| Parmesan Pepper Bread
Ingredients:
3 ½ cups bread flour (since you won't be kneading this dough you have to use bread flour)
1 package (2 ¼ teaspoons) yeast
2 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup milk (any kind will do)
1 1/2 cups hot water (120-130 degrees)
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon honey
2 eggs at room temperature
1 cups(4 oz), plus 2 tablespoons for garnishing, grated Parmesan cheese (don't use the powdered stuff from the Mega Mart you will not be happy)
2 tablespoons freshly cracked black pepper
Baking pans - 2 8"x 4" loaf pans non-stick or greased
Method:
This bread starts with a sponge but it does not require an overnight fermentation.
To make the sponge measure our 2 cups of the bread flour into your large mixing bowl or the work bowl of your stand mixer. Add the yeast and salt and stir to combing the ingredients.
Add the hot water,milk, butter, honey, eggs and 1 cup of the cheese.
With either a wooden spoon or the paddle attachment on your stand mixer beat the sponge for 10 minutes. Yeah, I know it is a lot of work to do by hand, but if you get tired take a 2 minute break then continue. You can do this, I've done it a lot by hand and it builds up your stamina!
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the sponge to ferment for 1 hour. It will bubble and puff up during that time.
Uncover the bowl and pour in your cracked black pepper. I like to use a the course setting on the pepper mill but that is up to you.
Using a wooden spoon or the flat paddle attachment on your stand mixer, mix in the pepper. Then, ½ at a time mix in the remaining bread flour. Be sure that all of the flour is incorporated before you add the next ½ cup.
Re-cover the bowl in plastic wrap and let the dough rise for about 1 hour, or until it has doubled in volume.
Remove the plastic wrap and stir down the dough. Using a spoon, spoon half of the batter into each of the waiting loaf pans. This is a batter only in the sense that it is too wet to knead, but it is going to pull back against the spoon and really can't be poured into the pans. Don't get freaked out, everything is okay.
Set the pans aside to and let the dough rise until it is just at the rim of the pans. You really don't want it to go over as it will tend to flow when it is put in the over and you'll lose part of your bread to the bottom of the oven.
Twenty minutes before backing, set a rack in the middle of your oven and preheat it to 375.
When the oven is hot and the dough is risen, sprinkle half of the remaining parmesan cheese over the tops of the loaves. Slip them into the hot oven for 45 minutes.
Test for doneness by turning one of the loaves out of the pan. It should be golden brown and give a nice hollow thump when flicked with a finger on the bottom of the loaf. If it is not done return to the oven for another five minutes.
Remove from the oven and turn the loaves out onto a wire cooling rack to cool.
I love this bread because it fills the kitchen with the great smell of pepper and cheese. The pepper provides a little bite but does not overpower the taste of the cheese.
If you bake this you might just find that your March Muddle-heads are getting off the sofa to find out what is going on in the kitchen.
The flour is yours! |
