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FeedMar 14, 2012 12:28 PM WV Food
WV LIVING shares their favorite foods
Jalapeno-Cheddar Bread
I started off 2012 with an ambitious goal to not buy any bread from the grocery store. I had big plans to make a new loaf every week. However, after the spring semester started, I quickly realized this goal may have been a little lofty. And after about a month, I gave it up. During my bread making stint, I found some great recipes and some I didn’t really care for. One of my favorite recipes I tested was Jalapeno-Cheddar Sandwich Bread. It was a great addition to my lunch and gave sandwiches an extra kick. Don’t rely on this to be your only bread throughout the week. You're going to want something else when you are craving peanut butter and jelly.
Jalapeno-Cheddar Sandwich Bread
3¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup cold buttermilk
⅓ cup water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons honey
1 envelope (about 2¼ teaspoons) instant yeast
2 to 3 jalapenos, seeds and ribs removed, diced
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
Adjust one oven rack to the lowest position and another to the middle position. Preheat oven to 200°. When it is preheated, maintain the temperature for 10 minutes, then turn off the oven.
Toss the jalapeno and cheddar with 1 tablespoon of flour in a small bowl.
Bring the water to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove from heat, add the cold buttermilk, and stir to combine.
Mix 3½ cups of flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the buttermilk/water mixture, butter, honey, and yeast to a liquid measuring cup. Turn the mixer on low and add the liquid in a slow stream, increasing the speed of the mixer as you go to medium. Continue mixing until the dough is smooth and satiny, stopping to scrape the dough from the hook as needed. After about 2 to 3 minutes, add the jalapeno-cheese mixture, and continue to knead about 10 minutes total, adding flour 1 tablespoon at a time, as necessary to keep the dough from sticking to the sides of the bowl.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead to form a smooth ball, about 15 seconds.
Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, rubbing the dough around the bowl to coat with the oil. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and place the bowl in the oven until the dough doubles in size, 50 to 60 minutes.
Turn out onto the floured surface and gently press the dough into a rectangle that is 1 inch thick and 9 inches long. With the long side facing you, roll the dough firmly into a cylinder, pressing with your fingers as you roll to make sure the dough sticks to itself. Turn the dough seam-side up and pinch it closed.
Place the dough seam-side down in a greased 9x5-inch loaf pan, and press it gently to make sure it touches all four sides of the pan. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise in a warm spot until the dough almost doubles in size, 20 to 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350°. Place an empty baking pan on the lowest rack of the oven. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and pour into the empty pan. Set the loaf on the middle rack and bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf reads 195°, about 40 to 50 minutes.
Remove the bread from the pan and cool to room temperature on a wire rack. Slice and serve.
Recipe adapted from Josie at Pink Parsley.
