Saturday, April 28, 2012

Herbed Spicy Garlic pull apart bread

I was thinking what to make for another bread post and the idea of using mint to make a bread came when I went to my backyard and saw my mint plant already spread to fill the entire planter. There were barely 4 sprigs last week and all the rain must have made them grow super fast. I plucked few mint sprigs and came inside. I have been wanting to make a herbed pull apart bread for a while now. I had seen the picture in a magazine which had Italian seasonings sprinkled between layers of dough and baked. Inspired by that, I started the process of my own spice mix. This bread is so awesome, I probably will bake it too many times and eat it and gain too many pounds. Try it and I promise you - you won't be disappointed.
One Year Back - Cake pans and their conversions
Two Years Back - Strawberry Mousse
Ingredients: (Makes one 9 X 5 loaf)
All purpose flour - 3 cups
Warm water - 1 cup
Salt - 1 1/4 tsp
Sugar - 1 TBSP
Oil - 2 TBSP
Active dry yeast - 2 tsp
Green chillies - 2 chopped fine
Mint leaves - 6 chopped fine
Cilantro - 2 TBSP chopped
Garlic Powder - 3/4 tsp

To make a paste:
Oil - 2 TBSP
Salt - to taste (about 1/2 tsp)
Green chillies - 3 chopped
Mint leaves - 2 - 3 TBSP
Cilantro - 2 - 3 TBSP
Garlic - 1 clove


Method:
In a bowl, take warm water, sugar. Add yeast to it. Let it stand till it froths. Add the remaining ingredients to it and start making a dough. When all the flour has been absorbed, knead it for 10 minutes or until it is smooth and elastic. It should not be sticky or tacky. If it is, add 1 TBSP flour at a time and knead it. Place in an oiled bowl and turn it once to coat all the sides. Cover and let rise in a warm place. About 45 minutes to an hour or till double in bulk.
Meanwhile, line a 9 X 5 loaf pan with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Leave an overhang so that you can lift the loaf as soon as it is done. Coat the bottom and sides with oil or vegetable oil spray. Set aside. In a food chopper or blender (small jar) or mortar and pestle, take all the ingredients mentioned in 'To make a paste' and mince them so that it is a coarse paste with some oil. Adjust the salt if necessary and set aside.

When the dough has doubled, punch it down. On a lightly floured or greased surface, divide the dough into 12 or 14 small portions. Keep the loaf pan vertically so that the pan is sitting on the shorter edge. Take one dough ball and flatten it to about 1/2 " thick. It need not be a perfect rectangle. A rough oval shape will be fine. Repeat with the remaining dough balls. Place one dough ball in the pan, top it with little bit of the paste and spread it. Make sure you use the paste evenly to coat all the dough balls. Stack the flattened dough balls in the pan and when done, place the loaf pan correctly. If you have any more paste remaining, you can spread it on the top. You might have to maneuver the dough so that it is stacked properly. Don't worry if the dough is not full in the pan. It will get full after the final rise. Cover loosely with oiled plastic wrap and let it rise till the dough is double or it touches the rim of the loaf pan. About 45 minutes to an hour.


Towards the end of the rise time, preheat the oven to 375 F. Bake for 25 minutes. Rotate the pan and reduce the temperature to 350 F. Bake for 5 - 8 more minutes or until the top is golden brown. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then holding  the over hang, remove it and place on the wire rack to cool completely. Pull the bread when completely cool if you can resist the smell that long. I pulled it when it was still warm. If you are one of those  who like spicy breads, I can tell you this is the best bread for you.

This is my entry for the Blogging Marathon started by Srivalli. Also sending this to Yeastspotting.

Enjoy.

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43 comments:

  1. I want to bake bread all the time and there are so many recipes I want to try. but the refined flour gets on my way. wish whole wheat breads were as gorgeous as their refined counterparts. love this bread would love to try.

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    1. Sayantani, I know. But once in a while, it is alright to eat white bread. Taste of this bread and other brioche breads are worth it when you bake it with white flour.

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  2. The bread looks delicious. Will try this sometime.

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  3. This looks great and nice to use herbs :)

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  4. Love to homemade bread any time...looks so yummy.

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  5. Loved your idea of a non-cheesy but surely yummy paste for the pull-apart bread! I just can't stop marveling at the versatility of yeast doughs..fab bread Champa, bookmarked!

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  6. Lovely.
    I do make masala bread but this method of stacking is really nice.loved it.

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  7. Incredible bread,full of flavours..

