Thursday, March 8, 2012

Everything Sandwich Bread


I really really really love bagels.  And while I've made them once, it was kind of a cheater recipe, and I've been dying to try them for real.  A few weeks ago I got a major craving for everything bagels, and thought maybe I'd try them over the weekend.  Well, we ended up having a lot to do and I didn't really have time for it, but the craving never went away - and why I didn't just go to the bagel place for one, I don't know.  I like to make things complicated.  So anyway, I thought of a way that I could satisfy my craving and save on time - make sandwich bread flavored with the everything spices!

I took my favorite basic sandwich bread dough and mixed some of the spice blend right into the dough.  I then sprinkled more of the spice blend over the top.  The result?  Everything perfection!  This bread really does have the flavor of an everything bagel.  And it makes an incredible breakfast sandwich - melty cheese, a fried egg, and bacon.  Amazing.  Also great?  A sandwich at lunch - I loved it with cucumbers, tomato, avocado, and lettuce.  And it makes a pretty great BLT as well.  And a great turkey sandwich.  And great cheese toast.  Really it's great with just about.... everything (see what I did there?).



Everything Sandwich Bread
adapted from Baking Illustrated's American Sandwich Bread

*the onions and garlic on the top may get a little too brown during the cooking time.   Check on them about half-way through, and if they are getting too dark too quickly, tent the loaf with foil.
  • 3 3/4 cups (18 3/4 oz) all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 cup cold buttermilk
  • 1/3 cup boiling water
  • 2 Tbs unsalted butter, melted
  • 3 Tbs honey
  • 1 envelope (about 2 1/4 tsp) instant yeast
Everything Mix
adapted from Annie's Eats
  • 2 tsp poppy seeds
  • 2 tsp sesame seeds
  • 2 tsp dried minced garlic
  • 2 tsp dried minced onion
  • 3/4 tsp kosher salt
Adjust one oven rack to the lowest position, and another to the middle position.  Heat the oven to 200 degrees.  When it is preheated, maintain the temperature for 10 minutes, then turn off the oven.

Bring the water to a boil in a small saucepan.  Remove from heat and add the cold buttermilk and stir to combine.

Mix 3 1/2 cups of the flour and the salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook.  Add the buttermilk/water mixture, butter, honey, and yeast to a liquid measuring cup.  Turn the mixer on low, and add the liquid in a slow stream, increasing the speed of the mixer as you go to medium.  Continue mixing until the dough is smooth and satiny, stopping to scrape the dough from the hook as needed. Sprinkle in 1 tablespoon of the everything spice mix.  Knead about 10 minutes, adding flour 1 Tablespoon at a time, as necessary to keep the dough from sticking to the sides of the bowl.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead to form a smooth ball, about 15 seconds.

Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, rubbing the dough around the bowl to coat with the oil.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap and place the bowl in the oven until the dough doubles in size, 50-60 minutes.

Turn out onto the floured surface and gently press the dough into a rectangle that is 1 inch thick and 9 inches long.  With the long side facing you, roll the dough firmly into a cylinder, pressing with your fingers as you roll to make sure the dough sticks to itself.  Turn the dough seam-side up and pinch it closed.

Place the dough seam-side down in a greased 9x5 inch loaf pan, and press it gently to make sure it touches all four sides of the pan.  Sprinkle with the everything spice mix (you don't have to use all of it - I think I used a few more teaspoons of it), lightly pressing with your hands to adhere the spices to the dough.  Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise in a warm spot until the dough almost doubles in size, 20-30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place an empty baking pan on the lowest rack of the oven.  Bring 2 cups of water to a boil and pour  into the empty pan.  Set the loaf onto the middle rack, and bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf reads 195 degrees, about 40-50 minutes.

Remove the bread from the pan and cool to room temperature on a wire rack.  Slice and serve.


11 comments:

Elizabeth said...

This looks so good!

Laura said...

Love this idea!

Maggie @ A Bitchin' Kitchen said...

Yuuuummmm. Everything bagels are my favorite, so I know I'd adore this!

Katrina @ Warm Vanilla Sugar said...

Yum! I love everything bagels, so this is a happy find for me!

Shanon said...

LOVE this! I cannot wait to try it-I love everything bagels, so bread is right up my alley. :)

Joanne said...

I may live in the bagel capital of the world but I definitely don't eat them enough. Honestly...I think I'd rather have the flavors in bread form. This looks awesome!

Nicole, RD said...

I LOVE everything bagels, too...why not translate that into sandwich bread? Mmm!

Amy said...

Looks delicious! We always get everything bagels when we get bagels, so I know we would love this.

Natalie said...

everything bagels are our favorite! can't wait to try this!

nicole @ I am a Honey Bee said...

genius! I love everything bagels but this would be great for sandwiches. ooo a grilled cheese using this. I would love that!

Anonymous said...

I'll definitely be trying this. It looks great!

Post a Comment

 
BLOG DESIGN BY: SHERBET BLOSSOM DESIGNS