Pepperjack Sourdough
So, my wife let it slip that pepperjack is her favorite bread so we picked up some cheese at the grocery store and I diced it and folded it into the dough with the stretch & folds. Somehow I made myself put all that delicious cheese in the bread (nearly 50% of the flour by weight), I guess that's love for you. I had about 80g of stiff levain chilling in the fridge that was left over after refreshing my starter, so I used all of it here.
Pepperjack sourdough
80g stiff levain
20g whole wheat flour
280g KA all purpose
200g water
145g pepper jack cheese
6 g salt
Bulk ferment was around 4 hours at around 80 F, with S&F every 30 minutes for the first 1 1/2 hours to develop dough and incorporate the cheese. I shaped it and proofed it for around 1 1/2 hours at about 86 F. Preheat to 500 and baked in dutch oven at 425 F, 20 min cover on, 25 min. cover off.
Comments
Hungryscholar. This bread looks great! I am a big fan of cheeses in bread, so imthink i will be trying this one very soon. Thanks for the inspiration and drool inducing post.
John
Cheese & Bread, what's not to like? I still have to get back to the rye- I did go 50/50 rye and wheat but didn't get quite the oven spring I was after, so I have to take another crack at it.
had to get some sour with that technique of retarding the levain and high final proof temperature. So could you really taste the pepper cheese? You really managed to get it well distributed too. The cubes of cheese must have been on the smaller side which is they way I would want it. Seems like we put Pepper Jack in just about everything and always have a pound in the fridge - but have never tried it in bread. I've got to give it a go - maybe with some more fresh jalapenos too!
Nice baking
If there was some sour it was probably clobbered by the cheese. And it was definitely small dice on the cheese, you hit the nail on the head there. I would have grated it had not the box grater hidden itself away in some rarely explored corner of the kitchen. I think if this was baked for me I could definitely go for more sour and I wouldn't say no to some diced jalapenos either.
Another one I'll have to try! Looks like a lot more cheese than in most breads, which is good, but I may add a few of my own peppers. ;)
Dave
savor the flavor and pop the now naked loaf back into the oven to make more wonderful crust (if it would only work!) Eat the next layer of crust, bake and eat until it's down to a little ball of cheese and crust. I smell it thinking about it! I can see this dough for a crusty braid too, pulled for maximum length and crust scored with Dave's pepper rings browning in the scores! (wonder how I would do that...)
Found fresh dried oregano in the market yesterday. One of those stop and back up moments. So good! Had this spice coating a pizza over the cheese on Tuesday and have to say, it was the best Pizza I've had in a long long time. Must be the variety, this cool weather and dry air for growing and drying. Fantastic! The leaves are light and almost transparent and in little florets. Would also go well with pepper jack cheese?
Mini in Chile
The more crust, the better with cheese bread. If I didn't have to make all this Easter stuff, I'd do that this weekend.
Dave
Maybe Strega Nona has a pot that can make that happen! I'm looking forward to finding out what kind of peppers Dave puts in his cheese bread- hopefully not ghost peppers or the like. I've got plans to make some Easter bread this weekend myself, but I forsee the annual phone call to my wife's folks to double-check the family recipe.
...to add more pepper flavor, but not too much more heat, as they are only about 10k. Plus, they will add a ripe pepper flavor, as well as red to contrast with the green.
You created another keeper, Hungryscholar! This bread has a great sour, though not too sour, and great cheese flavor, though even with 2 fresnos chopped up the first three pieces had little in the way of peppers. I guess the other side will be rockin'! LOL
I still have not figured out this photo thing, as all I can get up are thumbnails. Here's that, until I spend more time with it. As you can see, I did that circular slash, but I didn't do it quite deep enough, mailnly because it was far down in a bowl, so it was awkward. Still did OK, and the flavor was to die for!
BTW, I skipped the braid today, only because I was planting all of my pepper, tomato, and eggplant seeds in flats, so this was just in the spare time. Amazing how little actual time most bread takes! I'll try the braids next time.
Dave
Love the flecks of pepper in there. If it turns out not to have enough pepper flavor, I guess you'll have no choice but to add more next time, if only you knew where to obtain some more peppers...