Cheesy bread from French bread loaf

We are having Italian dishes for supper tonight. The French bread recipe makes two loaves and normally I freeze the second loaf but I decided to make some cheesy bread for my two teenage sons as a midnight snack. There on break from college right now so they stay up late. The extra french loaf was perfect. I cut in half and added 3 types of cheese, italian spices, garlic and butter.  Baked it until the cheese melted and slightly golden brown. It was delicious. So if you have some leftover french bread, try it, makes for an awesome snack and easy to, just add your favorite toppings.

Pizza Hut Pan Pizza Copy Cat

Pizza Hut Pan Pizza Copy cat
Copy of the Pizza Hut Pan Pizza – (adapted from Minh via CDKitchen)

Dough :

1 1/3 c. Warm water (between 100-110 degrees)
1/4 c. Non-fat dry milk
1/2 tsp salt
4 c. flour
1 Tbs sugar
1 package instant dry yeast
2 Tbs vegetable oil
2 oz vegetable oil for each pan

Sauce :

1 (15oz) can tomato sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp dry oregano
1/2 tsp dry basil
1/2 tsp dry marjoram
1 Tbs. garlic powder

Making the Dough:

Using your dough hook. Add yeast, sugar, salt, and dry milk in the bowl of your stand mixer. Add water and stir to mix well. Allow to sit for two minutes or until the mixture starts to bubble. Add oil and stir again.
Gently add the flour and stir until dough forms. Then knead the dough with the dough hook on medium speed  for 5 mintues.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide dough into three balls.
Pour 2 oz of oil into three 9″ cake pans making sure it coats evenly.
Roll out each dough ball into an approximate 9 inch circle. Then place into the cake pans.
Turn oven on 350 degrees for 15 seconds and turn off. This is to ONLY warm the oven. Next put pizza dough in oven and let them rise for approx. 2 hours. (You can skip the warming the oven step in the summer).

Making the Sauce:

While your dough is rising, mix the sauce ingredients together in a medium size sauce pan. Cook on medium heat until the sauce starts to boil, then lower the heat to low. Let the sauce simmer for 30 minutes before using.

Making the pizza:

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
After the dough has risen, spoon 1/3 rd.  of sauce on the dough.  Add your favorite ingredients, then cover with cheese.

Bake for 10-15 minute or until the crust is brown and cheese is melted.

My Kids like cheese.

And Me and Hubby like pepperoni.

Either way it is delicious and tastes like Pizza Hut's Personal Pan pizza. Enjoy!!

Braided Calzone Pizza Loaf

 This is our familys favorite calzone, pepperoni!  We fix this at least once a week. It is unbelievably good.
This recipe makes 2 large loaves, eat one now and freeze one for later. (They never make it to the freezer at my house, though)

Dough:
1 Tbs. shortening
2 Tbs. sugar
1 Tbs. salt
1 c. boiling water
1 c. cold water
1/3 c. lukewarm water
1 Tbs. yeast
5 1/2-6 c. flour
1 egg

Filling:
1 package of pepperoni or salomi
2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

Topping:
powdered Parmesan cheese
oregano
garlic
anything that sounds good to you

Make the dough:

 In a small bowl dissolve 1 Tbs. yeast in 1/3 c. warm water, set aside. In your mixer bowl: add sugar, salt, and shortening together and mix together. While still blending, pour the boiling water over the sugar mixture. Next add the cold water into the sugar mixture. Lastly pour the yeast and water into the sugar mixture.
Add the flour 1 C at a time while mixing. You know you have enough flour when the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl. Once you have enough flour mix on high for 6 minutes. Let the dough rest in the mixer bowl for about 5  minutes.

Divide the dough into two equal parts and let them rest on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray for about 5 minutes.

Lightly coat your counter with oil. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle. Using a scraper or pizza cutter, cut one inch wide strips along both long sides of the rectangle. Be sure to leave about 5 inches down the center uncut, leaving a space in the middle for your toppings.

Next fold over each strip to center of loaf on each side and fold ends together, now move the dough to your baking sheet and unfold. (It is alot easier to move it now than after you have your toppings on)

Place pepperoni, cheese and in my case, mushrooms down the center of the dough.

Next fold the end edge over and start pulling the dough strips across the loaf, criss-crossing as you go, when you get to the end stop at he third strip in and start at the end edge and fold over and then finish criss-crossing.

Beat the egg until bubbly. Brush over the entire top of the loaf.

Add your desired toppings (We used parmesan cheese, red pepper flakes, oregano today, but usually we just use parmesan cheese and italian seasoning)

Repeat these steps with the other piece of dough.  Turn oven on 170 degrees and let rise for 20 minutes. Then turn your oven up to 400 degrees and bake for about 15 minutes, until loaves are golden brown. (Leave the dough inside while the temperature rises)

Let the loaves rest for about 5 minutes, then cut into slices.

                                                                    Enjoy!!!!