Stuffed Braided Bread with Italian Meat and Cheese

This stuffed braided bread is made with simple enriched dough and looks complicated to create but it is rather easy! Stuff it with your favorite Italian deli meat and cheese or substitute it with any type of deli meat. Want more meat? Pile it on! This recipe is easy to make to suit your tastebuds.

Prepare: 30

Bake: 20

Rest Time: 2 30

Total Time: 3 20

Servings: 12 people

Ingredients

For the Dough

2 cups (300g) flour
¾ cup (180mL) milk
2 tbs (30mL) oil
2 tbs (28g) softened butter
2 tbs (25g) sugar
1 ½ tsp (4.5g) yeast
½ tsp (2.5g) salt

For the Filling

2 oz pepperoni thinly sliced
2 oz salami thinly sliced
2 oz mozzarella cheese
2 oz provolone cheese

Instructions

In a small saucepan, heat milk on medium until it is lukewarm or 110°F (43°C.)
In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients together with the handle of a spoon until a shaggy dough forms. Knead on a clean work surface until dough is elastic and stretches easily without tearing. This can take 8 - 12 minutes.
Cover with plastic wrap or a damp cloth and let rest until double in size. This step typically takes 60 - 120 minutes.
Gently deflate the dough and roll into a 9 x 15" rectangle (23 x 38 cm.) On each 15" side of the rectangle, cut 15 strips 3” long x 1” wide (7.6 x 2.5cm) for the braiding. Leave the center intact to be filled. Next cut off one strip of dough from each of the dough's four corners. You will now have 13 strips on each side. By removing the dough in the corners, you will now have two "tabs" of dough in the center on the ends.
In no particular order, layer the center with the pepperoni, salami, mozzarella and provolone. Fold in the center tabs of dough. Beginning on the left, pick up the first strip of dough and gently bring it across the filling diagonally. Repeat the process on the opposite side, so that the two strips crisscross each other. Continue down the length of the dough, alternating strips to form the braid.
Place the braid carefully on a nonstick baking sheet. If your baking sheet isn't nonstick, use parchment paper or spray with cooking spray. Cover the braided dough with plastic wrap or a tea towel and let rest 30 - 60 minutes or until the dough puffs up.
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C.) Remove the cover and bake 20 - 30 minutes or until golden brown. Center temperature of the bread should reach 190°F (88°C) when done. Let sit 5 - 10 minutes and remove to a wire rack to cool or serve while still warm.
Store any leftovers covered in the refrigerator up to 3 days. For best tasting results, reheat leftovers in the oven at 350°F (180°C) for 5 -10 minutes or until warm.

Notes

You can double the amount of meat used in this recipe up to 8 oz (226g.)

Adding more cheese is not recommended as will it spill out from the braids onto the baking tray and often leads to undercooked bread.

You can also use the microwave to heat the milk. Heat on high power 30 - 60 seconds or until lukewarm.

An important note on dry yeast: Instant dry and active dry yeasts are not the same. If using active dry yeast, you must activate the yeast according to the manufacturer's instructions in order for the dough to rise properly. You typically need to activate or "bloom" the yeast by adding it to warmed liquid for several minutes.

Instant dry yeast can be added to the dry ingredients and typically does not need to be activated prior to use. However, some brands of dry yeasts still require adding warm liquids, so be sure to read the label. Rapid, quick and fast acting dry yeasts will rise much faster than instant and active dry yeasts. For best results, always read and follow the instructions provided on the packet as the rising time varies widely between manufacturers.

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