This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Ooey gooey melty Pesto Cheese Bombs with marinara sauce are super easy to make and will please any crowd. Make this appetizer for your next game day party!
I love me some bread and melted cheese. In fact, I think cheesy bread deserves its own food group, much like bacon does. Refrigerated biscuit dough is one of those staples everyone should have in their refrigerator. If not to use it for its intended use, biscuits that is, that dough should always be available for that emergency batch of Monkey Bread with biscuits that everyone loves to wake up to.
These cheese bombs are a thing of beauty. First of all, it doesn’t get much easier than cutting up some string cheese, and if you’re a mom you most certainly already have cheese sticks in your refrigerator. To make the pull apart, all you need to do is wrap some dough around the cheese. BOOM. Done. But wait. You know they could be oh so much better with a little something extra.
Enter the pesto. Don’t fret – you can totally buy a tub of store bought pesto. Not a problem. Me? I just happen to have some of my homemade macadamia gouda pesto (aka highly addictive green crack) in the refrigerator that was just begging to be used in an application like this.
I decided to use the springform pan with a dish in the middle perfectly sized for some warm marinara. I greased the sides so the dough wouldn’t stick and then lined the bottom with parchment. Be sure to place a piece of foil on the rack below because this will ooze in the naughtiest of ways during the cooking process.
Here’s a little before and after action to show you how much they expand during the cooking process.
The result? A super easy to make gooey appetizer that everyone will love. Not sure how long to cook it? The sign they they are perfectly done is when the cheese starts to ooze out. Oh yeah.
Pretty good use of the left over pesto, wouldn’t you say? Enjoy!!!
Pin this now to save it for later
Pin ItPesto Cheese Bombs
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 ounces biscuit dough (the kind from the tube)
- 4 mozzarella string cheese sticks
- 1/2 cup pesto
- butter for greasing
- 1 cup marinara sauce warmed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place a ramekin or ceramic bowl in the center of a springform pan and grease the inside edges of the pan as well as the outside of the bowl to prevent sticking.
- Split each biscuit into two by dividing the layers, totaling 16 rounds of dough. Cut each of the cheese sticks into quarters. Wrap each chunk of cheese in the biscuit dough and seal edges to create a ball.
- Add pesto to a small bowl and roll each ball of dough in the pesto to coat. Add to the pan in a ring shape and cover with any remaining pesto. Bake with a layer of foil under the pan to catch any grease that might leak out for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown and some melted cheese is visible.
- Add warmed marinara to the center dish for dipping. Serve hot.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Do you use regular Grands biscuits or the Flaky Layers?
either works
If you make ahead, what are the directions for reheating? These look great! I can’t wait to try them!
I would wrap in foil to prevent too much browning and heat in oven. Maybe 300F for 15min?
I made this with a slightly different twist, because I’m not a fan of canned biscuits. I used frozen yeast roll dough, the kind that comes in little balls. I let it thaw enough that I could cut each ball of dough in half before rolling it around the piece of cheese. Then followed the recipe as stated, except that I had to let them rise before cooking. Yum, yum, yum!!!
Sounds delish! Krissy
Do I need to do it with frozen cheese sticks?
Nope.
Stote boight string cheese does not melt. Very disappointed. Poster apparently did not use packaged string cheese in the video.
I did. I used Trader Joe’s string cheese. Not lowfat. Krissy
This looks great! Should I use regular biscuit dough, or “grands” in the bigger can?
Use Grands, and then split the biscuit into layers.
I’m planning on making these for a party at my house along with a couple of other appetizers. Do you think I can prepare it the night before and bake it the next day?
Yep!
Can you use homemade biscuit dough instead of the packaged kind? (I live where can’t get packaged). Would love to try this!
absolutely! -Krissy
Any suggestions for a good from scratch biscuit dough?
Of course! https://selfproclaimedfoodie.com/flaky-buttermilk-biscuits/
Can this be made in any other kind of pan besides springform? I’ve never had a need for a springform pan, and as great as these bombs look, it’s hard to justify the purchase (and storage) of one for this lone recipe. Thanks!
Any pan should work, you’ll just have to lift them out. -Krissy
Hi Krissy, what was the size of the pan that you used for this recipe? I was thinking about making these for a party but I don’t know much about cooking.
Hi Lea, for these I used a 10 inch springform pan (like you would for a cheesecake) but you can use any baking dish or baking sheet. You don’t need anything special!
Can you use other cheeses?
You bet! Anything that melts nice will work.
These are delicious. But, I found, that baking them at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes, they were still pretty doughy. My feeling, though I haven’t tried it yet, would be to bake them at 450, like you would with the biscuits. That way you get the better rise, crunch on the outside and fluffy on the inside.
I was planning on making this tonight for a family get together but was wondering one thing– do the cheese bombs travel well once they’ve been cooked? I’m really eager to try it but it’ll probably have to endure an hour car ride before getting devoured.
Hi Megan, They’ll travel just fine! I would under cook them a bit and then finish them off in the oven when you get there. Thanks, krissy