I’m not big on white bread … unless it’s stuffed with something tasty. Enter this pane bianco laced with cheese, sun-dried tomatoes and fresh basil, among other things. As soon as I spotted a photo of the loaf on Instagram, I wanted to recreate it.
So I took on King Arthur Flour’s first Bakealong challenge and turned out this pretty pane bianco one Friday morning. Once it cooled, I dug in.
Pane bianco is the perfect accompaniment to soup and salad, and I’m guessing it would be a good base for panini and grilled cheese. Of course, the bread is also delicious as is, which is how I’ve been enjoying it.
Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour.
Pane Bianco with Cheese, Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Basil
Makes 1 loaf
Ingredients
Dough:
- ½ cup milk
- ⅓ cup water
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2¾ cups bread flour
- 1¼ teaspoons sea salt
Filling and finish:
- ¾ cup shredded cheese (see notes)
- ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, removed from oil and chopped
- ½ cup chopped fresh basil
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
Make the dough:
- In a large bowl, heat milk and water until warm - about 30 seconds in the microwave should do. Add the yeast. Whisk together until thoroughly combined and let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes.
- Add the rest of the dough ingredients (egg through salt) to the milk mixture, stirring everything until it comes together to form a shaggy ball. Then knead the dough by hand (or with a dough hook attachment) until it’s smooth and elastic - this will take about 10 minutes (or less if using a stand mixer). Shape dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let it rise until doubled in size, 1-2 hours.
Shape and bake the loaf:
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- After the dough has risen, turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll out dough to a 22"x9" rectangle.
- Sprinkle the cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, basil and garlic over the dough. Roll the dough up lengthwise into a long log and pinch seam to seal. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet, seam side down.
- Using a sharp knife or kitchen shears, cut a 1"-deep slit down the length of the log leaving 1 inch of each end uncut. Form the log into an S shape and tuck ends of dough under the middle of the S to form a figure 8.
- Cover the loaf with a clean kitchen towel and let it rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour. During the last 15 minutes of rising, preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes until golden brown. If the top of the loaf gets too brown before it is done baking, cover loosely with foil.
- Let loaf cool slightly on a wire rack and then brush top with olive oil. Serve immediately or at room temperature.
Notes
I used a mix of Asiago and smoked cheddar cheese.
What a gorgeous loaf, love the aromatic ingredients. Total yum!!