Spinach Stromboli

 

I had seen this recipe for antipasto stromboli and originally thought I’d make it for dinner, but one day when I was looking for inspiration for my kids’ school lunch, it jumped out at me. It looked healthier than my previous stromboli, and I did have some of the ingredients on hand, so I decided to adapt it a bit. I used about half the amount of spinach and thought it was plenty; I did not have sundried tomatoes or olives, and willfully omitted the pepperoncini. I also used pepperoni instead of prosciutto, and was working with 12 oz of homemade whole wheat pizza dough. That being said, even though it had green and red vegetables, my kids really liked it! Plus, the Fox’s teacher even asked for the recipe! When I emailed it to her, I said that because I had only heard the Fox’s version of the conversation, I didn’t know if she really wanted it or was only being polite, but sent her the link along with my modifications. She replied that she indeed wanted the recipe, because she thought my son always had lunches that looked delicious, and this in particular looked like the kind of thing that her own three-year-old daughter would eat. I also thought that the few slices I had were really good. So, there you go, a crowd-pleaser! 

1 10-oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained (I had about half that) 

½ cup jarred roasted red bell pepper strips, drained and patted dry 

¼ cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped (I omitted them) 

¼ cup pitted kalamata olives, drained and chopped (I omitted them, but my kids like them) 

¼ cup pickled pepperoncini (2 or 3 peppers), drained, stemmed, and chopped (I omitted them) 

5 slices prosciutto, chopped (I used pepperoni instead) 

1 lb. store-bought pizza dough, at room temperature (I had 12 oz. whole wheat pizza dough) 

all-purpose flour, for dusting 

6 oz. lactose-free shredded low-moisture mozzarella cheese (about 1½ cups) 

1 large egg, beaten 

jarred marinara sauce, warmed, for serving (I didn’t use it) 

Preheat oven to 425 °F. Place a large baking sheet on center rack and let heat for 20 minutes. 

Meanwhile, place spinach in a medium bowl and pull apart with 2 forks. Stir in bell pepper strips, tomatoes, olives, pepperoncini, and prosciutto. (I did this differently: I very finely chopped both the spinach and the red bell peppers, and I’d recommend that if you’re not sure how your kids will react to the vegetables. I also cut the pepperoni in bite-size pieces, then I mixed all three ingredients together.) 

Roll dough into a 16-by-9-inch rectangle on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper. Spread spinach mixture over dough into a 14-by-5-inch rectangle. Top with cheese. Fold each short side of dough over filling, about 2 inches in toward middle. Brush folded dough with egg. Fold 1 long side of dough over filling; brush with egg. Fold other long side over filling to overlap in middle. Turn stromboli to face seam side down. Lightly brush with egg. Cut 4 slits on top. 

Transfer parchment paper with stromboli to preheated baking sheet. Bake until golden, about 25 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes. Slice and serve with warm marinara sauce (or cold in the lunchbox, without sauce, worked for us).