I first made these last year for Valentine’s Day and they were such a hit that we’re re-creating them. It’s pretty simple and the dough can be cut into any shape you want (think other holidays!). Also, the inner compartment can hold almost anything…which is great when each member of your family likes something different. You don’t have a family like that, right? Beware of these because last year my husband ate three they were so good. I suggest making extras!
First, I take frozen bread dough and thaw it for 2 days in the fridge (in a bread pan coated with non-stick spray and covered in plastic wrap). The hardest part is REMEMBERING to thaw the bread J Follow the instructions on the bag – we use the Rhodes bread dough. 1 frozen bread log makes enough stromboli for our family of 4, plus a bit extra.
I will apologize to any Italians out there because I am not 100% sure these are super authentic stromboli. They’re just the way my *cough* American, semi-German family grew up making them. So go with the flow, okay?
Now to finish preparing the bread dough:
- Once the bread dough has thawed, remove it from the fridge and let it come to room temperature. Beat it down once and let it rise back to original size.
- Divide the dough in half or a manageable size, and roll onto a floured surface. Roll to a thickness of approx. ¼ inch (not too picky here, if you like your stromboli on the doughy side or you’re tight on time, make it thicker).
- Take a large heart cookie cutter (mine is approximately 3” wide) and cut hearts, as many as you can, out of the dough. Repeat with the rest of the dough.
- Remember to make an even number of hearts as you’ll need 2 for each stromboli (a top and a bottom).
Next, prepare your filling ingredients – oh and preheat your oven to 400 degrees:
- Cut the ingredients into small pieces. If you’re daring, let your kids help put their ingredients in the bottom of the heart, making sure to stay ½” from the edges.
- Typical filling ingredients are Italian meats and herbs but feel free to branch out. My daughter had a phase where she wanted turkey, mozzarella, and broccoli in hers, with no sauce. Like I said, very Americanized J
- If you’re at a loss as to what to fill with, we place meat in the bottom (pepperoni, ham, and/or summer sausage), then veggies (mushrooms and onions), then cheese (definitely mozzarella preferred in our casa). I also like pesto in mine, and some Italian seasoning mix on top. Don’t put too much in!!!
- Put a 2nd cut-out heart on top and, with a fork, crimp the edges (same you would do with homemade pie crust).
- Cut a few small slits in top to let air escape and put on a baking pan.
Once you’ve made your hearts and the oven is preheating, whip egg white quickly with that very multi-talented fork and brush on top of the hearts.
Cook for approximately 20 minutes and let cool for 5-10 before cutting. The cheese will most likely ooze out, but that is the best part! Drizzle some spaghetti sauce on the plate and you will amaze your family for sure.
Oh, and if you’re wondering where to get a heart cookie cutter, mine is from a large 101 piece cookie cutter set from a craft store that had every holiday represented in cookie cutters. The lot has come in handier than I could have imagined! Here is the link http://www.wilton.com/store/site/product.cfm?sku=2304-1050 . You can search by zip code to find a store near you (but I am hoping that any craft store selling Wilton baking products will have it).
0 comments:
Post a Comment