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  8. The garlic and the herbs will surely make it wonderful..totally mouth watering..I am getting more ideas with this one..but first let me start baking!..real good one.

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  9. You stole my last post :)....this looks perfect....cant match up ur experience of baking...but i have made a lame attempt...and was very happy

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  10. Delicious and flavourful. Looks so inviting.

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  11. This is a very fun and interesting way to have garlic bread. Its nice that you grow produce and herbs. I did last year but have not done any this year apart from potting some flowers. Have to get the herb garden going.

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    1. I just finished getting the beds ready for this year's gardening. It is lot of work though.

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  12. Awesome bread. My daughter just peeped in and is asking me if I can bake this bread now :)

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    1. Harini,
      Bake it. You will be the star mom. Not that you are not one already.

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  13. It is in my to do list..looks tempting and perfectly made..

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  14. I have a bookmark of the sweet version from Joy the baker.. Now these savory ones are tempting me to try!

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  15. Another variation of bread for me to try. Did this taste more like a herbed garlic bread? How well does it toast? BTW the bread looks so soft and pics are really tempting.

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    1. Jayanthi,
      It does taste like herbed garlic bread but without butter. This is a pull apart bread. Hard to toast since the slices are not perfect.

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  16. Looks so awesome champa..will surely try this!

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  17. all your breads look so amazing...totally new methodology for me to achieve this effect...love it

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  18. I don't think I can ever make something like this! But you are just inspiring me to give it a try. The bread looks AWESOME.

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    1. Rajani,
      Sure you can. I didn't start out to be a bread baker. My first bread was made in a bread machine. 7 years and I do understand bread baking. You will get there.

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  19. Looks great, Champa. I am sure my husband would be impressed if I give this a try. :):) I am always after sweet stuff and it annoys him.

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  20. Minty bread looks awesome ! i am so petrified of baking with yeast, but this looks doable !!


    Kalyani
    Sizzling Tastebuds
    Event : Pickles & Preserves Fest + Giveaway
    Event : CWS - Oats

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  21. I am a big fan of pull apart breads. Looks yummy.

    Vardhini
    CooksJoy

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  22. Pull apart bread looks beautiful. Those layers have come out so pretty...

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  23. As Rajani said,you posts are truly inspiring.You clicks are really begging me to pick up that pack of yeast from the cabinet.You are so good at bread baking Champa and I really mean it :)

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  24. I always wanted to try a pull apart but not the sweet variety. Not being an expert baker I did not want to experiment. This is spoon feeding. Thanks.

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  25. This recipe is just awesome, I am one spice lover too! I am bookmarking this and will let you know. Take care and thanks for the inspiration.

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  26. Thanks. thanks and thanks. I love the bread and most importantly family does love it. The compliments ranged from best bread to make this again. Love you dear.Glad I tried it.:D

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    1. Thanks Archana for the feedback. I am glad your family liked it too.

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  27. Hi,
    I am beginner in baking and tried this and came out great. I followed exactly ur recp. u made my day. thx a million. would like to know if i have to bake in the morning, at what stage should i keep it in the fridge? can cinamon pull aparts be made the same way except for the change in the filling?thx once again.

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    1. Parvathy,
      Thanks for the feedback. I am glad you liked it. Yes, you can make the cinnamon pull apart bread similarly, but don't add the herbs and spices to the dough. If you want to bake in the morning, you can shape it - that is spread the filling and immediately keep it covered in the refrigerator. Remove an hour and a half before baking and bake when doubled. It also depends on the temperature where you live and might take longer to double after removing from the refrigerator.

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  28. Hi Champa I am putting this up as my entry to magic mingle. Please do check it out. Thanks a million.

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  29. This is so interesting! Will def give it a try! Tks so much for sharing! :) Hope to link back to you when I bake this...soon!

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  30. Tks for this recipe! Is a big hit at home...even with the kids! :) Linking to my blog page for u to peek in...http://timepasshobbies.wordpress.com/2012/06/27/spicy-mint-bread/
    Tks so much!

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    1. Thanks for letting me know. I will take a look.

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  31. I just made this recipe and it was AWESOME!! I used a cup of whole wheat flour and two cups all purpose flour. Your trick of cutting the dough in various pieces and then making sections with herb paste on each is really good thinking!... Keep up the good work and thanks for sharing :)

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  32. I came across your blog while looking for eggless recipes and am just stunned by the sheer number of bread recipes you have!!! I am so tempted to try all of them, they look sooo yummy.

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  33. Love the idea of using mint, coriander leaves and chillie for this bread. I will definitely try your recipe.

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