Chubble Bread

I've made this recipe several times before, but never for the food blog-loving public. So here goes!

I didn't take a whole lot of photos b/c i didn't anticipate turning them into a blog post. Oh well...

Now in the recipe it says to you a stand-up mixer, but I don't have one. So I do it all BY HAND! And let me tell you that making bread isn't for the weak. I couldn't help but think about the pioneer women doing this every morning for breakfast...ugh. Keep in mind that there is NOTHING WRONG with doing it by hand, it's just a whole lot of work.
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Chubble Bread
This recipe came originally from To Be Mrs. Marv..., but I have modified it in a few places.

Sponge:
1 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

Dough:
1 tsp active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
3 tsp olive oil
Sponge, above
3 1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
a pinch of kosher salt

Stuffs:
10 oz. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese from a can
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
1 bunch parsley, chopped
2 tsp garlic power
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 1/4 t red pepper flakes
3 Tbsp olive oil

Sponge:
Sprinkle yeast over the warm water in a large bowl, whisk it in, and let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in the flour. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

Dough:
Sprinkle yeast over the warm water in a small bowl, whisk it in, and let stand until creamy, about 5 to 10 minutes. Using a heavy-duty mixer, add the dissolved yeast and the olive oil to the sponge in the mixer bowl; mix in with the paddle attachment until well blended. Add in salt. Add in flour 1/4 c at a time - when you get to 3 cups, the dough should stop being very sticky and become only slightly sticky.

Change to the dough hook and knead at medium speed until the dough is soft, velvety and slightly sticky, 3 to 4 minutes. At this point you will be able to pull the dough up into peaks with your fingers. Finish by sprinkling flour on the counter and kneading the dough briefly. Transfer to a bowl lightly coated with olive oil and cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled about 90 mins.

Stuffs:
Feel free to prep and toss together all stuffs ingredients in a large bowl. Coat the mixture with oil. Cover with a towel and set aside.

Stuffs & Second Rise:
Empty out bread on a non-sick surface. Shape into a flat rectangle, approximately 1/2″ - 1″ thick. Using a pizza wheel, cut loaf into inch wide strips. They do not need to be uniform. Then cut off one inch ends.

Put about half of the stuffs in a wide bowl and then begin adding the dough squares/balls into the bowl. Toss dough in the stuffs and gently coat them. Add in more stuffs periodically so that they stay separate.

Divide mixture into your baking pans. I have been using 2 round cake pans (it gives them that Sister Schubert's look) Once you have dough in pans, cover with plastic wrap and leave for second rise in a warm area. Let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Baking:
Preheat oven to 400°f. Brush top with olive oil and bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.



DO NOT OVERCOOK THESE! They tend to dry out easily!!

Herb & Cheese Savory Crackers with Balsamic Syrup

Recipe from Dragon's Kitchen
Serves: 6
Ingredients:
1 cup of flour 2 tbsp of fresh rosemary
1/4 cup of butter, cut into cubes
1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup of sour cream Salt and pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a food processor, place flour, rosemary, butter, salt and pepper. Pulse until combined.
Add the Parmesan cheese and sour cream.
Pulse until the dough comes together.
Roll dough out into a log and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Slice dough into cookies and place them on a lined baking sheet.
Bake for 15 minutes, until they just start to brown.
Serve with balsamic syrup.


Balsamic Syrup
Ingredients:
1 cup balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoons of light flavored honey

Directions:
Combine balsamic vinegar, sugar and honey in a saucepan over medium/low heat.

Simmer until reduced by ½ and has the consistency of syrup.

Be careful not to let it reduce too much or it will become bitter and hard. Also watch out for the fumes from the vinegar as it cooks.

Allow the syrup to come to room temperature. You can cover and refrigerate the syrup for up to 2 weeks.

COMMENTS: These were goodish... i don't know how i feel about them. One thing i did learn is the more i cook with rosemary, the less i believe i like it.