the saga continues….

Fast forward to….sometime in the future, (hey, its not my fault that these Italian Rolls have stolen my heart & I’ve lost all track of time) and we find ourselves back at Rudino’s, but with one of Chris’ oldest friends & her husband. They ordered the Buffalo Chicken Dip (at Rudino’s they serve their dip with toasty pita!) and suggested we try the Italian Rolls.

MY LIFE WAS FOREVER CHANGED.

The dough is made from scratch, thin & crispy, but still has a bit of a chew without being undercooked. The pepperoni is plentiful & piping hot, the cheese oozes out everywhere & the taste of Italian spices is perfect. These Italian Rolls have the perfect 3-turn pinwheel shape and aren’t at all messy. HOW, do you ask? Well, for starters, there is no sauce on the inside – interesting. They serve these Italian Rolls with Marinara or Ranch on the side – umm can a bitch get both??

I vowed to make these at home. I would test & experiment to get these just right – because again, craving something that’s 3 hours away does nothing for my hankering. I believe I have been successful. I’ve made these for Friday nights in, Super Bowl parties & happy hours!

I love how versatile the ingredients for Italian Rolls are. With the ingredients being flexible, it makes it a hell of a lot more fun! If you know me at all, you know I’ve made a few tweaks as well – which can be argued, are they even considered tweaks if I don’t know the original recipe? Ponder on that. I’m assuming the OG recipe filling is pepperoni & mozzarella. So of course those 2 ingredients are the base of my recipe but more is more….or something like that.

Instructions

Place your pizza dough in the freezer for about 15 minutes – this will help it firm up & make the rolling process easier.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

In a Pyrex measuring cup, melt the butter – then mix in the crushed garlic, 21 Seasoning Salute & Parmesan cheese.

Have all your meats & cheese at the ready to quickly lay down & assemble.

On a large sheetpan, measure out Parchment Paper & carefully unroll your dough. It will be square & this is fine and exactly what we want – do not freak out.

Your dough will be heavy & slightly stretchy (that’s where the freezer part helps) so lay it out gently – you only get 1 shot.

Once your dough is arranged on the parchment on the sheetpan, now spoon your butter-garlic-spice mixture and spread it evenly all over the raw dough. ((spread to about ½ inch from the edges))

First, lay your 4 mozzarella cheese slices to be 2 on the top, 2 on the bottom, alternating in a zig-zag pattern.

Now, lay your pepperoni slices side by side, up & down to make rows of 5 x 6 – about 1 inch away from the edges, over top of your mozzarella slices.

Then, lay your 4 provolone slices over the pepperoni slices – but lay them over the OTHER “blank” areas that your previous layer of mozzarella cheese is not resting – another zig-zag pattern, if you will.

Next, lay your 6 salami slices over top the provolone slices.

((the way I have designed this I that everyone doesn’t just sit & squish overtop each other – you should be able to see each layer peeking out over top one another – this is for maximum ingredient distribution & so your pizza rolls aren’t overly heavy in one area over another – you get what I’m saying? THAT’S WHAT MY PICTURES ARE FOR – USE THEM AS A DAMN GUIDE))

Finally, salt-bae your layers with the 2 oz sprinkling of shredded Italian mix cheese.

Now comes the fun part – don’t stress TF out. You got this.

Slowly roll AND fold your pizza roll over itself – I usually do mine side-to-side so then the other half is folded and patiently waiting for me to roll the other side – AGAIN, REFERENCE MY PICTURES.

Luckily, the layers are packed with the thought-process of the cheese-over-meat so when it melts, it holds everyone in place. I’m such a damn genius, I know.

After you have successfully rolled your dough up, make sure to pinch the seam to seal it OR arrange it however it needs to fit on the pan so it is seam-side-down. You may also gently crimp down your edges to ensure no cheese escapes.

Lastly, take a sharp knife & cut a few diagonal slits over the top of your pizza rolls. This ensures a crispy crust so heat doesn’t get trapped & just become soggy.

Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes. You will smell all the spices, the melty cheese & the warmed meats.

Allow it to rest for 5 minutes before cutting on the bias with a serrated knife. Heat your marinara sauce of choice & serve!