Homemade Sourdough Stromboli – Sourdough Discard Recipe

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Homemade sourdough stromboli is an easy sourdough discard recipe.  It is made from dough that is rolled out and filled with a variety of meats and cheeses and then baked to be similar to a hot sandwich.  It is great hot or cold, and can be filled with a variety of fillings.  Excellent for meals during busy seasons of life, and great to have in the freezer for back to school lunches or meals on the go.  

sourdough stromboli

The sourdough portion of this sourdough stromboli can be made the night before or even several days ahead of time and placed in the refrigerator to long ferment which increases the health benefits of the dough.  Having the dough made ahead of time means you can pull it out, and quickly roll some meat, cheese and veggies up in the dough and bake fresh for a quick and easy meal.  I suggest making a double, triple or even quadruple batch of the dough and baking up a bunch of stromboli when you have a few extra minutes.  This way your freezer will be well stocked with fast meals that are easy to grab and take with you when you’re on the go.

Quick And Easy Meals

Our family raises a big market garden every summer, so I am always on the lookout for quick and easy, yet healthy meal options during the summer.  My husband also works outside of the home, and packs a lunch everyday, and this sourdough stromboli is one of his favorite things for lunch.  I have to make at least a double batch of homemade stromboli if I want any leftovers for my family of seven, because when I make this, they always eat every last piece!  Keeping things like this in the freezer is important so we never have to rely on eating out even when we are busy and on the go.  This stromboli is just as good cold as it is warm, because the meat and cheese are all melted together from when it was baked, making it like the best cold sandwich you ever ate!

Ways To Enjoy This Sourdough Stromboli

We produce most all of our own food on our Nebraska homestead, and I never buy lunch meat, which is traditionally what you would put into this stromboli recipe.  Instead, I use dried beef which is very similar to lunch meat, although a lot more natural.  It’s basicly very thinly sliced meat that has been smoked and dried.  We have it made from the beef cattle we raise.  You could ask your local butcher if they have something like it, or use leftover roast or another kind of meat.  I also like to add venison breakfast sausage from the deer we harvest in the fall, and then our homemade cheese from our Jersey milk cows to the stromboli.  This sourdough stromboli is a great way to package up these homemade ingredients into a fun and delicious meal.  

stromboli and salad

You could also make this into a vegetarian stromboli by putting lots of sauteed veggies in with some cheese.  Pizza stromboli could easily be made by using sausage, mozzarella cheese and pizza sauce, or hamburger, cheese and sauerkraut would make reuben stromboli.  There is so many different options for how you could make this!

What is Sourdough Starter?

A sourdough starter is simply a fermented mix of flour and water that is used to make all kinds of baked goods.  Because it is a fermented food, it is very easy for your body to digest and is one of the most traditional and healthiest foods on the planet. 

bubbly sourdough starter

Make Your Own Homemade Sourdough Starter

Here is my simple and easy method for making your own sourdough starter without a scale or any fancy equipment.

What Is Sourdough Discard?  

Sourdough starter discard is fermented flour and water that has to be removed or discarded from your sourdough starter before you can feed your starter more flour and water.  It should never actually be thrown out (or discarded) though, because it can be used in hundreds of different recipes.  I always try to keep a fair amount of sourdough discard in a jar in my refrigerator. That way anytime I want to make these sourdough discard pancakes or any other discard recipe, I can do so quickly.  Most recipes that call for sourdough discard rely on something else to actually “raise” the end product if applicable. In this case, we’re using baking powder and baking soda as the leavening agent to make the bread portion of this sourdough stromboli light and fluffy.

What Are The Health Benefits Of Sourdough?

Anytime you add a fermented element like sourdough to a recipe, it becomes more nutritious because it contains live probiotics and good bacteria that help with gut health and digestion.  Gluten and phytic acid are naturally present in wheat, and are usually what is to blame for people not being able to digest gluten well.  When the grain is fermented through the sourdough process, the gluten and phytic acid are broken down, making it easier to digest.  A lot of people that struggle with gluten intolerance (not people with celiac), can digest food made with sourdough without any issue, especially if the recipe is allowed to sit out for a few hours and “long ferment”.   

