Herb and Cheese Bubble Loaf
Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook p. 99
2 1/2 to 3 cups all-purpose flour
1 package active dry yeast
1 cup milk
1 Tbs. butter or margarine
1 cup shredded cheddar or Swiss cheese
1/4 cup butter
2 Tbs. snipped parsley
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. dried marjoram
In a large mixing bowl combine 1 cup of the flour and the yeast; set aside. In a small saucepan heat and stir milk, the 1 Tbs. butter, and 1/2 tsp. salt just till warm (120-130 F) and butter almost melts. Add milk mixture to dry mixture. Beat with an electric mixer on low to medium speed for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl often. Beat on high speed 3 minutes. Stir in cheese and as much of the remaining flour as you can.
Turn dough onto a floured surface. Knead in enough remaining flour to make a moderately stiff dough that is smooth and elastic (6 to 8 minutes total). Shape dough into a ball. Place in a lightly greased bowl; turn once. Cover; let rise in a warm place till nearly double in size (about 1 hour).
Punch dough down. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, lightly grease a 1 1/2 quart casserole or a 9x5x3 loaf pan. Stir together the 1/4 cup melted butter, parsley, oregano, and marjoram. Set aside.
To shape, on a floured surface roll out dough from center to edges, forming an 8x6-inch rectangle; cut into 48 pieces. Gently pull each portion of dough into a ball, touching edges beneath. Roll each ball in butter mixture. Arrange balls, smooth sides up, in prepared casserole or pan. Cover; let rise in a warm place till nearly double (30-40 minutes).
Bake in a 365 degree oven 35-40 minutes or till bread sounds hollow when tapped (cover loosely with foil the last 10 to 15 minutes of baking to prevent overbrowning). Remove bread from casserole or pan. Serve warm. Makes 1 loaf (16 servings).
EMILY SAYS: I doubled this, and boy was I glad I did. We ate nearly all of it among the ten of us. Everyone thought it was really yummy, myself included. I attribute a *little* of the reaction to the fact that this was one of the first things ready, so people were very hungry, and gobbling while they waited. The amount of melted butter/herbs to dip in was not nearly enough. I'd probably about double it (you can always pour whatever's left over the top of the loaves). I also used more herbs in proportion to butter for that stage. I baked it in two loaf pans, a little longer than suggested, at a slightly lower temp, because I didn't want the non-stick to make it get too dark. The bottom and side crusts came out very pleasantly crunchy, and the inside was nice and soft. Definitely something I'll do again.
LYNDA SAYS: This was wonderful. I seem to be on a strong-flavors kick, and thus feel it could've used a little more in the herbs or salt department, but it was really very, very good. And pretty. Good decorative tasty finger-food bread.