Melt butter in a microwave or over low heat on the stovetop until just melted, set aside and allow to cool.

Heat milk now so it has time to cool if it has been overheated. The milk needs to be 105 degrees F to 115 degrees F when added to the rest of the dough ingredients.

Mix water with yeast in a small bowl.

Add a couple of pinches of sugar from the ¼ cup sugar to the yeast and water mixture.

Mix well and set aside to allow to bloom for 10 to 15 minutes.

After the yeast has bloomed, add yeast, remaining sugar, eggs, milk and melted butter to a mixing bowl and mix well. Dough hook or paddle can be used.

Add 1 cups of flour, mix well.

Add kosher salt, mix well.

Add additional 2 1/2 cups of flour, 1 cup at a time. Finish with last 1/2 cup.

The dough should form a ball but should be slightly sticking to the bowl in one or two spots.

Add additional flour as needed to achieve slight sticking. The amount needed will depend on the weather and indoor humidity.

Oil a large bowl.

Remove dough from mixing bowl and place into an oiled bowl.

Turn dough in the bowl to cover all exposed dough with oil.

Cover bowl with kitchen towel. Alternatively, plastic wrap can be loosely placed over the bowl.

Set dough aside in warm place for 2 hours.

After 2 hours, deflate the dough and recover.

Allow dough to sit in warm place for an additional 2 hours or place in refrigerator for up to 18 hours.

Prepare a baking sheet by spraying with baking spray or lining with parchment paper.

Preheat oven to

Remove mozzarella sticks from the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before wrapping. Remove the wrapper from the cheese sticks and place them on a paper towel and roll them over the paper towel to remove the moisture.

Remove the pepperoni from the refrigerator, slice the slices in half. Stacking 10 or so pepperoni slices at time speeds this process up.

Place the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll out into a rectangle roughly 12 inches by 20 inches.

Cut dough in half long ways, leaving 2 5-inch by 20-inch pieces. Cut each half into 10 pieces. Your pieces should be approximately 5 inches by 2 inches.

Place one mozzarella stick along a long side of a piece of dough. Add 1 ounce of pepperoni slices, depending on the thickness of your pepperoni I find that 10 to 14 half slices are plenty. Spread the pepperoni evenly along side the cheese stick, cut side towards the dough.

Start rolling the pepperoni and cheese in the dough. Once completely covered in dough, pinch the dough together at the seam and the ends.

Gently roll the completed pepperoni roll on the work surface to even out the roll.

Place rolls on to the prepared baking sheet. Set aside for 1 to 2 hours or until the rolls have slightly risen one last time.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F while rolls are rising.

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and brush on top of rolls.

Place rolls into the preheated oven and bake until golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese if desired. The cheese should melt without additional baking. If browned cheese is preferred, place rolls back into the oven until the cheese has browned, about 5 minutes.

Serve hot with pizza sauce or marinara for dipping.