Bacon Cheddar Chive Party Bread Recipes

BACON, CHEESE AND CHIVE BUNS

Steps:

• For the dough: Warm the milk and 1/2 cup water in a medium saucepan over low heat until it is about 100 degrees F (but no more than 110 degrees F). Remove the saucepan from the heat, and sprinkle the yeast over the the liquid. Sprinkle a pinch of the sugar over the top, and set aside without stirring until foamy, about 5 minutes. Then whisk in the butter and egg yolk.
• Whisk together the flour, remaining sugar and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the center, and stir in the yeast mixture with a wooden spoon until you have a thick and slightly sticky dough. Turn the dough onto a floured work surface, and knead until soft and elastic, about 6 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball.
• Brush the inside of a large bowl with butter. Add the dough ball, turning to coat lightly. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, trace a circle the size of the dough ball on the plastic and note the time. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour 30 minutes.
• Turn the dough out of the bowl, and knead briefly to release excess air; re-form it into a ball, and return it to the bowl. Lightly butter a large piece of plastic wrap, and lay it on the dough. Cover the entire bowl tightly with the rest of the plastic, and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight to let the dough proof.
• For the filling: Cook the bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a small bowl, and remove all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the skillet. Return the skillet to medium heat. Whisk the flour into the bacon fat, and cook, whisking, until light brown, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the milk, and continue whisking until thickened, about 1 minute more. Transfer the mixture to a medium bowl, add the egg yolk, Cheddar, chives, cooked bacon, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper and stir to combine. Let cool completely. (The filling will firm up a bit, but if it's too warm, it will be difficult to form the buns.)
• To fill and form the buns: Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with 2 tablespoons softened butter. Turn the dough onto a floured work surface, and press it flat. Roll it into a 10-by-18-inch rectangle, with a long edge facing you. Spread the filling evenly over the dough, leaving a 1-inch border on the side opposite you. Starting from the side facing you, roll the dough up into a tight roll. Lightly brush the 1-inch border with water, and continue rolling to seal the roll. Fold the ends in just a bit, and if any spots look thicker than others, even out the roll with your hands.
• Cut the roll every 1 1/2 inches with a serrated knife, to make 12 buns. Place the buns cut-side down (except for the end pieces) in the prepared pan, spacing them 1 inch apart. Cover the buns loosely with plastic wrap, and set aside in a warm place to rise until the buns double in size, leaving no gaps in between, 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours.
• For the topping: Stir the butter, chives and Parmesan in a small bowl; set aside.
• Position an oven rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 350 degrees F. Bake the buns until they're golden brown and the tops spring back when pressed lightly, 25 to 30 minutes. Spread the topping evenly over the buns, and return them to the oven for 5 minutes more. Let them cool in the pan for 10 minutes before serving.

CHEDDAR CHIVE BREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the cheese, chives, butter, sugar, salt, thyme and 3 cups flour. Beat on medium for 3 minutes. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. , Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. , Punch dough down. Shape into two loaves and place in greased 9x5-in. loaf pans. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes. , Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to cool on a wire rack.

BACON-CHEDDAR-CHIVE PARTY BREAD

Steps:

• Weigh out your flour; you'll find its weight by toggling to "ounces" at the top of the ingredient section above. Or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. Combine the flour with the remaining ingredients and mix to form a shaggy dough.
• Knead the dough - by hand, mixer, or bread machine set to the dough cycle - until it forms a smooth, somewhat tacky ball, adding more flour or water if necessary.
• Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise for 60 to 90 minutes, until it's puffy though not necessarily doubled in bulk.
• Lightly grease a 10-cup party bundt pan or other tube-style pan.
• Gently deflate the dough and form it into a large ball. Use your fingers to pierce a hole through the center of the ball and place the resulting dough ring into the prepared pan.
• Cover the pan with greased plastic and let the dough rise for 60 to 90 minutes, until it's puffy and starting to fill the pan. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Uncover the pan, and bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes, until it's golden brown on top; a digital thermometer inserted into the center will read 190°F.
• Remove the bread from the oven, allow it to cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.
• While you're waiting for the bread to cool, cook and chop the bacon (we recommend baking it), and chop the chives.
• In a medium bowl combine the bacon with the cheese.
• Once the loaf has cooled, slice it down to within 1" of the base (you'll want the bottom to remain unsliced in order to maintain the ring), using the scalloped pattern as a guide if the loaf was baked in a party bundt pan, or cutting at 1" intervals if it was baked in another tube-style pan.
• Gently pull each section of the bundt away from its neighbor and fill the cavity with a heaping tablespoon of the bacon-cheddar mixture.
• Once all the cavities have been filled, sprinkle the chopped chives over the entire loaf.
• Tent the filled bread with foil, and return it to a 350°F oven. Bake the filled bread for 25 to 30 minutes, removing the foil for the final 5 to 10 minutes of baking, until the cheese has fully melted into the cavities.
• Remove the filled bread from the oven and allow to cool slightly before serving.
• Store any leftover bread in the refrigerator for a day or so; freeze for longer stor.