Nana's Sausage Bread

Submitted by Dee514

"My grandmother used to make this bread as an appetizer for holiday dinners. Its also a great dish for a light supper or super bowl parties, etc. It is not as difficult to make as it may sound. Each loaf will yield 6-10 servings depending on how large you mke the slices."

 

• Ready In: 2hrs 30mins
• Ingredients: 13
• Yields: 2 loaves
• Serves: 12-20

ingredients

• 907.18 g loose sweet Italian sausage links (or remove casings from 2 lbs of links)
• 3 eggs
• 4.92 ml dried basil
• 2.46 ml fennel seed (optional)
• 453.59 g grated mozzarella cheese (approx. 4 cups)
• 1419.54 ml flour (set aside 1 cup of the 6)
• 29.58 ml sugar
• 9.85 ml salt
• 1 envelope rapid rise dry yeast
• 354.88 ml water
• 118.29 ml milk
• 29.58 ml butter or 29.58 ml margarine
• 29.58 ml finely grated locatelli cheese or 29.58 ml parmesan cheese (optional)

directions

1. In frying pan, brown sausage over medium high heat.
2. Drain drippings and let cool.
3. Mix 2 eggs, basil, fennel seeds and mozzarella into cooled sausage and set aside.
4. In large bowl, combine 5 cups flour, sugar, salt and yeast.
5. In small sauce pan, heat water, milk and butter until hot to the touch (about 125°), and stir into dry mixture.
6. Mix in only enough of the reserved 1 cup of flour to make a soft dough.
7. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic (about 8-10 minutes).
8. Cover dough and let rest for about 10 minutes.
9. Divide dough in half, set one half aside.
10. Roll half the dough into a 6" x 18" rectangle.
11. Spoon half the sausage mixture evenly over the dough to within a 1/2 of the edges.
12. Fold the dough over the sausage filling and overlap the dough by about 1 1/2", seal seam and ends by pinching dough together.
13. Carefully transfer filled dough to a greased baking sheet in a horseshoe shape.
14. With a very sharp knife or razor, make slashes in the top of dough about 1/2" deep and about 2" apart.
15. Repeat rolling and filling with remaining piece of dough.
16. Beat remaining egg and brush over both loves of bread.
17. Lightly sprinkle 1 TB of Locatelli or Parmesan cheese over each loaf (optional).
18. Cover loaves and let rise until doubled (about 40-50 minutes).
19. Bake in preheated 375° oven for about 25-30 minutes or until done.
20. Remove from baking sheets and cool slightly.
21. Serve warm.
22. Refrigerate leftovers.
23. Bread can be made a day ahead of time and then warmed in the oven before serving.

Reviews

[Margie Brock]

This was sooooo good. Made it and took to camp for a progressive dinner and everyone loved it. Had to make several. Great recipe. Thank you.

 

[Liara]

This was really good!! I halved the recipe and used 1 cup of whole wheat floor. Skipped the fennel seeds (cause i don't like them). Much easier to make than I thought it would be. Thanks Dee!

 

[NewPaltzChef]

Really good basic recipe. We were trying to copy a sausage bread we loved from a famous Cape Cod bakery. Therefore, we substituted cheddar cheese and hot Italian sausage. The recipe carried it off beautifully. The bread itself was tastier than I have found in any Pizzeria. It was savory and crisp on the bottom. The DH Said he would like to eat it once a week. The DS called it "soldier bread" because you can cut a slice, put it in your pocket, and be ready to hike over a mountain. This bread is indeed the kind of stuff your grandma would like for you to eat!

 

[LAURIE W.]

Wonderful recipe. You can tell grandmom made this with love. Thank you.

 

[RecipeNut]

Enjoyed this recipe! Used fresh Parmesan on top. Thanks for a tasty recipe Dee ; )