Ham and Cheese Braid

This recipe is taken from Fabulessly Frugal - click here if you want to see their photos. This is a great freezer recipe.

1 loaf Rhodes bread dough

1 cube butter or margarine (I use 1/3 of the butter mixture).

1 envelope hidden valley ranch mix

3/4 lb. thinly sliced ham

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 tsp poppy seeds

TO PREPARE: Roll bread dough out into a rectangular shape so its approx. 1/2 inch thick. Combine margarine and ranch mix (I use 1/3 of what the recipe calls for). Spread about 5 TBS of mixture on the rectangle. Layer ham and cheese down the center of the rectangle. Use a pizza cutter to cut strips along each side of the dough (even numbers on each side). Starting at the bottom, take each piece, cross and twist. Continue criss-crossing until your pizza is braided. Brush remaining butter/ranch mixture over top. Sprinkle with poppy seeds. Wrap loaf with plastic wrap and then foil if you want to freeze it for later. If you are cooking it right away, place braid on greased baking sheet or stone. (P.S. - it was easier for me to roll out the dough and then pick it up and place it on a couple overlapping pieces of plastic wrap so I can then move it from the counter to the baking sheet or wrap it up to freeze.)

To prepare after freezing: Thaw over night. Place in fridge as is if you wish to cook it on the foil. If you do not wish to cook it on the foil unwrap it and place on lightly greased baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap. Let thaw overnight. A couple of hours before you are ready to bake place it on the counter to continue to thaw and begin to rise.

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.