In addition, phytic acid is an anti-nutrient that blocks absorption of the nutrients found in wheat. During the sourdough fermentation process, the phytic acid gets broken down and the nutrients are more bio-available to the body. This is why baking with sourdough is so important for our health.

Why You Will Love This Sourdough Stromboli

Healthy – because of the addition of the sourdough to this recipe, this sourdough stromboli is nutritious and easy to digest.  I also like the flexibility of being able to make the dough ahead of time and allow it to long ferment.  I like to get several kinds of sourdough going at one time, and then let it all rest in the refrigerator ready to bake through the week as needed and time allows.

Quick and easy

When you need a quick and easy meal, this sourdough stromboli is just the thing to make up quickly or to have in your freezer.  If you don’t have time to make the dough ahead of time, and long ferment it, you can always just mix it up quickly and bake right away.  It won’t have the long fermentation benefits this way, but the recipe turns out just fine.

Endless variations

There are endless variations of things you can put into this sourdough stromboli.  You could even fill it with breakfast or dessert fillings for camping trips or vacation time with family.

Freezes Well

This sourdough stromboli freezes really well.  Just slice it and wrap each piece in plastic wrap or put them into a sandwich bag, label and put directly into the freezer.  It will store in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Family Friendly

This recipe is loved by my whole family.  It is great for kids as well as adults, and there usually isn’t any leftovers from a single batch.

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Filling Ideas

  • Dried beef, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, sausage, mushrooms, pickles, olives, onions & mustard.  Pickled jalapenos optional
  • Hamburger or sausage, pizza sauce, fresh basil, green peppers, parmesan and fresh mozzarella cheese.  Can also add pineapple zucchini, olives, mushrooms or onions.
  • Spinach, mushrooms, red onion and feta cheese
  • Home canned sauerkraut, hamburger and cheese
  • Home canned chicken, alfredo sauce, mushrooms and spinach
  • Fresh mozzarella, caramelized onions, red peppers and sun-dried tomatoes
rolling up stromboli

Tips

If possible, make your dough ahead of time and allow it to long ferment.  You can also make your filling ahead of time as well.

Use leftover meat and veggies from your refrigerator as filling for this sourdough stromboli.

Double or triple the batch of dough so you can make extras for the freezer.

To make the stromboli look extra fancy, you can cut the edges into strips on each side of the meat/cheese mixture, and then “braid” it up over the top of the meat/cheese.  It will give it a braided bread look.  

Be sure to check out some of our favorite sourdough recipes, including how to make sourdough bread here.

Supplies You May Need

Bosch Mixer – my absolute favorite mixer

Measuring Cups and Spoons

Rolling Pin

Baking Sheet

Parchment Paper

Pastry Brush

Ingredients

Sourdough starter – can be active sourdough starter or sourdough discard from your refrigerator.

Mlik – I like to use buttermilk, but regular milk is fine too

Melted butter, coconut oil or olive oil – I melt fresh butter from our Jersey cows

Sugar – you can use cane sugar or honey

Eggs – farm fresh eggs are best

Salt – redmond salt is my favorite as it has a lot of additional minerals that are good for you

All purpose flour or bread flour – I like to buy this flour in bulk from Azure Standard

Baking soda

Baking powder

Filling options:  slice meat/cheese, sausage/hamburger, mushrooms, onions, veggies, etc.

homemade stromboli

How To Make Sourdough Stromboli

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine milk, sourdough starter, butter, sugar and eggs.  Mix well using the dough hook attachment.

Add salt, flour, baking soda and baking powder.  Mix for 5-7 minutes.  You can do the windowpane test by slowly stretching the dough upwards to see if it stays together and if you can see through it similar to a window.

Wrap ball of dough in plastic wrap or place in an airtight bowl and allow to ferment at room temperature overnight, or in the refrigerator for up to a week.

When you’re ready to bake the sourdough stromboli, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Brown sausage or hamburger if using any.

Roll dough into approximately a 16-inch rectangle on parchment paper (see video below).

rolling out stromboli

Place meats/cheeses, mushrooms, mustard, sausage etc. down the center of dough.

adding meat and cheese to stromboli

Fold each side of the dough over the top of the meat/cheese mixture and seal the edges.

pinching seams on stromboli

Transfer dough using parchment paper onto a baking sheet or use a pizza peel and transfer to a preheated pizza stone.  

