Got Dough? Make stromboli!

Tuesday night was pizza night in our house this past week.  I took dough out of the freezer, was all excited that I already had the necessary ingredients and was feeling ready to go.  It was 4:30, the dough should be defrosted by 6:30/7:00, this was great.  WRONG.  Pizza dough does not defrost in just 2 hours.  By the time Rob got home and we decided what to do, the dough balls were still frozen solid.  So the great husband that he is, he went to the grocery store and bought two fresh balls for pizza night.

This however, left me with 2 extra balls of dough and what to do with them....Didn't have time to do anything Wednesday night and who really wants pizza two nights in a row?  There was no time on Thursday, and Friday we went to the Topsfield Fair.  So there the balls of dough sat in my fridge exploding inside their bag they were rising so much.

Well, conveniently Saturday night, I had invited neighbors over for food and drinks, so it was time to play.  I've been craving an Italian Sub recently, so I thought an Italian cold cuts calzone or stromboli would fit the bill, just right.  But I've never actually made one.  Can't be too hard, roll up the meats, add some cheese, bake it, slice it.  Alright, let's play.

Ingredients: (makes 2)

• Mortadella - 1/2 pound sliced
• Salami - 1/2 pound sliced
• Hot Capicola - 1/2 pound sliced
• Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
• Now, I opted for Mozzarella because it's the cheesiest and I like things to be ooey and gooey.  My husband also prefers this cheese.  If I were making this for just me, I would be using sliced of provolone, since that's what really goes into an Italian sub.
• And of course, dough, 2 balls

Let's Play:

• Preheat oven to 475 degrees, place rack in center
• Roll out the dough, using flour so it doesn't stick.  You want it in a rectangle shape.  I made mine probably 12" x 18" - didn't really measure it, just guessing.
• Once rolled out start with the mortadella, lay it out, one slice on the other the long way, use half of your stash
• Then layer on the salami, i do a double row so it's the same width as the mortadella
• Then layer on the capicola
• Top it with some mozzarella cheese.
• Fold the left and right sides of the dough in on top of the meat
• This will prevent the cheese from seeping out the sides.  It should all start to look like this:

 

• Start at the bottom and now roll it, like you would a swiss roll.
• Once rolled, place it on a cookie sheet, or a pizza pan, that you've lightly dusted with corn meal so it doesn't stick.
• Repeat this and make a 2nd one. (providing you purchased ingredients enough)
• Place them in the oven for 10 minutes.  At 10 minutes, watch them to make sure they're not burning too much.  Start to gauge whether you "think they are done" - and just cook them maybe 2 minutes longer if you don't believe it's cooked through.

Sauce:

• While the stromboli is cooking there for 10 minutes  you may find yourself bored, so make this quick dipping sauce for them.
• 4oz can of plain tomato sauce
• Dump into a small sauce pan
• Add to it - garlic salt, basil, oregano - be generous here, it's a  flavorful sauce so you want them to really come through. 
• Bring to simmer and let simmer for the 10 minutes.  Taste, if not flavorful enough, add more Basil and garlic salt.

Slice the stromboli with a serrated  knife, not pressing down too hard, let the knife do its cutting.
Put sauce in a bowl, place stromboli around the bowl on your plate.
This makes a great appetizer for a party, it even makes a good meal if it's just 4 of you.