10 Delicious Things You Can Make With Crescent Rolls

In 1965, the Pillsbury Doughboy introduced Americans to an all-new way to enjoy carbs when he jumped out of a can of something that no one in the U.S. had put in their shopping carts before, let alone their mouths: pre-made crescent roll dough. Flaky, buttery, and downright delicious, in the years since these canned delights entered the scene almost every American who has had to feed themselves or others has laid out this dough on a baking sheet, rolled each serving up, and cooked it until golden brown. 

But now, decades after the invention of canned crescent rolls, much like the Pillsbury Doughboy, we at Mashed are jumping out of the proverbial can to tell you your crescent roll dough has some serious culinary power. And we're not talking about simply filling your rolls with jam, popping them in the oven, and calling them pastries. With crescent rolls, you can make tantalizing desserts, filling sides, and seriously flavorful entrees. Here are ten crescent roll recipes that will make you think "Yes we (crescent roll) can."

There is just something about pot pies that warms the soul. But you don't have to be Martha Stewart to make a homemade pie that tastes like a slice of savory heaven. You just need a slow cooker, cream of mushroom soup, chicken, potatoes, veggies, seasoning, and, of course, crescent rolls.

First, you should prep your pie's filling by combining all of the ingredients and allowing them to slow-cook for 3 to 6 hours (good things come to those who wait). Then, pile on the crescent dough and pop that pie into the oven. The pastry dough will serve as your pot pie's flaky, buttery crust.

Recipe: Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Pot Pie

On All Hallows Eve, if you struggle to get your kids to eat anything that isn't chocolate coated (or you're just looking for food ideas for your adults-only Halloween rager) these Mummy Hot Dogs are here to save the day. Best of all, even the most artistically challenged can pull off this Halloween-themed treat.

To turn your franks into mummies, you only need to cut your crescent roll dough into misshapen, ugly strips. Then, place them mummy-style across your dogs until your franks remind you of King Tut and pop them in the air fryer or oven. Once they're cooked, give them some eyes. We recommend adding two dots of mustard to each beef mummy, but you can use any condiment of your choice to get your entree monster mash ready.

Recipe: Halloween Mummy Hot Dogs

Crescent roll cheesecake is as delightfully creamy and tart as the real, crescent roll-less deal. However, unlike when making your usual cheesecake, you won't have to do any work crumbling cookies for the bottom crust.

For this recipe, you'll sandwich heaps of smooth sugar and vanilla-infused cream cheese between two layers of crescent roll dough. This will give your treat an irresistibly flaky top and bottom. Once you've baked your cheesecake in the oven, you can then customize it with whatever topping pleases your tastebuds — canned cherries, cinnamon sugar, you name it.

Recipe: Crescent Roll Cheesecake

Most hamburger casseroles combine beef, cheese, ketchup, and mustard into a warm and dippable dish. But while these takes on this recipe have the cheese, the beef, and the condiments covered, they are missing one important hamburger detail: the bun. But crescent roll dough can remedy that.

After browning your meat and mixing this casserole's filling ingredients together, top it off with sesame seed-garnished pastry dough. Once it comes out of the oven you can up the hamburger ante even more by serving it with pickles and your choice of condiments.

Recipe: Hamburger Casserole

S'mores. Traditionally, these are ooey gooey, chocolatey, and crunchy treats. But if you swatch out the crisp graham crackers for crescent roll dough you'll be met with a pillowy take on this campfire favorite. We present to you air fryer s'mores.

Here's what you do: Turn on YouTube for some bonfire ambiance, sprinkle your pastry dough triangles with graham cracker crumbs, top them with chocolate bar pieces and mini marshmallows, roll them up, and toss them in the air fryer. Once your s'mores are cooked, you can finish them off with a bit of melted chocolate for flavor and some extra graham cracker crumbs for garnish before serving them to your indoor campers.

Recipe: Air Fryer S'mores

Imagine, if you will, the delicious taste of a sweet potato casserole. Now picture that same flavor inside a bite-sized, pillowy shell. How can you not be sold on the mere idea of sweet potato crescent rolls?

To make this recipe, you should start off by creating a sweet potato casserole-esque filling. Mix brown sugar, cinnamon, and cloves into a bowl of mashed sweet potatoes. After that, slap the mixture into the center of some crescent roll dough, sprinkle on some pecans and mini marshmallows, bake them in the oven, and serve them while they're still warm.

Recipe: Sweet Potato Crescent Rolls

Do you hear the sounds of culinary worlds colliding? That's right: with crescent rolls, you can create a cheesecake recipe with a delicious Mexican twist. 

The process of making this sopapilla cheesecake recipe is pretty similar to assembling other crescent roll cheesecake on this list. However, this time, you should mix sour cream into your cream cheese mixture. And before slapping on the top layer of crescent roll dough, you'll want to add a bit of honey to your cream cheese topping. Then, once you do add dough to the top you'll drown it in a buttery, cinnamon-sugar coating before baking. Delicious right? You can either opt to let it cool for 30 minutes or devour it straight from the oven.

Recipe: Sopapilla Cheesecake

Do you need a side to go with your mummy hot dogs that's just as easy to make? Look no further than this recipe for Mummy Brie. While Brie, as a cheese, is delicious by itself, baking it makes it perfectly dippable, and adding crescent dough to the mix gives this spooky side a buttery, flaky flavor boost.

Like with the Mummy Dogs, you only need to cut your crescent roll dough into strips and wrap them across your brie. After you've baked your brie, you can then give it two green olive eyes and serve your monster with dippable delights like apple slices and pretzel sticks.

Recipe: Mummy Brie

This piggy went to market, this piggy went home, and the little piggies in the recipe were wrapped up in crescent roll dough and tossed into the oven for your dining pleasure. Whether you're in the mood for a simple lunch or are looking for a flavorful hors d'oeuvre to serve at your next cocktail party, you can make pigs in the blanket right at home with nothing more than hot dogs and crescent rolls.

Just wrap your full-sized or cut-down-to-fun-size dogs in crescent roll dough and pop them in the oven. Serve them piping hot with your choice of dipping sauce.

Recipe: Pigs In A Blanket

And so the mummy mayhem continues. If you're looking for a Halloween-themed side with some flavor dimension, Halloween Meatballs have it all. Made with breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese, adding crescent roll dough to this party staple will make it extra festive and extra flavorful.

Unlike the mummy dishes before it, you'll only have to wrap one piece of your pre-cut crescent dough around each meatball before baking them in the oven. Then, give your mummies some mustard eyes.

Recipe: Halloween Meatballs