Homemade Stromboli

Homemade Stromboli is a comfort food classic with its rolled layers of cured meats and cheese, baked until crispy, and eaten while dipping in some marinara. It’s a sure crowd pleaser and a great make-ahead dish!

I looove this recipe and I’ve been wanting to share this for so long, so I’m really happy that the time has finally come! I learned how to make this recipe from my mom, so you know it’s a family classic. The best part about Homemade Stromboli is how deceptively complicated it looks. Even if you mess up, the colors and pattern inside are still going to look beautiful. Yes, layers of meat can be beautiful!

Also, it tastes really freaking good and is always a requested treat. I’m biased, but I think that it also makes a great football appetizer. Its become synonymous with Superbowl parties and Fantasy Football drafts for us. I’ve been told before to make sure the Stromboli makes an appearance!

HOMEMADE STROMBOLI TIPS

If you’ve ever made cinnamon rolls or a jelly roll before, the technique is exactly the same. Lay out the dough, place your filling inside, and roll it up. In this case, we bake the whole Stromboli as one so that the cheese and oil from the meats stay inside and don’t ooze out. Then we cut it after its cooled a bit.

No worries if you’ve never made a dish with this technique before, it really is beginner-friendly and may even encourage you to make other things with the same method! Hint: these cinnamon rolls are a huge hit on the blog.

While we’re at it, this combination of meat and cheese is definitely my favorite, but you’re free to choose whatever your heart desires! I’ve used roasted red peppers and different Italian cured meats like thinly sliced soppressata before. A little pesto drizzle would be fantastic too. A tip regarding using wet ingredients though: drain as much liquid out as possible and do not add sauce to the inside or you’ll wind up with a soggy dough center. The sauces you want to use are for dipping after its baked, not stuffing.

Another tip, if the dough is not rising after 60 minutes because it's still cold, place it in an oven-safe bowl, heat the oven to about 200 degrees and leave the dough in for 3-5 minutes. The warmer the dough is the quicker it will rise, but be really careful to not cook the dough! I repeat, do not forget about the dough in the oven, haha!

Stromboli is a great make-ahead dish too. If you’re entertaining and want to prep this in advance, go right ahead and stop right before baking. If you won’t be baking this for over a week, go ahead and wrap it & freeze. It will thaw just fine before baking, but make sure you let the dough totally come to room temp.

As for leftovers, they’ll keep just fine in the fridge for a few days; although they’re not likely to last that long when people know they’re in there! Stromboli is surprisingly filling, so about 2-3 per person, if that’s all they’re eating, is plenty. This recipe makes roughly 16 pieces, depending on how you slice it.

NUTRITION

Actually, each slice is pretty reasonable in calories because it's so filling and you’re able to cut the entire Stromboli into so many pieces. However, it is high in sodium because of the cured meats so pay attention to your portion size if that’s an issue for you. And if you’re sensitive to salt, don’t be surprised if you are bloated the next day after you eat 4 of these! It has nothing to do with carbs – I promise you. Salty foods make you retain water for a bit, which temporarily reflects in a higher weight. Just don’t weigh in tomorrow ????. What goes without saying is that this dish is obviously high in protein due to all the meats and cheese – aka the good stuff! Don’t forget the sesame seed topping – and serve with some good quality marinara sauce!

AS ALWAYS, IF YOU MAKE THIS - PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW BELOW!

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Homemade Stromboli

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Servings 16

Ingredients

• 16 oz pizza dough
• ½ tsp sea salt
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 ½ tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp parsley
• ½ lb pepperoni deli sliced
• ½ lb provolone deli sliced
• ½ lb deli tavern ham sliced thin
• ½ lb salami sliced thin
• 2 cups shredded skim mozzarella

Outside seasoning

• ½ tsp parsley
• ½ tsp basil
• ½ tsp rosemary
• 2 tsp sesame seeds
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• ½ cup marinara sauce for dipping

Instructions

1. Prep: make sure dough has come to room temp on the counter. after it has, place in a large bowl, coat the dough with a drizzle of olive oil, and cover with a kitchen towel. Leave the dough to rise for about 2 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
3. Place your pizza dough on a large baking sheet. Knead it out to be about the size of the pan. Always work from the middle outwards.
4. Season the dough with ½ tsp sea salt, 1 tsp oregano, 1 ½ tsp garlic powder, and 2 tsp parsley once it is the size of the pan.
5. Start layering: lay out the slices of pepperoni all over the dough until its finished. Repeat with the provolone, ham, mozzarella, and salami. The order really doesn’t matter, but try to alternate between meat and cheese
6. Once you’ve finished adding all the fillings, start rolling the Stromboli by tucking the bottom edge over just an inch. Continue rolling it until you reach the end (jelly-roll style).
7. Once you’ve reached the end, pinch the other edge to the dough to form a seam. And lay the Stromboli seam side down.
8. In a small bowl, make the seasoning mixture with the ½ tsp parsley, ½ tsp basil, and ½ tsp rosemary, and 2 tbsp olive oil. Brush the top and sides of the dough entirely with the seasoning mixture, making sure to spread evenly. Lastly, sprinkle the sesame seeds all over the top and with a sharp paring knife, make angled slits on the top of the dough every couple inches to help vent the inside.
9. Bake the Stromboli for 1 hour – 1 hour 15 min. If the outside is starting to brown before the inside seems cooked, cover with aluminum foil and continue baking. Let cool before cutting into or the cheese and oil will ooze out.
10. Cut with a sharp serrated knife into 1” thick slices. Serve hot with marinara sauce!