This Pesto and Cheese Swirl Bread is a herby, cheesy, savoury, fluffy dream come true. The braided loaf is packed full of vibrant green pesto and shredded cheddar for the perfect pairing. This is a super simple pesto bread recipe, and it disappears in a flash, especially when warm!
The bread is made in a simple one bowl recipe with only a little kneading. Then it gets knocked down, rolled out and covered in filling. Then you roll this up, slice down the middle and braid – more on this below. Warning: the braiding can get pretty messy but do persist!
The dough itself comes together quickly and easily, with your classic bread ingredients! Two proves are needed for best results – but these are quick and fairly easy! This batch makes a LARGE loaf, that I wrap up so it fits on a tray, perfect for a family batch. Alternatively, you could divide the loaf into two if you want to freeze one. If baking for few people (2-4) you could possibly half the batch. Equally, you might just find yourself in deep regret if you do this, as it will disappear in no time!
Top Tips for the Best Pesto and Cheese Swirl Bread
- Bread Dough: Make sure it proves completely. If the dough hasn’t doubled in size in the time recommended, give it a bit longer or move to a warmer place.
- Filling: I layer this on thick for best results. The cheese can be bought pre-shredded but I do recommended using the real stuff, just for the best for flavour.
- Yeast: Check your yeast is active if it has been open a while/if the use by date is close. Do this by adding the yeast to warm water before adding the other ingredients. Leave for 10 minutes, and if it is frothy, you have active yeast!
- Braiding: If you’ve ever made a babka, this is the exact same method. You want to roll up the dough into a log with all the filling. Slice it down the middle, long ways, to expose all the pesto/cheese filling, then twist together with the pesto facing upwards for a really fun twist. As mentioned, this does get messy but so worth it!
I make these Pesto and Cheese Swirl Bread on a large baking tray and recommend a high speed mixer with a dough hook attachment to do lots of the kneading work (this is what I use and am in love with). For more savoury baking, check out these this Pesto Garlic Pull Apart Loaf. For more baking inspiration and videos, head on over to my Instagram.
Pesto and Cheese Swirl Bread
Ingredients
- 7 g Fast Acting Dried Yeast
- 250 ml Warm Water
- 450 g Strong White Bread Flour
- 1 tbsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- 3 tbsp Olive Oil
- 190 g Green Pesto (About One Jar)
- 150 g Cheddar Grated
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, salt and sugar. Add the olive oil and about 250ml warm (not hot) water. Either bring together by hand or with the dough hook attachment on a mixer.
- Once it comes together, add up to 30ml more water – until it comes together into a (slightly sticky) ball. Knead for 8-10 minutes, then let rest in a lightly oiled bowl for 1 hour – 1h30m (until doubled in size).
- Once the dough has risen, punch down and put on a lightly floured surface. Roll to a rectangle about 40x30cm. Spread the pesto to all edges and sprinkle over the cheese – press down to 'compact' the cheese a little.
- Starting on the long side of the rectangle, roll the dough up tightly into a large roll. Use a knife/bench scraper to cut the roll in half (along the long part of the roll, as if the opposite of cinnamon rolls). Push the separated parts of the dough back so that the layers of pesto are face up.
- Twist the two pieces of dough around each other, pinching each end to secure. This may be quite messy but just stick with it, it doesn't need to look perfect! Place onto a lined baking tray and let rest. (If making two loaves instead of one large, cut it in half at this stage).
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6. Bake the scrolls for 20-25 minutes, until golden and the cheese is beginning to look a little crisp. Best served warm, but still wonderful once cooled!
