Saturday, July 5, 2008

Cheesy bread

I saw these heavenly looking cheesy buns of goodness on I Like to Cook's blog and knew I had to try it. The recipe is from King Arthur Flour and theirs looks so gorgeous! I'm so jealous, but seeing as how I'm still very new to the world of baking, I must say that I'm quite proud of myself. Up until very recently, the only time I ever used my oven was to make something out of a Betty Crocker box. And even then, I'd manage to screw it up once in a while. I've come a long way baby! But I still have a long way to go, as you can see below...



Recipe from King Arthur

Starter
1 1/4 cups (5 1/4 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour (I used all purpose)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
1/2 cup (4 ounces) cool water


Dough
all of the starter
1 cup + 2 tablespoons (9 ounces) to 1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) lukewarm water*
1 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 cups (14 3/4 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
(I used all purpose)
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast

*Use the greater amount of water in winter, when conditions are dry; and the lesser amount in summer, when the weather is humid.

Filling
2 1/2 cups (10 ounces) grated Gruyère cheese, or the grated/shredded cheese of your choice (I used a blend of cheddar and jack)

To make the starter: Mix the 1 1/4 cups flour, salt, yeast, and 1/2 cup water in a medium-sized bowl. Mix till well combined. Cover and let rest overnight at room temperature.

To make the dough: Combine the risen starter with the water, salt, flour, and yeast. Knead—by hand, mixer, or bread machine set on the dough cycle—to make a smooth dough. Place it in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, till it’s nearly doubled in bulk.

Gently deflate the dough, and pat and stretch it into a ¾"-thick rectangle, about 9" x 12". Spritz with water, and sprinkle with the grated cheese. Starting with a long side, roll it into a log, pinching the seam to seal. Place the log, seam-side down, on a lightly floured or lightly oiled surface. Cover it and let it rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, till it’s puffy though not doubled in bulk. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 425°F.


Gently cut the log into four crosswise slices, for mini-breads; or simply cut the dough in half, for two normal-sized loaves. Place them on one (for two loaves) or two (for four mini-loaves) lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheets, cut side up. Spread them open a bit, if necessary, to more fully expose the cheese. Spritz with warm water, and immediately place them in the preheated oven. Bake for 20 minutes (for the mini-loaves), or 35 minutes (for the full-sized loaves), or until the cheese is melted and the loaves are a very deep golden brown. Remove them from the oven, and cool on a rack.
Yield: four mini-loaves or two standard-size loaves.

9 comments:

Maryanna said...

One thing better than bread is "cheesy bread."

Liz said...

I love cheese, and I love bread! It looks really good!

What's Cookin Chicago said...

Holy cheese heaven! These look so good. I really need to get over my issues on working with yeast. I'm missing out on yummy recipes like this one :)

gaga said...

Joelen - don't be scared of yeast. I used to be scared too, but after a few attempts, I've learned that it's a bit time consuming, but not difficult at all.

That Girl said...

I would never have guessed you were a novice baker based on the way these turned out!

test it comm said...

It's hard to beat fresh baked cheese bread!

Anonymous said...

What a fun idea :)! I think you did a great job :D.

Anonymous said...

This cheesy bread looks SO good! I'm rather intimidated by real bread, as my only experience has been with the no-knead bread from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. However, I think I'll have to try this. I don't think you can get much better than cheese + bread!

gaga said...

I've been doing Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day too and I bet you could adapt that to make this bread too. But honestly, "real" bread isn't that much harder, it just takes more time. I'm an 5 minute convert now though!