Cheese and garlic pull apart rolls
Long long ago, when I didn’t even know how to use the oven, I saw this beautiful pull apart bread on the Internet. The bread had everything l like, garlic, cheese(s), and herbs. With the Itlalian cuisine fanaticism, I thought there and then that one day I will make this.
So, the day came and I tried my hands at this beauty. Unfortunately, I don’t have a proper bread loaf till now (I am not a regular baker), so I decided to use my cake tin. So, instead of a pull apart bread, I made pull apart rolls. And, they turned out amazingly good. I think these rolls are my best bake till date. And, yes I served it with spaghetti made in bechamel sauce. Another treat to my tongue. 🙂
Dough Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup warm milk
- 2 tsp active dry yeast
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp butter (softened either by keeping at room temperature or as I did, just micro it for 10 seconds J)
- 1 tsp garlic (pressed or very finely chopped)
- 3/4 cup milk for kneading further
Filling Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp butter (melted)
- 2 tsp dried herbs (I used a mix of parsley, dill, oregano, thyme, rosemary, and chili flakes
- 3-4 garlic cloves (pressed or very finely chopped)
- 3/4 – 1 cup of mixed cheeses (grated) (I had a mix of hard cheese, edam, parmesan, and mozzarella)
- 1 big onion (caramelized)
Preparing the dough:
- In a small bowl, take 1/2 cup warm milk, and add the sugar and yeast. Stir to ensure yeast granules are mixed well. Set aside for 5-10 minutes. You will notice some bubbles, which is a sign of yeast at work. J
- While the yeast is at work, take another bowl and add 3 cups of flour, softened butter, salt, garlic and then mix well.
- Next, add the yeast mixture and the remaining 3/4 cup of milk.
- Knead continuously until you get pliable dough. It will take 15-20 minutes.
Don’t fret if the dough looks sticky. Just be patient and knead it well and it shall be fine. Dust your hands with a little flour in case the dough is still sticky and continue kneading. But keep in mind, the more flour you add on top, the harder the bread. - Once you get the pliable dough, oil a big bowl and put the dough in it. Cover with cling film. Make sure the bowl is big enough because the dough will rise to double.
- Set the dough aside in a warm place for 2 hours and let it rise. It should be doubled after 2 hours.
- While the dough is rising, you can prepare the caramelized onions (Slice the onions very finely. In a pan, add 1tsp oil and roast the onions until brown and crispy. While they are roasting, add salt and a pinch of sugar).
- Finally, after 2 hours we get onto the real fun; assembling the bread.
Assembling the Rolls:
- Dust your counter top with flour. Take out the dough, degas it, and shape it into a square or a rectangle that is half an inch thick.
- Brush it with the melted butter.
- Now, evenly sprinkle the herb mix, top it with a layer of grated cheese and then the caramelized onions and garlic.
- Press the filling gently into the surface, so that it doesn’t fall off while rearranging.
- Slice the dough into long and equal strips. You can use a pizza cutter or a sharp knife.
- Stack the strips on top pf each other, with the filling side facing up.
- Now, cut this stack of strips further into 6 equal pieces.
- Take each piece and roll it to form a swirl, with filling side inside.
- Grease the baking tin and sprinkle some flour in. Place the swirls next to each other.
- Brush some oil on the swirls and cover them with a clean kitchen towel or cling film and leave them to rise for an hour.
- Next, preheat the oven to 175C for 10 minutes. Bake the rolls for 35-45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and inside is cooked through (do the tooth pick test).
- If the rolls turn brown too quickly, cover them with a foil, so that they don’t brown further and are cooked well inside.
- And finally, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for 20 minutes at least.
- Your cheese and garlic pull apart rolls are ready! Remove from the tin and enjoy with some pasta.
Leave a Reply