In a small bowl, beat one egg and coat the top of the dough with the egg wash using a pastry brush.

egg wash on stromboli

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until a light golden brown.

Slice using a pizza cutter or sharp knife.

Serve with marinara sauce for dipping and a side salad for a delicious and healthy meal.

Once cool, the slices can be placed into freezer bags or an airtight container and frozen for up to three months.

To thaw 

Place on a cookie sheet in the oven and bake until warmed through

OR 

Microwave for 1-2 minutes until warmed through

If it’s a warm day and we’re out and about, we will sometimes put these on the dash of our vehicle to thaw and warm while we’re working.

I hope you enjoy this sourdough stromboli as much as we do.  Learning how to eat healthy and nourishing food even during busy seasons is a worthy pursuit, and one we are here to help you with.  Thanks for following along as we share more about modern homesteading and how to grow a simple, sustainable life.

If you like this recipe, please comment below and give it a 5 star rating.  Be sure to browse our website for more delicious from scratch sourdough meals.

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quick and easy sourdough stromboli
Yield: 16 Pieces

Homemade Sourdough Stromboli

Homemade Sourdough Stromboli

Homemade sourdough stromboli is an easy sourdough discard recipe.  It is made from dough that is rolled out and filled with a variety of meats and cheeses and then baked to be similar to a hot sandwich.  It is great hot or cold, and can be filled with a variety of fillings.  Excellent for meals during busy seasons of life, and great to have in the freezer for back to school lunches or meals on the go.  

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes

Ingredients

  • 1/2 c. warm milk
  • 1/2 c. sourdough starter
  • 1/4 c. sugar
  • 1/2 c. butter
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 tsp. salt
  • 3 1/2 c. flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. baking powder

Instructions

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine milk, sourdough starter, butter, sugar and eggs.  Mix well using the dough hook attachment.

2. Add salt, flour, baking soda and baking powder.  Mix for 5-7 minutes.  You can do the windowpane test by slowly stretching the dough upwards to see if it stays together and if you can see through it similar to a window.

3. Wrap ball of dough in plastic wrap or place in an airtight bowl and allow to ferment at room temperature overnight, or in the refrigerator for up to a week.

4. When you’re ready to bake the sourdough stromboli, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

5. Brown sausage or hamburger if using any.

6. Roll dough into approximately a 16-inch rectangle on parchment paper (see video below).

7. Place meats/cheeses, mushrooms, mustard, sausage etc. down the center of dough.

8. Fold each side of the dough over the top of the meat/cheese mixture and seal the edges.

9. Transfer dough using parchment paper onto a baking sheet or use a pizza peel and transfer to a preheated pizza stone.  

10. In a small bowl, beat one egg and coat the top of the dough with the egg wash using a pastry brush.

11. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until a light golden brown.

12. Slice using a pizza cutter or sharp knife.

13. Serve with marinara sauce for dipping and a side salad for a delicious and healthy meal.

14. Once cool, the slices can be placed into freezer bags or an airtight container and frozen for up to three months.

Notes

To thaw 

Place on a cookie sheet in the oven and bake until warmed through

OR 

Microwave for 1-2 minutes until warmed through

If it’s a warm day and we’re out and about, we will sometimes put these on the dash of our vehicle to thaw and warm while we’re working.

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2 Comments

  1. My husband and I love Stromboli. We never could get it again once Carini’s closed in Rapid City. When I started making sourdough recipes in October 2024, I began looking for recipes. I decided to look for Stromboli and picked yours. My first batch was horrible because I used packaged pepperoni! It’s not a wise solution. We had to throw it out (we wouldn’t even feed the deer!) because it was nothing but salt. I am trying it with Italian sausage, onion, mushrooms, black olives, and a jalapeño (without seeds because my husband does not like hot). I plan a luncheon next Wednesday after our BSF (Bible Study Fellowship, International) meeting. If this one turns out, I might make two of them and have that. We can “talk” while it cooks for 25 minutes or so.

    I’m looking forward to trying it tonight. I will let it ferment for four hours and then prepare it for dinner.