This lovely loaves are baked thanks to the Bread Baking Babe Natashya who chose their recipe as the recipe of the month.
Actually this is not any recipe: it's the winner of the National Festival of Breads so you can imagine how good it is.
The great part of this is that the bread is quite easy to put together and beautiful (please visit Natashya for beauty).
The changes I made to the recipe are a few: I used sourdough (one third of the total amount of flour) I used soy milk instead of milk and flaxseed flour instead of eggs.
For the fillings I used dried tomatoes and pesto in the one below and tomato sauce, pesto, dried tomatoes and capers in the one above.
Tomato, Basil, & Garlic Filled Pane Bianco
King Arthur Flour websiteThe winning recipe from the first-ever National Festival of Breads, this white bread filled with fresh basil, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic powder, and shredded cheese has a wonderful soft texture and is packed with flavor. The unique shape is simple to achieve and makes an impressive presentation. Congratulations and thanks to Dianna Wara of Washington, Illinois, for creating this recipe — it's a winner, for sure!
Ingredients by volume:
* 1/2 cup warm water
* 1/4 cup sugar
* 4 teaspoons instant yeast
* 1 cup warm low-fat milk
* 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
* 2 large eggs
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 6 cups King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
* 1 (8 1/2-ounce) jar oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
* 3/4 teaspoon granulated garlic or garlic powder
* 1 1/2 cups shredded Italian blend cheese, divided
* 2/3 cup chopped fresh basil
* 4 ounces warm water
* 1 3/4 ounces sugar
* 4 teaspoons instant yeast
* 8 ounces warm low-fat milk
* 2 3/8 ounces extra-virgin olive oil
* 2 large eggs
* 2 teaspoons salt
* 25 1/2 ounces King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
* 1 (8 1/2-ounce) jar oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
* 3/4 teaspoon granulated garlic or garlic powder
* 6 ounces shredded Italian blend cheese, divided
* 1/2 ounce chopped fresh basil
Metric
113g warm water
50g sugar
4 teaspoons instant yeast
227g warm low-fat milk
67g extra-virgin olive oil
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons salt
723g King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour
1 (241g) jar oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
3/4 teaspoon granulated garlic or garlic powder
170g shredded Italian blend cheese, divided
14g chopped fresh basil
1) Combine the water, sugar, yeast, milk, olive oil, eggs, salt, and flour, and mix and knead by hand, stand mixer, or bread machine until you've made a cohesive, soft dough. If you're kneading in a stand mixer, it should take 5 to 7 minutes at second speed, and the dough should barely clean the sides of the bowl, perhaps sticking a bit at the bottom. In a bread machine (or by hand), it should form a smooth ball. Place the dough in a greased bowl, and turn to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double, about 45 minutes.
2) Meanwhile, thoroughly drain the sun-dried tomatoes; lay them on a paper towel to absorb any excess oil. Using kitchen shears, finely chop the tomatoes.
3) Line two baking sheets with parchment. Gently deflate the dough and divide it in half. Roll one piece into a 22" x 8 1/2" rectangle. Sprinkle on half the garlic, cheese, basil, and tomatoes.
4) Starting with one long edge, roll the dough into a log the long way. Pinch the edges to seal.
5) Place the log seam-side down on a baking sheet. Using kitchen shears, start 1/2" from one end and cut the log lengthwise down the center about 1" deep, to within 1/2" of the other end.
6) Keeping the cut side up, form an "S" shape. Tuck both ends under the center of the "S" to form a "figure 8"; pinch the ends together to seal. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double, 45 to 60 minutes. Repeat with the remaining dough.
7) While the loaves are rising, preheat the oven to 350°F.
8) Bake the first loaf for 35 to 40 minutes. Tent the loaf with foil after 15 to 20 minutes to prevent over-browning. Bake the remaining loaf.
9) Remove loaves from their pans; cook on racks. Store any leftovers well-wrapped, at room temperature.
Yield: 2 loaves.
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