Stromboli

Sue, the special ed. teacher at my school, gave me this treasure of a recipe.  She makes it for the staff every year on her treat day.  You have to get down to the staff room early, otherwise it's gone, and then you feel very sad.

Stromboli is like a pizza roll and it is so, so yummy.  There are just a few simple ingredients. The trickiest part is remembering to thaw the dough.  The good news is if you forget, you can use a quick thaw method. 

Just do this:

QUICK THAW

Preheat oven to 200 degrees and then turn off. 

Boil water and pour it into a shallow pan placed low in the oven.

Place the frozen loaf of bread in a greased pan.

Close the oven quickly to trap the steam.  This keeps the dough moist and prevents it from getting crusty on the outside. 

Let sit for 20-30 minutes or until dough is pliable and can be rolled. 

SUE'S FAMOUS STROMBOLI

• one loaf Rhode's frozen bread dough
• 1/4 pound thinly sliced ham
• 1/4 pound thinly sliced salami
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• oregano
• 1 egg
• parmesan cheese
• poppy seeds

Defrost frozen dough overnight in a plastic bag in the fridge.

Roll dough out into a large rectangle.  I roll the dough out on my silpat and try and get it as thin as possible.  It may take a little elbow grease; stick with it, it will eventually do its thing and cooperate.  

NOTE:  Warm or room temperature dough is easier to roll out.

Layer the ham and salami to cover the dough.

Cover the meat with the shredded mozzarella. 

Sprinkle with oregano. 

Roll jelly roll style the long way.

Arrange so seam is down and ends are tucked under.

Whisk one egg and brush the dough generously.

Sprinkle the top with grated parmesan and poppy seeds.

NOTE:  I used to only use freshly grated parmesan, but then I noticed that Sue, master strombli maker, used the powdery can kind.  I now like to use both the canned kind (think green can from your childhood) and freshly grated.  Using both makes it extra cheesy and delicious.

Bake at 350 for 40 minutes until golden brown.

NOTE:  Be careful not to underbake the stromboli.  I find that it takes the whole time (at least in my oven) to get the insides cooked.  It's very sad when you cut into your stromboli only to find a doughy middle.  Don't let this happen to you.  If it's looking too brown on top, you can move it down in your oven or put foil over it and keep baking. 

Slice and serve. 

You can serve with marinara as a dipping sauce if you'd like.  I'm not into red sauce, so I don't, and it's still oh so good all on its own!

LAST NOTE:  This can be made ahead and put in the fridge until you're ready to bake it.  I often make it the night before.  I even put the egg wash, poppy seeds, and parmesan on ahead of time.  Increase the baking time by a few minutes.