posts may contain Amazon affiliate links, which earn me a small commission when you buy (but doesn't cost you anything extra). Occasionally I receive free products and/or run sponsored posts—this will always be stated clearly in the post. Thank you for supporting this blog.

This website contains some quotations, excerpts, and screen clips from copyrighted material. These uses fall well within the copyright doctrine of "Fair Use".
Thursday, June 2, 2011

Cheddar-Stuffed Crusty Sourdough Loaves

So.  Apparently filling and rolling and layering has become sort of a theme around here when baking bread lately.  First there was that Better-than-any-Bread-in-the-Galaxy-Garlic Bread-to-end-all-Garlic BreadsOkay, that's not its name...but I'm thinking of renaming it that.  Next came the re-appearance of the Vesuvius of breads, the Stromboli.  And dare I include the Cinnamon-Sugar Pull-Apart Ricotta Bread in this group?  It does have a filling...although no rolling was involved.  I suppose this reminds me most of the Garlic bread since it includes filling, rolling, and then slicing down the middle...letting the cut side sort of simply and beautifully droop and spread.  But then again, it's not as soft and luxurious as the garlic glory.  It has a magnificent crusty outside like the Stromboli does.  It's very reminiscent of both.  Crusty and cheesy with a hint of garlic.  Another one for the keeper pile.
Cheddar-Stuffed Crusty Sourdough Loaves
inspired by & adapted from King Arthur Flour
yield: 2 loaves

pre-ferment:
1¼ c. (~147 g.) Unbleached Bread Flour
1 tsp. salt
½ c. cool water
good ladle-full (~6-8 oz) of 100% Hydration Sourdough Starter*

dough:
all of starter*
1¼ c. lukewarm water
3½ c. (~413 g.) Unbleached Bread Flour + more as needed

filling:
garlic oil (or olive oil & a bit of minced garlic)
2½ c. (~8 oz.) Extra Sharp Cheddar, shredded

Pre-ferment:
Mix all ingredients together.  Starter will be pretty dry.  If it seems too dry and will not come together, add another Tbs. or so of water at a time.  Cover and let sit overnight at warm room temperature.  It should look bubbly in the morning.

Dough:
Combine risen starter and other ingredients.  Knead either by hand or using a mixer or bread machine.  Dough will be a bit "tacky"...but not so sticky that you cannot handle it.  If it is too sticky, simply knead in a bit more flour until it handles nicely.  Place in an oiled bowl (or let bread machine do its work), cover and let sit until doubled in size, ~1-1½ hours.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a minute or two.  Pat and stretch, using your fingers, the dough into a large rectangle, ~9" x 12".  Drizzle with a bit of oil (~1 Tbs.) and sprinkle cheese evenly over the whole thing.

Starting with the long side, roll into a log.  Pinch seams together and let sit, seam-side down, on a lightly floured surface (covered with lightly sprayed plastic wrap) for ~1-1½ hours, or until puffy.  Preheat oven to 425° F during last 20 minutes of rising time.

Cut log in half and place, cut side UP onto parchment-lined (or silpat or simply greased) baking sheet.  Yes, it's a bit awkward...but it's supposed to be rustic-looking...so no worries.  Spritz with some warm water.
Slide into oven and bake for ~35-45 minutes, or until cheese is melted and loaves are a deep, golden brown.  Let cool slightly and serve warm.

*Alternately, you could make regular (not Sourdough) by adding ½ tsp. instant yeast instead of the starter.  Also, add another ½ tsp. instant yeast to "dough" ingredients, along w/ starter. This is how the actual KAF recipe was presented.

Sliced and toasted, this bread makes one killer BLT Sandwich!

I am sharing this post with:
*Yeastspotting!
BYOB-badge wanderfood-badge what's cookin wednesday whats on the menu wednesday thesechickscookfeaturingmyrecipes Miz-Helen-Badge-ALT5

Would you like to comment?

  1. oh, MY - this looks perfect. I have no words. simply amazing. I want this, alone with melted butter, and then yes, with a BLT.

    ReplyDelete
  2. This would definitely make a perfect meal with some salads for me!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Que aspecto tan delicioso te ha quedado.

