, we could have accomplished it in about an hour. But because someone (him) did not read the instructions properly and kept ignoring vital parts provided in the box, it took quite a few tries and most of the afternoon for us to get it installed. I’ll detail all the missteps in another post. I am flabbergasted though, by why he would think that certain parts that came with the sink “weren’t necessary” and he just didn’t put them on, only to discover that they were essential. Oh well, hopefully it’s a lesson learned. 
In case you’re wondering, these cupcake liners I’m using are parchment cupcake liners* by Paper Chef. I’m totally in love. Muffins, cupcakes, come right off. They don’t stick at all! I’ve totally stopped using regular cupcake liners. 
These cupcakes are a lot of fun. They’re great for kids, a party, or maybe just for yourself because you’ve had one of those days and you need to treat yourself. If you like this recipe you might like my Pizza Bites recipe, too!
Here’s a video I made recently while remaking these for an event!
Pizza (Muffin) Cupcakes
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp white sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1 large or extra large egg
- 1/3 cup plus 2 tbsp fat free milk note, if you use whole milk these come out a little dry
- 1/2 cup mini pepperonis
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- Additional 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese and 1/3 cup of mini pepperonis for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a cupcake pan with 8 cupcake liners.
- Sift together flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Add in vegetable oil, egg and milk into flour mixture and stir until batter is smooth. It will be quite sticky and thick. Stir in cheese, Italian seasoning and pepperoni. Fill muffin cups about 2/3 full.
- Bake for about 15-18 minutes until muffins turn out golden and a knife inserted comes out clean. Lower oven to 350°F. Cover tops of muffins with more cheese and about 6 slices of mini pepperoni and bake for 4-5 minutes at 350°F until cheese is melted. Sprinkle some additional Italian seasoning on top if desired. Serve while warm. You can serve with a side of marinara sauce for dipping.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a professional nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
Was looking for something different to make for a work function. Found this and decided to test them today. they were fantastic! Guess my muffin pan was smaller because I go 12 out of the recipe. Before baking them the second time I added pasta sauce before putting the mozzerella and pepperoni top. Turn out nicely. Now I don’t have to bring the sauce on the side.
Thank you so much for posting.
I’m so glad they worked out well for you!
I know you recommend serving these “warm”, but if I had to transport these to an event and plate them in advance before guests arrive, will they still be good at room temperature, up to a couple of hours, like regular muffins would?
Also, what about tweaking the recipe by making pizza-cornbread muffins? What do you think?
I don’t recommend serving them at room temp. It would be similar to eating pizza at room temp– the cheese will no longer be melty and the grease from the pepperoni may congeal.
Must have to try
when I looked at the recipe it said it makes/serves 12 , but when I made the “cupcakes” the recipe only made 8 cupcakes. But the recipe is still delicious I wanted to eat them all.
Sorry about that. The recipe does make 8, not 12.
Can they be frozen before baking or frozen half baked or frozen baked for later use?
I think you can do either freeze and bake later or bake and then freeze and reheat later.
can I just use a box of baking mix instead of the
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
and just follow the rest of the recipe?
do you mean like a boxed cake mix? because that won’t work. cake mix is quite sweet and these muffins are not meant to be sweet
I think anymonus means something like Bisquick or Jiffy Mix. That might work, but I think you’d still need to add sugar and probably adjust the amount of oil since these mixes do not have any sugar but do have some sort of fat.
Hi! Those look delicious and I can’t wait to make a batch. Could you please let me know the actual ingredients in “Italian seasoning”? I can find nothing of the sort but fresh oreganos and other herbs and spices are easy enough to find, so it would be easier to know what the actual seasoning is. Thank you!
Hi Rita- In the US, Italian seasoning is usually located with other dry herbs at the grocery store. There are recipes online for you to make your own blend, like this one: https://www.food.com/recipe/italian-seasoning-82770