Norman’s Old World Sausage Bread

Norman’s Old World Sausage Bread

Here is another bread recipe that is an old favorite. As I stumbled on to this recipe in my dusty files, I realized that I haven’t made this in a few years. This used to be one of my Wednesday night dinner favorites, as well as something I used to make for Christmas Eve at Aunt Ginny’s. Aunt Ginny always beamed with joy when I brought my sausage bread in.

Aunt Ginny smiles whenever
she sees my sausage bread!

I remember one Wednesday night dinner when I made this, one of the guests volunteered to slice the sausage bread. Next thing I knew, I had to get my first aid kit out. My guest sliced not only the bread, but his finger as well. I would make some snide remark, but I’ve done that more than a couple of times myself, so I’m not the one to be doing mocking. Once his finger was repaired, we sat down to our feast.

I know I shouldn’t do this. If I give this recipe out, Aunt Ginny will quickly claim it as her own. I can see it now. Guests coming over for dinner will ask if I can make a sausage bread like Aunt Ginny makes. I am half tempted to put a cup of pineapple in the ingredient list just to thwart her theft. 

Well, if you promise to keep this from her, I’ll give you the real recipe.

1 batch of Norman’s white bread dough

     (see my May 2nd post)

olive oil

1 lb. Italian sausage

2 cloves of garlic, smashed and minced

1 lb. provolone cheese, sliced thin

Fresh ground black pepper

Fresh grated Romano cheese

Preparation

Prepare a batch of dough for Norman’s basic white bread. Allow it to rise for about a half hour. While it is rising, heat a skillet and coat the bottom with some olive oil. Brown the crumbled sausage until it looses its pink color. Add the garlic and stir. Let it cook for a couple of minutes.

After the bread dough has had time to rise, knead it again and place it on a clean, floured counter. Using a rolling pin, roll out ... what? You don’t have a rolling pin? Why not? I can see that this is going to be one of those days! OK, use a bottle of wine to roll out the dough. You want it to look like a large oval pizza crust. 

Once the bread dough is rolled out, cover it with the sliced provolone cheese, but leave the outer edge (at least one inch) uncovered. Now, cover the cheese with a thin layer of the sausage. Now don’t be confused by the word thin. You see, I’m thin, OK? The point is you want to make sure all the cheese and sausage ends up on the bread. Sprinkle the sausage with a generous amount of Romano cheese and black pepper. 

Carefully start rolling this conglomeration up like you would roll up a carpet. Fold the ends under it and gently place it on a cookie sheet. Let it rise while you heat your oven to 350 degrees. After you allow it twenty minutes to rise, let it bake about thirty five to forty five minutes until it is a nice golden brown and oozing. 

Serving

Sausage bread can easily be served along side any number of pasta dishes. Spinach lasagna is a good choice. Sautéed broccoli, minestrone soup and a crisp salad would make a nice meal out of that.

You could also serve it as a dish on its own by taking thick slices and drowning them in Marinara Sauce. Grilled pork chops would go well with that, along with grilled asparagus and a salad. 

Either way, open a good bottle of Montepulciano dʼAbruzzo wine from Italy. I’d recommend having a second bottle on hand just in case! Now, remember, don’t go blabbing this recipe to Aunt Ginny.