    Saludos

    ReplyDelete
  4. wow perfectly baked bread, love the cheese bits inside :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I think I need a loaf of this one too--then I can switch off between this and the cinnamon bread. ;-) Yum!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Mouthwateringly delicious! OMG that cheese!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Omg, those loaves looks seriously addictive and cheesyyyy..

    ReplyDelete
  8. you transported me to Europe with those pictures - I have seen those kinds of bread with marble painted effect in many boulangeries during our travels :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Dear Heather, Please send me some of this cheese bread because I'm too lazy to make it myself. Ha ha!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Oh my I am in heaven Heather!!!!!! The only thing better to start my day would be a large slice at my breakfast table.

    ReplyDelete
  11. ooooooooooh !!! Yum, love the pictures, very tempting, great job dear.

    ReplyDelete
  12. So you seem to be a bit of a bread queen with every bread recipe looking delicious!! I say we have a bread competition with selected ingredients....

    ReplyDelete
  13. Doesn't King Arthur have the best bread recipes? This looks so good! Crisp on the outside and soft on the inside!

    ReplyDelete
  14. That is cheesy perfection. Oh the texture!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Girl..this is so tempting..I can just imagine myself eating that soft cheesy bun..wow.

    ReplyDelete
  16. oh my gosh, look at that cheesy bread, and i love that it's sourdough, delicious!!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Years ago, I had a cheddar-stuffed bread at the Madison, WI Farmer's Market that had no equal. Now I think I found it's soul mate. Cheese perfection.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Oh my gosh. There goes my trying to lose some weight this week!

    ReplyDelete
  19. You're killing me with all this stuffed bread! It's a good thing I'm marathon training soon. Then I'll have an excuse to eat whole loaves at a time.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Girlchef look absolutely perfectly! gloria

    ReplyDelete
  21. Oohhh look at that crusty melted cheese!!!! Fantastic recipe. I am a cheese lover... so you got me at the title already! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  22. Hi Girlichef, this looks amazing and I can almost taste it. Warm cheese in bread is so delicious. So, I have to make it myself.
    But, please can you give the amounts you’ve used in grams. I've spend a lot of time looking for the conversion of cups to grams and there are so many (!?) For all purpose flour I now use 135 grams, is this ok?

    ReplyDelete
  23. @Connie...Hi Connie. You know what? I try to remember to measure and then weigh my flour when making bread and baked goods, but I often forget. This was one of those times. I didn't weight out the recipe...I'm so sorry =( I grew up using only measuring cups/spoons and no scale, so I'm still trying to get used to doing the whole metric-system thing. I will try to do better in the future. And I don't have a "set" conversion, either. My closest estimate is using ~147 grams of flour in the "starter" and using ~413 grams in the "dough". I hope this helps!! =)

    ReplyDelete
  24. Seriously? I don't think I've forgiven you for that garlic bread yet! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Hi Heather,
    My little dog Jaque lays at my feet as I am making comments, and I just made so many animal like sounds he has got up and is looking at me really funny,lol. That's what the looks of that wonderful bread has done to me. You know I have to try this awesome recipe. Thanks for sharing with Full Plate Thursday and come back soon!

    ReplyDelete
  26. I soooo need to eat this right now! Do you even realize that I am waiting for Charles to come home very late from work, and am reading friends' food blogs whilst very hungry? Please email me one loaf.

    ReplyDelete
  27. I love homemade bread and yours look perfect! I love that rustic look on the crust, must be full of flavor! Yum!

    BTW, I'm your newest follower.

    Amy
    http://utry.it

    ReplyDelete
  28. I cannot make a loaf of bread to save my life. I guess I'm going to have to take a class. These look beautiful Heather and would love to have a chunk of it with a bowl of soup and salad.

    ReplyDelete
  29. fantastic! i always make cheese toasties to go along with soups... why not bake it right into the bread? looks dense and delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  30. This bread sounds totally amazing for someone like me who LOVES carbs. Yummy! Thanks for sharing it.
    Katie

    ReplyDelete
  31. yum! This looks absolutely delicious! I am going to try this out soon! I found your blog through a link party and i LOVE it! I love making new blog friends! I am your newest follower and would love it if you would check out my blog and follow me too! Thanks!
    -Nikki
    http://chef-n-training.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete