RECIPE: BAKED SANDWICH SURPRISE

OK, Sarah found this one... you may remember her mentioning it (and including a link to it), but I thought it would be more accessible in its own little spot. Sarah suggested that instead of making one big loaf, it might be interesting to make individual-portion-sized loaves, to make it easily transportable to work for me. I divided the dough up into 6 pieces, which worked out great for the filling, but the loaves were a bit big. I think I could have gone to 8 or maybe even 10 loaves and been fine, although the filling might have been a bit skimpy. Yes, since the loaves would have been smaller, they wouldn't take as much filling, but I'm not sure that it is an exponential grade. Anyway, my loaves are fine, there's just a little bit too much bread around the filling. I thought I rolled them out pretty thin, but they puffed up in the oven more than I expected. OK, here's the recipe (Sarah's comments are in italics and parentheses):

BAKED SANDWICH SURPRISE

Adapted from Beautiful Breads & Fabulous Fillings by Margaux Sky.

For the dough:
Ingredients: Makes enough for 1 large loaf
• 1/2 T. active dry yeast
• 1/2 c. warm water
• 1/2 c. whole or low-fat warm milk
• 1/2 c. buttermilk at room temperature
• 1/2 c. butter (1 stick), melted
• 1/4 c. granulated sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 t. vanilla
• 1/16 t. kosher salt
• 5 c. all purpose flour
• 1 c. whole wheat flour
• 1 t. olive oil
(Sarah’s notes: I used skim milk, yogurt instead of buttermilk, and replaced 1 cup of white flour with an additional cup of whole wheat.)
Place the warm water and milk in a large bowl and sprinkle the yeast over the surface of the liquid. Let stand for 5 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy. While the yeast is proofing, mix the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour and salt together in another bowl.

Add the butter, sugar, eggs, buttermilk and vanilla to the water and milk mixture. If you are using a stand mixer put the paddle attachment on; turn the machine to its slowest setting. Slowly add the flour/salt mix to the wet ingredients, half a cup at a time, mixing well.

When the dough forms a ball, switch to the dough hook attachment and knead for 4 minutes, sprinkling extra flour 1 tsp at a time as needed, until the dough is soft, firm, and springs back from a thumb-print. Alternatively, if you are making the dough by hand, transfer it to a lightly floured surface and knead for 4 minutes, until it reaches the consistency described above.
Grease a large bowl with 1 tsp of olive oil. Place the dough in the bowl, turning once to coat, and allow to rise in a warm dry place for 1 hour.

Filling & Assembly:
You can use whatever vegetables & cheeses you like and have on hand. Mushrooms, broccoli, spinach, shredded carrots, Monterey Jack Cheese… oh the possibilities! (Sarah: I prepped all the filling stuff while the bread was rising, with plenty of time to spare.)

Ingredients: Makes 1 large loaf
• 1 T. of olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons
• 1 T. of butter (Sarah: I omitted the butter entirely)
• 1 c. blanched and chopped broccoli rabe. (To blanch it place the broccoli rabe in boiling water for 2 minutes, drain well).
• 1 large sliced red onion
• 1 c. thinly sliced zucchini
• About 8 oz of sliced baby portabella mushrooms
• 1 t. salt, or more to taste
• Black pepper to taste
• 1 T. dill weed, plus 1 tablespoon dried basil
(You can also use another favored herb/herb mixture. Sage, thyme, parsley, rosemary, for instance.)
• 2-3 c. fresh baby spinach
• 1 1/2 c. mozzarella cheese, plus 2 T. shredded Parmesan cheese
(You can use more or less depending on your tastes. Other cheeses to try: Monterey Jack, Muenster, etc. Any soft, melting cheese will do.)
• 1-2 c. roasted pine nuts, depending on tastes (Sarah: I added a handful of chopped pecans as well)
• 1 egg
• 2 T. of water
• 2 T. sesame seeds

Roast the pine nuts: Heat your oven to 400 degrees, place the nuts on a baking sheet and drizzle them with olive oil. Mix the nuts with your hands to spread the oil around. Sprinkle with salt if desired. Bake for 10-15 minutes or to desired crispness and color. Set aside. (Sarah: My bread was rising in the oven so I toasted them in a skillet instead. Medium-high heat until browned, watch carefully and stir often so they don’t burn.)

In a large skillet melt 1 tablespoon of butter with 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the broccoli rabe, zucchini, red onion and mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring frequently, about 4-5 minutes, or until the zucchini, onions and mushrooms have softened. Remove from heat, mix well and cover.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and grease a large non-stick pan with butter or non-stick spray. (Sarah: She’s serious about the ‘large’, this bread turned out huge; a cookie sheet would probably work. I used a roasting pan and put it diagonal and it still barely fit.)

Punch down your dough and roll it out on a lightly floured surface so that the long side is perpendicular to your body. It should have a relatively rectangular shape and be only slightly thicker than paper thin (Sarah: Mine was about ¼ of an inch thick. I wouldn’t go thinner than this because you may run into tearing when you roll it up). Brush the surface of the dough with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of black pepper, 1 teaspoon of salt, the dill weed, basil, mozzarella, spinach and roasted pine nuts over the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch border along the edges of the dough.

Distribute the sauteed veggies over the pine nuts, then sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese. Season with a little more salt and pepper, if you like.

With your hands, tightly roll the dough into a loaf, jelly roll fashion, with the rolling action going away from your body. Use your fingers to fold the outer edges of the dough as you roll to prevent the filling from falling out. When you reach the end, gently grab the last portion of dough and pull it towards you. Seal the roll by pinching this last portion of dough against the roll. Smooth out with your fingers by gently pressing the seam. Place the loaf onto the prepared baking sheet seam side down.

Beat together the egg and water to make an egg wash. Brush the egg wash over the dough and sprinkle with the sesame seeds. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the dough is golden brown. (Sarah: My oven is weird and tends to cook hot, but it only took 30 min for mine to bake. ** M's note on Sarah's note: Sarah subsequently told me that her loaf was slightly underdone after 30 minutes, so she recommended putting it in for another 10-15 minutes. Ovens vary, obviously.)

Remove the loaf from the oven and let it cool for 30 minutes before slicing. If you want, you can serve the slices with small bowls of warm marinara sauce for dipping. This loaf will keep for 2-3 days in the fridge. Slice off a sandwich piece when packing your lunch or looking for a quick meal.