Bacon and Cheese Bread 培根乳酪面包

One of the best things to do on a cold snowy day is to bake at home. Not only does one get to enjoy fresh baked goods, the heat from the oven keeps the kitchen nice and warm. A few days ago, we were hit by a severe winter storm. Too cold and too much trouble to go out. With the necessary ingredients in my fridge, making home-baked bacon and cheese bread seemed like a very attractive option.

In cold weather, bread takes a much longer time to rise. The trick is to leave the bread in an enclosed space (e.g. microwave oven) with a cup of very hot water, which should be replaced regularly. If you don't feel like replacing the hot water, just leave the first cup and allow a longer time for rising.

Making bread is like building a relationship with someone. Do not rush the process. Interact with it, give it some space, interact with it again, then leave it alone, etc....I think you get the idea. If you are anxious and try to rush the process before the bread has time to properly rest and rise, you will end up with bread that is not as tasty or fluffy as it should be. But if you are patient and do the right things at the right time, you can be assured the bread will turn out well. 

Today I am baking the bread using direct method. The process goes like this: throw the ingredients together, knead, rise, shape, rise and bake. My good friend who previously would never have thought of baking her own bread just tried it recently, and was surprised at how easy and gratifying it is. Give it a try.

Recipe

Makes 8 buns

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Ingredients

270g bread flour

30g cake flour (can be replaced with bread flour)

1 egg

1 tsp instant yeast

30g olive oil

20g sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup + 2 tbsp water

Toppings

3 slices of bacon, shredded

1/2 cup chopped onion

100g (about 10 slices) cheese, shredded

a) Mix & Knead

Add the bread flour, cake flour, egg, instant yeast, olive oil, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add 1/2 cup of water to the bowl. Mix well and knead till the dough becomes pliable and almost non sticky.

Add 1 tbsp of water and continue to knead till water is absorbed into dough. Add another 1 tbsp of water and knead until the dough is smooth, elastic and passes the window-pane test. To do the window-pane test, stretch the dough and if it forms a thin membrane which allows light to come through and does not tear easily, it is done. 



b) First rise

Shape the dough into a ball. Place in a greased container with lid or covered with plastic wrap, and place in a warm place and allow to rise till double in size (about an hour).

c) Shape

Lightly dust the work surface, and turn dough out. Deflate dough by gently pressing down with your hands. Divide dough into 2 portions, shape them into balls, cover with plastic wrap and rest for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, roll out the first piece of dough into a rectangle shape. Spread the toppings evenly over the dough and roll up into a swiss-roll. Seal the open ends by pinching with your fingers. Slice the swiss roll into 4 pieces.

Do the same with the second piece of dough. 

d) Second rise
Arrange the buns on a parchment paper lined baking tray. Spray some water on the buns to keep them moist. Put the tray in the oven (do not turn it on) for second rising till dough doubles in size. If the weather is cold, I also place a cup of hot water in the oven. Remove it 15 minutes before rising is complete to preheat the oven.

e) Bake
Preheat the oven to 355 deg F (180 deg C) about 15 minutes before dough is ready. Bake for about 15-20 minutes until the buns turn a nice golden-brown color. Remove from oven and cool bread on rack.