Pizza Stromboli, the super explosive rolled pizza!

A pizza with a Neapolitan tradition? 

Not really and not even a calzone. The "stromboli roll" is in fact a roll of stuffed bread dough. 

If you are wondering why a pizza with the name of an Italian island, and the homonymous volcano that dwells there, is actually an American creation do not worry, everything has an explanation and now we will clarify the ideas.

Did you know?

An Italian immigrant named Nazzareno Romano invented the Italian American treat known as "Stromboli" in 1950 at his restaurant 

Romano’s Pizzeria and Italian Restaurant in Essington, Pennsylvania. Mr. Romano opened the restaurant in 1944. He came to America from Italy in 1923 in search of the American Dream. The brilliant idea dates back to the winter of 1949. At the time Nazzareno began experimenting with a new sandwich using pizza dough and stuffing it with cold cuts, peppers and Italian cheeses that he rolled into a sausage. 🇮🇹

When we talk about Stromboli pizza, we refer to the rolled pizza born in Philadelphia, which contains a spiral of flavors, ready to erupt when cutting each slice. The Stromboli pizza is prepared with the classic pizza dough, which is stuffed with delicious ingredients and then rolled up to form a long-leavened dough salami. In addition to being very appetizing, the Stromboli pizza recalls the eruption of a volcano, whose lava comes out at every cut showing tomato, stringy cheese and all the flavors of the Italian peninsula. A delicious, rolled pizza to be stuffed according to your tastes and what you have in the refrigerator. 

Ingredients for the dough

500 g flour  

250 ml water 

12 g brewer's yeast 

10 g fine salt 

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Ingredients for the filling

300 ml marinara sauce (tomato puree flavored with garlic and oregano) Spicy salami, prosciutto, coppa or other cured meats to taste (choose one) 150 g mozzarella or other stringy cheeses 1 bell pepper Basil to taste Extra virgin olive oil Salt and pepper

This is the filling that recalls the original filling, but you can put onions, olives, anchovies or other ingredients to which are fond an "explosion of taste", so unleash your imagination to create the tastiest and most delicious combinations but be careful not to mix too many flavors.

Procedure

To make the Stromboli pizza start from the dough, then crumble the brewer's yeast in a small bowl with water and stir so that it melts. In another large bowl, sift the flour, add salt, extra virgin olive oil and add the emulsion of water and yeast, start kneading with your hands or using a fork. Continue to knead until you get a smooth and soft but consistent dough, form a ball and place it in a large bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a damp cloth and store in a warm place, for example the oven turned off with light on and let rise for a couple of hours, the volume of the dough must double.

Meanwhile, prepare the ingredients for the filling, fry a clove of garlic in a pan with a little oil, add the tomato puree and season with salt, pepper and oregano. Cut pepper and cheese into cubes and sliced cold cuts.

After the leavening time, place the dough on a floured pastry board and roll out a rectangular sheet of about 50 x 45 cm with a rolling pin. Sprinkle the marinara sauce on the dough, taking care to leave a frame of a couple of centimeters. Spread the salami you have chosen over the entire surface and finish with cheeses and peppers. Brush the edges with a little water in order to better close the roll. To finish perfume the filling with basil leaves, roll the dough from the longest side and seal the ends well. Transfer the rolled pizza to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush the surface with oil and bake in a preheated oven at 180 ° C for about 1 hour. When cooked, take the rolled pizza out of the oven and serve by cutting it into slices.