Vegetarian or Vegan Sausage Bread

Directions

1. Purchase or make 1 lb of Pizza Dough.
2. For Filling
3. Saute the Vegan Plant Based Italian sausage until it is well browned. Remove sausage from the pan into a mixing bowl. Drain all but 1 TBSP of the fat from the pan.
4. Saute the chopped onions in the fat until the onions are translucent. Add the diced red peppers and garlic. Saute for another minute.
5. Add the browned Vegan Sausage, Italian seasonings, and sundried tomatoes stir to mix well. Let the mixture cool to room temperature before adding it to the dough.
6. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface until it is a 12 by 16-inch rectangle.
7. Add the cooled filling and cheese to the dough. For a Vegan loaf; skip the cheese or substitute a vegan pizza cheese. Cut the edges as demonstrated in the picture.
8. Braid the loaf by folding the end strip of dough up over the filling and overlapping alternating side strips to form the braid. Place loaf on a parchment covered sheet pan. Cover the loaf loosely with plastic wrap.
9. et the loaf rise in a warm place for 30 - 60 minutes or until slightly puffy. While the loaf is rising, put a pizza stone or pizza steel in the oven and preheat your oven to 425 degrees. If you don't have a pizza stone or steel, bake the loaf on the sheet pan.
10. Once the loaf is puffy, brush with a mixture of equal parts corn or agave syrup and water. This helps the loaf brown. Alternately, you can use an egg wash.
11. Bake for 15 minutes at 425 degrees then reduce the temperature to 375 degrees and bake another 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool slightly on a cooling rack. Slice and serve with warm marinara sauce for dipping.