I upgraded my original Soft Dinner Roll recipe in the most Beth Cato way possible: I added loads of cheese!
I don’t simply mix cheese into the dough like with a standard cheesy roll or biscuit recipe. Nah, that’s too mundane. I tried a take on lamination–the French technique wherein butter is layered to create flaky layers in pastry. But with cheese.
It worked out, in a beautiful way. In these pictures, you see a fine Vermont Cheddar. I highly recommend using an orange cheese (Cheddar, or if you are blessed, something like Red Leicester) because the finished rolls look amazing. White Cheddar would be great for flavor, too, though it would blend in more.
I wrote this recipe for bread machines, but it would be easy to modify to make by hand. Just let the dough have an initial rise for about an hour, mix the first portion of cheese in, then let it rise again before the lamination stage.
Bready or Not Original: Bread Machine Cheesy Soft Dinner Rolls
A Bready or Not Original! This straightforward yeast roll recipe produces soft, tender dinner rolls layered with cheese. Choose an orange cheddar and the color will really pop in the final bake. Recipe makes 12 to 15 standard dinner rolls.
Course: Bread, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cheese, yeast bread
Author: Beth Cato
Equipment
bread machine
jelly roll pan or baking sheet
Ingredients
1cupwarm water about 110 degrees
1/4cupvegetable oil
2Tablespoonswhite sugar
3cupsbread flour
1teaspoonkosher salt
2 1/4teaspoonsinstant yeast or 1 packet instant yeast
6ouncescheddar cheese shredded
Instructions
Add ingredients EXCEPT cheese into the bread machine. That often means the liquids first. Set the machine on dough cycle and start; this should run for about 2 hours. Once the dough starts mixing, sprinkle in about half the cheese. If necessary–and if safely possible, dependent on the machine–use a spatula to press cheese into the dough. Let dough cycle continue until done.
Prepare a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan by greasing with butter or nonstick spray.
Pat out dough on an even lightly-greased surface. It’s time to add the rest of the cheese using a process roughly like French butter lamination.
Sprinkle a handful of cheese over the lower portion of dough. Fold top part over it, then fold dough the other way, creating a fat dough ball. Pat out dough again. Repeat process again one or two more times, until only a handful of cheese is left.
Pat out dough again. Use a small round cutter to slice out portions of dough. Place them in the prepared pan, spaced so they don’t quite touch. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top. Cover pan with plastic wrap or a light towel and let rise again in a warm spot for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until rolls become puffy and double in size.
Preheat oven at 350-degrees.
Bake rolls for 15 to 22 minutes. If they begin to brown too much, cover with foil halfway through. Let rolls cool a few minutes before serving.
Completely cooled rolls can be frozen in gallon freezer bags for several months. Sealed rolls will keep well at room temperature for at least 6 days. They are good eaten at room temperature, but are best briefly warmed in the oven.
The holiday season is nigh, and these Prosciutto-Parmesan Palmiers are the perfect appetizer for a couple or an entire gang!
These really have three ingredients, plus some flour for dusting a counter. They take minutes to assemble. Stash them in the freezer for hours or days. They bake up fast. They make bellies happy.
Plus, I daresay, they are downright pretty. I love the layers in puff pastry! Here, those crisp buttery layers are fantastic along with shredded cheese and thin slices of prosciutto.
Honestly, these are dangerous. It’s hard to eat just one.
However, if you can exercise restraint, the leftovers are delicious. They can be eaten cold (the prosciutto is the prominent flavor then), but are better with a brief warm-up in the oven.
Make these your go-to game day, holiday event, or date night treat!
Bready or Not Original: Prosciutto-Parmesan Palmiers
This three-ingredient convenient and tasty appetizer can be prepared hours in advance and bakes up fast once company arrives. Plus, if there are any leftovers, they are still delicious!
Course: Appetizer
Keyword: cheese, pork, puff pastry
Author: Beth Cato
Equipment
parchment paper
knife
Ingredients
flour to dust surface
1sheet puff pastry (half a box) thawed in fridge
1/2cupshredded Parmesan packed
2 to 3ouncessliced prosciutto
Instructions
Hours or days before baking day: Sprinkle flour on a flat, clean surface. Roll out the puff pastry to make a 12-inch square. Cut in half. Sprinkle cheese over both halves. Place prosciutto slices to completely cover cheese; if there is extra meat, layer on the additional pieces. Roll the short sides of each piece of pastry together to meet in the middle–from the end, it will look rather like a number 3. Repeat this with the other half.
Encase both logs in plastic wrap and freeze until firm, at least an hour, but as long as several days.
Preheat oven at 400-degrees. Prepare a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Pull out frozen logs to thaw for just a few minutes. While it is still mostly frozen, slice into 1/4-inch pieces and place spaced out on parchment. (Note that the end pieces may be sparse on filling and not presentable for company, but still worth baking up for private enjoyment.)
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until palmiers are golden brown and puffed. They are best eaten fresh, but leftovers can be refrigerated. They are okay cold, but better toasted briefly again in the oven.
These cookies look like normal Snickerdoodles with crackled tops, but the flavor is much more complex thanks to that spice mix. These really taste and smell like autumn.
However, these are so good, they are fantastic year-round. As I’ve said before, the things you enjoy–be it food or music or décor–shouldn’t be confined to one season. If you like it, like it whenever you want!
This recipe makes a decent batch, about 50 cookies using a teaspoon scoop, and will be best if eaten within 3 days. Therefore, make them to share with a crowd, or you may experience a Snickerdoodle overdose.
Bready or Not Original: Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodles
This fresh take on Snickerdoodles uses pumpkin spice mix, not pumpkin, to create delicious cookies. Pumpkin spice is associated with autumn, but these are so good, you’ll want to make them year-round! Makes about 50 teaspoon-sized cookies.
Course: Dessert, Snack
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cookies, snickerdoodle
Servings: 50cookies
Author: Beth Cato
Equipment
parchment paper
teaspoon scoop
Ingredients
Topping
3Tablespoonspumpkin spice
1Tablespoonground cardamom
1/3cupwhite sugar
Dough
2 3/4cupsall-purpose flour
2teaspoonscream of tartar
1teaspoonbaking powder
3/4teaspoonkosher salt
1cupunsalted butter (2 cubes) room temperature
1 1/2cupwhite sugar
2large eggs
2teaspoonsvanilla extract
Instructions
Preheat an oven at 350-degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small bowl, mix together the three topping ingredients. Set aside.
In another bowl, combined the flour, cream of tartar, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until they are light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract. Gradually work in the flour mixture until it’s just combined.
Use a teaspoon scoop to form small bowls of dough. Roll the dough in the topping spices, one at a time, and place spaced out on the baking sheet.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the tops are crackled and just set, but not browning. Let them cool at the sheet for a few minutes, then transfer them to a rack to fully cool.
Store cookies in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 3 days.