A Fantastic Stromboli Recipe



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South Philadelphia is generally regarded as the originator of this amazingly delicious stuffed bread recipe. Stromboli is a specialty of Philadelphia and it is possible that the name may derive from the Italian island of Stromboli, though no one is certain.

Traditionally, stromboli is made with pizza dough folded over a variety of ingredients, most often mozzarella and sliced pepperoni. However, any stuffing can be used such as cold cuts, cheese, roasted peppers, vegetables, and others. 

Look how beautiful this comes out. It tastes even better than it looks.

Ham and cheese stromboli recipe.My Stromboli Recipe

How To Make Stromboli

Ingredients for stromboli bread dough.

Ingredients for stromboli bread dough flour, water, olive oil, butter, Parmigiano Reggiano, salt, cracked pepper, yeast and red pepper.

Combining the dry ingredietns together in a bowl.

Add the flour, yeast, salt, parm, pepper, and red pepper in a medium mixing bowl. Whisk to thoroughly combine the ingredients.

Butter squares floating in ice water.

Working butter into flour requires that the butter be ice cold, so you can put the butter chunks into a bowl of ice water, like this, until you ready to use it.

Adding the butter to the flour mixture.

Add  the butter and make sure it coats well.

Flour and butter mixture in a mixing bowl.

Using your fingertips start squeezing the butter to break it up. Continue working the butter until the flour mixture resembles wet sand.

Stromboli dough after mixing with a spoon.

Add the olive oil and continue stirring until the dough begins to come together.

Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead by folding and turning the dough. Knead the dough for 2 to 3 minutes, cover with film, and rest for 15 minutes.

Once the dough is done resting, finish kneading the dough, about another 3 to 4 minutes. Form into a boule, lightly spray the bowl with spray oil, if needed, and transfer the dough to the bowl. Cover with film and let rise until doubled in volume.

Stromboli dough after rising.

Stromboli recipe dough after rising.

Prosciutto, provolone and salami on a plate.

Ingredients for ham and cheese stromboli prosciutto, provolone, and salami.

Stuffing the stromboli dough with cold cuts and cheese.

Transfer to a parchment lined sheet pan and using your fingers press the dough into a rectangle that fits the sheet pan.

Arrange the prosciutto , provolone, and salami in layers in the middle third of the dough.

Folding the loaf into an envelope.

Fold each side into the center making an envelope. Be certain to press the seam of the outside fold into the dough.

Stromboli loaf ready for the oven.

When you finish you should have a loaf of bread that looks something like this.

Stromboli recipe or stuffed bread.

Notice the bread cooling on the rack set over a paper towel. That is so moisture doesn't collect on the table surface and cause the bottom of the dough to go soft.

A Stromboli Recipe With A Taste To Die For

  • Yield: 1 loaf
  • Prep Time: 40 minutes
  • Rise Time: varies, but 1 to 2 hours
  • Cook Time: varies, but about 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 500 grams / 17.65 ounces / 3-5/8 cups bread flour
  • 7 grams / 2-1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
  • 10 grams / 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 20 grams / 3/4 ounce parmigiano reggiano, shaved on a microplane
  • 6 grams / 1 tablespoon peppercorn
  • 4 grams / 1 tablespoon red pepper
  • 375 grams / 375 milliliters / 13.2 ounces water
  • 50 grams / 3 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons butter
  • 100 grams / 105 milliliters / 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • Spray oil
  • 3 slices provolone cheese
  • 4 slices salami
  • 8 slices prosciutto

Method

  1. Add the flour, yeast, salt, parm, pepper, and red pepper in a medium mixing bowl. Whisk to thoroughly combine the ingredients.
  2. Add  the butter and make sure it coats well. Using your fingertips start squeezing the butter to break it up. Continue working the butter until the flour mixture resembles wet sand.
  3. Add the water and stir to combine. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest for 10 minutes. This step allows the flour to completely hydrate before you start kneading.
  4. Add the olive oil and continue stirring until the dough begins to come together.
  5. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead by folding and turning the dough. This is going to be a fairly wet dough and it will be difficult to knead in the traditional way. Knead the dough for 2 to 3 minutes, cover with film, and rest for 15 minutes.
  6. Once the dough is done resting, finish kneading the dough, about another 3 to 4 minutes. Form into a boule, lightly spray the bowl with spray oil, if needed, and transfer the dough to the bowl. Cover with film and let rise until doubled in volume. About 1 to 2 hours.
  7. Preheat the oven to 425° F / 220° C. Place a pie pan of hot water on the lower rack.
  8. Transfer the dough to a pastry board and pull the edges into a circle. Transfer to a parchment lined sheet pan and using your fingers press the dough into a rectangle that fits the sheet pan.
  9. Arrange the prosciutto , provolone, and salami in layers in the middle third of the dough. Fold each side into the center making an envelope.
  10. Cover lightly with film and proof until almost doubled in volume. Remove the film and make parallel slits across the dough using a razor blade, or very sharp knife.
  11. Transfer the bread to the oven and bake until golden brown on top and an instant read thermometer registers 200° F / 93° C.
  12. Remove bread to a rack, under lined with a paper towel. Let cool for at least an hour before cutting.

Notes

  1. The flavor of this bread is really enhanced by the choice of cured meat and cheese that goes into it, great ingredients yield great results.
  2. The loaf will fall a little after it comes out of the oven. The reason being that the meat and cheese break the gluten structure. This results in a bread with a unique density that is both light and dense at the same time.
  3. While the dough for stromboli is traditionally pizza dough, this dough produces a really stromboli recipe.