A perfect mix of your favorite charcuterie meat and cheese stuffed into one glorious loaf.

The creation of my charcuterie bread came to me during a fit of insomnia-induced madness. I was enduring some of the worst bouts of insomnia I had ever experienced, and one early morning, I impulsively decided to stuff a variety of meat and cheese I had on hand into a single loaf. The results were nothing short of phenomenal and instantly became a hit with my family.

This exquisite loaf is like a stromboli on steroids. Not only is it generously filled with my favorite meats and cheeses, but it also incorporates the perfect blend of mustard, herbs, and spices, bringing all the flavors together in a delightful harmony. It is an ideal choice for family gatherings or picnics, as well as a lazy breakfast. Indulging in a toasty piece of Charcuterie Bread topped with a fried egg and drizzled with fermented hot honey is truly the breakfast of champions.

Charcuterie Bread

*Makes 1 Loaf

Dough

¾ warm whole milk

1 ¼ tsp active dry yeast

½ cup sourdough discard

⅛ cup vegetable oil

½ tsp fine sea salt

½ TBSP granulated sugar

¼ tsp baking soda

2 ¼ cups bread flour

Filling

¼ lb prosciutto or thinly sliced ham of choice

¼ lb hard salami

¼ lb lacey swiss cheese

2 TBSP mustard of choice

grated pecorino romano cheese

garlic powder

dried oregano

dried parsley

Mix together milk, sugar, discard and yeast until completely homogenous. Add the vegetable oil and mix. 

Mix in the bread flour, salt and baking soda. 

Knead the dough by hand for 10-15 minutes on the countertop. Depending on your strength you may need to knead it for longer, on a really bad day it could take me as long as 20 minutes. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic.  

Shape the dough into a ball and let it proof for 60 minutes in a greased bowl. The dough should be doubled in size. While the dough is proofing, cover a baking sheet with parchment. 

Once proofed, punch down the dough and reshape into a ball. 

Place the dough on the counter and gently stretch the dough out into a rectangle. With a rolling pin, flatten the dough so it’s about a ¼ “ thick, making sure it’s an even thickness. 

Spread out the mustard thinly across the dough, leaving about an inch border of bare dough. 

Lay on a few slices of the Lacey Swiss cheese in a single layer. Next layer on the ham or prosciutto. After there’s a layer of ham, cover the entire surface with grated pecorino cheese. Add a layer of salami and top that layer with a few more slices of swiss cheese. Top the swiss cheese with more pecorino. Top the filling with a sprinkle of garlic powder, dried oregano and parsley.

On the long side of the rectangle, tightly roll up the dough with the filling into a log. Once it’s all rolled up, pinch the seams of the dough together so it’s completely sealed. Transfer the log seam side down onto the parchment covered baking sheet. 

With a very sharp knife, split the top of the dough so the filling is exposed. Shape the log into a “S” shape. Tuck each end of the “S” under the center of the loaf so you have a loaf that’s shaped like a figure 8. 

Cover the loaf with cling film and a kitchen towel. Leave the loaf to proof for another 60 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

After your loaf has proofed and is about double in size, brush the loaf with an egg wash and top with additional grated pecorino cheese.

Bake the loaf in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes. The loaf should be a deep golden brown when completely baked. 

Transfer the loaf onto a wire rack and cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing. Serve and enjoy! 

*Notes: For the filling, you can use whatever deli style meat or charcuterie that you want. You just want to make sure that the meats and cheeses you choose are not too wet. For example, you can easily use mozzarella cheese instead of swiss. But I would not use fresh mozzarella versus low moisture mozzarella. If you were to use the wetter, fresher mozzarella it would make the dough too soggy and it will not bake properly. 

It’s ok if your loaf has a little bit of a blowout. It does tend to happen with this loaf if you roll out the dough slightly too thin or fill it slightly too much. But don’t worry, all the melted cheese should plug up the hole and you’ll just have a nice crispy cheese cracker where the blowout occurred. 

If mustard really isn’t your thing, you can easily use pesto or a romesco sauce in its place. It’s just as delicious and should pair well with any charcuterie you choose to use.

If you don’t have sourdough discard don’t fret! You make this recipe with out it. The discard just provides extra flavor. Depending on the weather you might just need to add a little less flour because you won’t have the added moisture from the discard. Just make sure to add a cup of flour at a time until a workable dough forms.