Hot Sausage Bread

Note from Sara: This week our awesome substitute recipe comes from Mandy. We also went to high school together, and I honestly can't think of her without thinking "Mindy and Mandy" because she's 1/2 of a twin duo :)  But what else is interesting is that she's an author!  As in, has books (plural!) you can actually buy on Amazon (go here)! This recipe from her makes me wish I ate cheese (without guilt).  I'm dreaming of thick-sliced Tillamook cheese for this recipe...freaking yum!



Hot Sausage Bread

There’s only one reason why I wanted to make Hot Sausage Bread for Sara’s food blog: Who doesn’t love to give and receive baked goods this time of year? I do, I do, I do.

Hot Sausage Bread is pretty simple to bake and doesn’t require a lot of ingredients. I was afraid I would run out of time to prepare this recipe this week since it’s Thanksgiving. So, with the busy holiday week, I decided to pack my ingredients and bake three loaves at work last night. The first thing I did when I got home was enjoy a slice for breakfast. Yum. Enjoy.   -- Mandy

Ingredients:
3 Loaves White Bread (sold in the frozen bread section, Rhodes brand contains 3 loaves)
2 lbs Ground HOT Sausage
2 Packages of Sliced Pepper Jack Cheese
1 Egg

This recipe yields three loaves of Hot Sausage Bread.

Preheat the over to 350 degrees.

Follow the directions on the back of the package, for thawing and allowing your bread to rise. I have never been good at following directions... so, this is what makes life easier for me: I allow the bread to thaw in the refrigerator - usually two days - and I allow it to rise in the bag (I know, I know, look how lazy she is) When the bag looks like it is about ready to burst.. it's go time.

Because the now ready bread has almost evolved into one massive loaf, I cut it into three equal parts. You will be able to see the lines where the old bread loaves used to exist.

Cook the ground, hot flavored sausage, until it is completely browned. Drain off excess grease. (I try not to be partial, but Jimmy Dean has great hot sausage.)

Cover a large surface with flour. Using a rolling pen, roll out one loaf until it makes a large rectangular shape. If you allow the bread to sit on the floured surface until it becomes room temperature, it will be easier to roll out and won’t require a lot of upper body strength. (I know, I know, look how lazy she is)

Scoop 1/3 of the browned sausage into the center of the rolled out dough. Spread it down the middle of the loaf, horizontally. Leave about an inch of spare dough at each end. You should have a spare 2-3 inches at the top and bottom.

Place 8-10 slices of pepper jack cheese over the top of the ground hot sausage.

Fold the spare 1 inch dough, at each end, over top of the meat and cheese. Press it tightly into the dough it has overlapped, creating a tight bond so the cheese won’t melt out.

Your final step in preparing your loaf of bread is to pull the top and bottom ends of the dough, together. At the top of the loaf you will pinch the top and bottom flap of dough, creating a bond. It should look like a rope running across the top of the bread once you are finished.

Whip one egg in a bowl. Using a brush, paint the top of the loaf of bread with the whipped egg. This will give your loaf of bread its golden brown finish. (One egg will cover three loaves of bread.)

Spray baking sheet and bake in oven until the loaf is golden brown. This usually takes approximately 20 minutes. You can follow the baking directions on the back of your frozen bread package.

Wait for bread to cool, slice and enjoy with a cold glass of milk to put out the fire. Honestly… It's not that hot, all five of my kids devour this recipe.

And since it now appears that you have labored over making this simple recipe, leave the mess for your partner to clean up. (I know, I know, look how lazy she is)

For those of you who are characters of visual nature, I am including each stage of the process to help guide you. If you are like me, you skipped all the directions and went straight to the visual guide. (I know, I know, look how lazy she is)