Sausage, Spinach, and Cheese Stuffed Pretzel Bread
I’m not much of a baker, kind of ironically because my first job at 16 years of age was in a bakery - I make pizza dough and occasionally homemade biscuits, that’s about it. However, the base recipe I use for my dough is very versatile, and can transform into a lot of things; Italian bread, Focaccia bread, sandwich rolls - even with the pizza dough itself I use the same base recipe of 4 ingredients for deep dish, Detroit, and NY style pies - the only real variable is how you let it rise. That same base recipe with a few tweaks recently produced a sausage, spinach, and cheese stuffed pizza bread that went over very well with the crowd I served it for and got a lot of interaction on my Instagram, so here is the recipe for you to try for yourself.
The Dough:
Ingredients:
1 pack of Instant rise yeast
1 and 1/3 Cups water
3 and 1/2 to 4 Cups of flour
1 Tbsp Salt
A few drops Olive oil
That’s it - that’s the base. Add the years to warm water, throw in just a pinch of sugar of you like to help it bloom. Sift the salt over a bowl of flower and incorporate by stirring with a fork. Once the yeast has gotten foamy and bloomed slowly add the water and mix, by hand or with a kitchen aide mixer, adding a little more flour or water as needed until dough is kneaded and firm. Ball up, sprinkle with olive oil so the dough doesn’t stick to the bowl, cover with cling film and a towel and let rise for 60 to 90 minutes.
The Filling
Ingredients:
Ground sausage (4 sweet Italian links, casing removed)
Half a white onion
Half a green bell pepper
A few handfuls of spinach
When waiting for the dough to rise, in a stovetop pan with a touch of olive oil cook the sausage until browned, then add veg and sauté for about 2 minutes. The spinach will cook down very fast, and you want the other veggies to be a bit firm, as they will continue to cook while the bread bakes in the oven. You want to do this early to allow it time to cool before incorporating the cheeses.
The Cheese!
Once the stuffing mixture cools, add:
1 lb of shredded firm mozzarella cheese and
8 oz of cream cheese - plain or with chive/onion
Incorporate the cheese and let the stuffing mixture set in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes so it is easy to manage when stuffing the bread.
Fill the Bread
Roll out your dough in a big round and fill the center with your filling in a column down the middle. Then fold over the two sides, don’t seal completely and leave a seam down the middle for the gooey cheese to bubble up out of. Twist the dough at the ends, and use a knife to cut slits in the top to help steam escape when baking and make a guide for where to cut serving pieces.
Once your dough is on a non stick tray, mix 1 Tbsp of Baking Soda in about 2 oz of water, and brush the mixture over the top of your bread completely so it’s a bit wet. This mixture is what will give you the dark pretzel crust.
Lastly, I like to sprinkle Everything Bagel topping over the bread before putting in the over to add a little extra texture and flavor - plus it has salt already in it which is traditional for pretzel topping.
Bake
Pre-heat the oven to 400º F and place the baking sheet on the center rack. The bread should take between 15-20 min - I like to set a timer for 8 min and then rotate the tray and set for another 8 min - keeping an eye on it for the last few and pulling it out when it gets that nice dark pretzel crust and the bottom is nice and solid.
Let Cool Before Serving
The cheesy, gooey center will be lava hot when you take it out of the oven, so make sure you let it sit for at least 10-15 minutes before serving so the cheese can set a little and you don’t burn your face off.
Serve with a dipping sauce, recommend Ranch dip or Marinara, but I’m sure any sauce would be great!
This is a very easy party dish to have in your arsenal that will impress your friends whether it’s for brunch, cocktails, dinner, or just watching the game. Enjoy! and let me know how yours came out in the comments below!