Bacon Cheese Bread

Developed as an extension to my Garlic Herb Bread and Spinach Feta Bread this Bacon Cheese Bread is a hugely popular and delicious homemade bread recipe. With a savory flavor profile we use simple ingredients to make the dough and then create a cheesy bacon layer with Italian herbs and spices. Oven baked to perfection this cheesy bacon bread is perfect for all ages!

Prep Time15

Cook Time50

Rise time1 25

Total Time2 30

Course: bread

Cuisine: Western

Keyword: bacon cheese bread

Servings:

Calories: 432kcal

Author: Adrianne

Ingredients

Bread ingrdients

3 ½ cups/565 grams plain flour Note 1
1 ½ teaspoons instant dried yeast Note 2
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 ⅓ cups milk Note 3
2 tablespoons/40 grams butter softened, Note 4

Bacon cheese filling ingredients

100 grams/ 1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature, Note 5
4 tablespoons tomato paste Note 6
2 tablespoons dried onion flakes Note 7
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons dried basil
300 grams/1 cups diced bacon Note 8
1 cup mozzarella cheese Note 9

Instructions

Bread: liberally spray the bowl, blade and lid of a food processor with cooking oil. Then add the plain flour, yeast, sugar, salt, milk and butter. Blitz for 30 seconds to combine then tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 20 seconds. Place into a greased mixing bowl, flip to other side then cover with cling wrap and a tea towel. Leave for 1 hour to rise (1st rise).
Bacon cheese layer: add the butter, tomato paste, dried onion, dried basil and dried oregano to a medium size mixing bowl and stir to consistently combine. Next add the diced bacon pieces and stir to gently fold in.
Roll: once the 1st rise time is up remove the tea towel and cling wrap. Lightly sprinkle the bench with flour then tip the dough out onto the flour. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a large rectangle the size of a big pizza. Ensure it is 'thick crust' not 'thin'.
Layer: next use a soup spoon to dollop the bacon mixture onto to the rolled pastry. Then use the back of the spoon and spread this out across the dough leaving a slight border at the edges. Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the top of the bacon layer.
Loaf tin: grease a 21 x 11 x 7 cm non stick loaf pan (8.3 x 4.5 x 2.75") with cooking spray.
Slice and stack: use a pizza wheel to cut the rolled dough into pieces (approx 16 in total) then stack a row of the slices in your hand and place these into the prepared loaf tin in a vertical direction. Repeat to fill the loaf tin with the pieces, pushing them to the front of the tin to fit as needed. Cover the loaf tin with cling wrap and a tea towel. Leave to rise for 25 minutes (2nd rise).
Loaf tin: grease a 21 x 11 x 7 cm non stick loaf pan (8.3 x 4.5 x 2.75") with cooking spray.
Preheat oven: to 180°C / 350-375°F / Gas Mark 4-5.
Tent: make a aluminum and baking paper tent to cover the bread sticking the 2 layers together with a spray of cooking oil.
Oven bake: remove the tea towel and cling wrap then cover the bread with the tent. Pour 1-2 cups of water into a baking tray on a lower rack under the bread. Place the tent covered loaf tin into the preheated oven on the middle shelf. Bake for 50-55 minutes and test with a skewer that should come out clean to ensure it is cooked through.
To serve: use oven mitts to remove the cooked bread from the oven and set on a heatproof surface. Remove the tent. Let sit in the tin to cool (5-10 minutes) before using a butter knife around the 4 edges of the tin to gently break the seal and slide out. Plate and serve warm and fresh!

Video

Notes

Note 1 - Flour: this is plain flour which is cheaper than bread flour. There is no need to sift it before using.
Note 2 - Yeast: this is instant yeast. It gets added as a dry ingredient to the bread dough. It doesn't need liquid to activate it.
Note 3 - Milk: you can use either full cream milk or skim milk with little noticeable difference across the 2.
Note 4 - Butter: for this ingredient I am referring to soft, spreadable butter. The kind that you would spread on toast. I use my tablespoon, dig it into the tub, level it with a knife and then chop the half circle in 2. Then repeat for the 2nd tablespoon. If you choose to make this bread recipe with a mixing bowl and spatula it will be this ingredient that is the hardest to consistently combine. Chopping it in half and also being aware of this and paying attention to ensure it is mixed in well will give you the best results.
Note 5 - Butter: for this I use unsalted butter from a block. We need it at room temperature so it is soft enough to mix in with the other ingredients. Or you can simply microwave it for 20-30 seconds to soften it. Keep an eye on it when mixing as this will be the ingredient that is the most stubborn to mix in.
Note 6 - Tomato paste: use the plain version ie no herbs or spices. This is because we are adding our own dried herbs to the bread and don't want to overdo it or have unwelcome flavors in the mix.
Note 7 - Dried onion: this is different to onion powder. It is in the same section of the grocery store though ie with the herbs and spices. It is dried onion flakes. They are unreal and I love cooking with them! They add flavor but don't overwhelm and there is no tears or time needed.
Note 8 - Bacon: store bought diced bacon is recommended. This keeps the recipe 'easy'. We don't cook it 1st as it cooks at the same time as the bread cooks. This also means that there is no bacon grease from pre cooking in the bread. I use a 2 pack which has a total of 300 grams. Some stores sell it in a 200 gram pack. This would be fine to use also, you will simply have a little less bacon pieces in the bread (not the end of the world, trust me, haha!)
Note 9 - Mozzarella cheese: depending on how much effort you want to use to make this bread recipe you can either freshly grate the cheese yourself or use store bought shredded cheese. I am a purist who will tell you which is best as I have tried both and it is pretty same/same. Besides we ain't all always got all the time in the world and store bought shredded cheese is easy (and fast!).
Australian tablespoon: an Australian tablespoon (metric system) measures 20 ml. This is the tablespoon that has been used throughout the testing and development of this recipe.

Nutrition