These Cheesy Pull Apart Italian Subs are so easy and delicious! Made with all the delicious toppings that are found in a traditional Italian Sub.
Having a large family and kids involved in after school activities and sports, I am all about easy meals. With it being football AND basketball season I also love to make appetizers to share with others on game day. These Cheesy Pull Apart Italian Subs fulfill both requirements!
I was first introduced to Italian subs from my husband, in fact, he is the only person that I know that makes them as well as he does. My husband’s love for Italian subs comes from one of his favorite restaurants to visit in Utah called The Italian Place. As a young boy, he would go there with his dad when they went to visit his grandma, he still talks fondly of these visits and his Italian sub is a replica of the sub at The Italian Place.
Recently when I made my Pull Apart Pizza Bites I thought that the Italian sub toppings would go perfect. I told my husband about my idea and he couldn’t wait for me to make it. Two nights later, voila! We made it and it was unreal! I loved it even more than the original because it was oh so cheesy. Smoked provolone cheese in between each roll, then cheese on top…oh my yumminess.
So here is my new favorite take on Italian Subs and guess what, it is super easy. Prepare in advance and bake later that day or night; your family will love this as dinner or served as a tailgating appetizer.
Enjoy! XOXO San
How do you make Cheesy Pull Apart Italian Subs?
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Spray a 9×13 pan with cooking oil. Place the frozen Rhode’s rolls in pan, 5 across and 4 deep leaving space in between to rise.
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Take the smoked provolone slices and cut then into quarters, and lay them in between the rolls, only using half of the cheese or about 6 ounces. Cover with a kitchen towel and set aside.
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Next, in a large sauté pan, cook ground beef over medium-high heat until fully cooked, crumbling it while you are cooking it. Drain meat once it is completely cooked and set aside.
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Using the same pan, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and place over medium-high heat. Add in diced onion, diced green peppers, and sliced mushrooms, cook until onion is translucent about 5 minutes.
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Reduce heat to low, add in diced tomatoes and hamburger, stir together and season with salt and pepper, about 2 teaspoons of pepper. Remove from heat and let it completely cool, I like to pour the meat and veggies onto a large baking sheet so they cool faster.
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Once the vegetables have completely cooled, pour the meat and vegetable mixture over and in between the rolls with the cheese. Top with the 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning, sprinkling it evenly over the rolls. If you wish, you can add the meat after rising just before baking.
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Place the towel over the rolls again and continue to rise, about 3-5 hours.
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Once the rolls have risen, pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
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Place rolls in oven and bake 12 minutes, then open oven and gently pull out pan, top each roll with 1-2 quarters of cheese, then gently put into the oven, close oven and bake for about 23-25 minutes, or until rolls have completely risen and cheese is golden and bubbly.
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Remove from oven and serve with a side of marinara sauce for dipping if you wish, our family eats them with no sauce.
If you love this recipe, be sure to try this Cheesy Italian Sausage & Pepper Stuffed Bread as well!
Don’t forget to pin this to your favorite Pinterest board to save for later!
Cheesy Pull Apart Italian Subs
Ingredients
- 20 Rhode’s Rolls frozen
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/2 yellow onion diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 12 ounces mushrooms sliced
- 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes drained
- 12 ounces smoked provolone cheese sliced deli-style
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
Instructions
- Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking oil. Place the frozen Rhode’s rolls in pan, 5 across and 4 deep leaving space in between to rise.
- Take the smoked provolone slices and cut then into quarters, and lay them in between the rolls, only using half of the cheese, or about 6 ounces. Cover with a kitchen towel and set aside.
- Next, in a large sauté pan, cook ground beef over medium-high heat until fully cooked, crumbling it while you are cooking it. Drain meat once it is completely cooked and set aside.
- Using the same pan, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and place over medium-high heat. Add in diced onion, diced green peppers, and sliced mushrooms, cook until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Reduce heat to low, add in diced tomatoes and hamburger, stir together and season with salt and pepper, about 2 teaspoons of pepper. Remove from heat and let it completely cool, I like to pour the meat and veggies onto a large baking sheet so they cool faster.
- Once the vegetables have completely cooled, pour the meat and vegetable mixture over and in between the rolls with the cheese. Top with the 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning, sprinkling it evenly over the rolls. **
- Place the towel over the rolls again and continue to rise, about 3-5 hours.
- Once the rolls have risen, pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Place rolls in oven and bake 12 minutes, then open oven and gently pull out pan, top each roll with 1-2 quarters of cheese, then gently put into the oven, close oven and bake for about 23-25 minutes, or until rolls are completely risen and cheese is a golden and bubbly.
- Remove from oven and serve with a side of marinara sauce for dipping if you wish, our family eats them with no sauce.
Thank you for the nice recipe.
Looks delicious! Definitely printing this off to try next week! Thanks for sharing!
Wowee! Can’t wait to try this one! Thanks for the recipe 🙂
You stated that total time is 1 hour and some minutes, yet you said to let the rolls rise 3-5 hours!
Ursula – I did mention at the bottom that the total time does not include the time to rise, you will see that in the note section. Sometimes it is more confusing to mention a long rise time in the total time, as then people think that is how long it needs to bake. Hope you like the recipe.
Thank you. The recipe was delicious!
Can I let the rolls overnight? I’d like to prep everything then just assemble and bake before serving.