HBin5 July 15th Bread Braid-- Substitute-Vermont Cheddar Bread from ABin5

Assignment: REAL assignment was 1 full recipe of Gluten-free Cheddar and Sesame bread, pgs 244-245 of the Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. The full recipe was to be made into:
1 loaf of guten-free Cheddar & Sesame Bread, and 1 Gluten-free Parmesan Bread Sticks
We can make substitutions, but share what and how we substituted with the group in our blogs.

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What I REALLY MADE:  1 full batch of Vermont Cheddar bread from the Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day (ABin5) made into 1 loaf of same and 1 focaccia.

What this session was really about for me was honoring those in our group and highlighting what I have learned from just a few of them.  I've been baking bread for umpty-ump years (you figure it out) but I am always delighted to learn new techniques and get new tips that help enhance my favorite passtime! 

Our fearless leader Michelle said she understood that some folks are on a tight budget and tight time constraints.  Therefore if we wanted (and I definitely did) we could make a cheddar bread from ABin5 instead of the costly Gluten-free assignment.  Don't get me wrong...I want to make the gluten-free breads, but the cost of the gluten-free flours and searching them out just are not do-able right now. 

If you turn to page 106 in the Abin5 book by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois you'll see a great Vermont Cheddar cheese bread recipe.  I followed the recipe except that I didn't have cheddar cheese labeled "Vermont".  Instead I had some left over cheese that Wanetta (my neighbor and featured person in many of these posts) gave me before she went out of town to a family reunion.  So I shredded that up and then tossed in an extra 1/2 c Kraft Parmesan (shaker dried kind). 

The day before I started baking the bread, I had made Lemon Bag cheese.  I procured the recipe from our forementioned illustrious leader Michelle's site:  http://bigblackdogs.net/homemade-lemon-bag-cheese-and-whole-wheat-pocket-bread-2/ .  One of the hints she gave is that when making the lemon bag cheese do not throw out the whey, instead use it for bread...seemed like a great idea to me so I substituted that for the lukewarm water.  I'll post about the cheese later, but let me tell you it was so easy and so delicious!  Thank you Michelle!

On my baking day I took out the dough and first made a focaccia that I topped with fresh tomatoes. 

Then I made the rest into a loaf.  I put on the dough chunks of fresh garlic, and fresh rosemary from my backyard. To shape this loaf I used a tip I found on Judy's blog (another HBin5 memeber).  I've often flattened my dough and then rolled it tight to get a good shape to my loaves. 

But I really liked Judy's idea!  Go to her blog for her version of it! 

http://judysbakeryandtestkitchen.blogspot.com/2010_07_01_archive.html

Next I borrowed an idea from Nancy (yes! another HBin5 member) and used one of my baskets for the shaping of the bread.  I floured the basket well first and then put the dough in to rise.  Looks pretty in the basket doesn't it?  Go to Nancy's site at:  http://flour-recycler.blogspot.com/2010/05/cane-brotform-style-bread-... proofing baskets to see all the different types of baskets she uses.  They are FUN! 

OK at this point I have to say that I put way to much dough in my basket...it didn't look that way when it was still in the basket just before I inverted it onto a silicon matt...but as you can see it definitely was when it was done baking!  LOL.  I really should have taken a picture of the finished loaf next to the basket.  It was twice as big as the basket.  Very tasty though! 

Looks like something one of King Henry VIII's cooks would do doesn't it? 

But let me tell you it made great hamburger bread! 

Those tomatoes are from my backyard!

Ken digs in. 

That's "agua de sabor" in the glass...in this case it's watermelon water, very refreshing on a hot day! 

Can you get any better than a hamburger like this!  YUM!

To see what everyone else did with their dough...go to:

http://bigblackdogs.net/

Or click on the HBin5 symbol seen here on my page! 

You'll be delighted with what you see and learn!