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This Pull Apart Garlic, Cheese and Chilli Jam Loaf recipe is your new best friend. A fabulous accompaniment to a pasta dinner, or great eaten as it is – warm and with butter. The bread itself is very simple. Once the dough is made, we roll it out and top with our desired fillings. This then gets sliced and layered, more on that later. This is super versatile, and the easy pull apart loaf recipe is great on it’s own!
For the filling, I use full fat cream cheese, garlic, Italian seasoning and strong cheddar. You could sub for your fav Italian-style herb blend, and you can use really any hard cheese. Gouda or Emmental would definitely work a treat. If you have ever wondered how to make pull apart bread, look no further. Also, this makes a great garlic bread alternative!
Key Ingredients for Pull Apart Garlic, Cheese and Chilli Jam Loaf
- Instant Dried Yeast
- Strong White Bread Flour
- Full Fat Cream Cheese
- Chilli Jam
- Strong Cheddar, grated
- Garlic: Whole cloves or ‘lazy’
- Italian Seasoning: Your favourite combination of thyme, oregano, rosemary etc
Top Tips for the best Pull Apart Garlic, Cheese and Chilli Jam Loaf
- Yeast: Check your yeast is active by blooming; this is done when we combine the water, yeast and sugar. If it is not frothy, it may be out of date (meaning it won’t work).
- Fillings: Go for high quality fillings where you can. You notice the difference!
- Cheddar: Other cheeses are fine, but ideally don’t buy pre-shredded. It lacks the great flavour and has heaps of additives/preservatives!
- Bake Time: This will vary a little depending on your oven, if it is fully golden on top, it is probably ready – trust your judgement!
For the kneading, initially you’ll need to do about 10 minutes. Then there is a one hour prove. This is followed by some rolling of dough balls, packing these with butter, before folding and placing in the pan. One more 30 minute rest and then baking. If you’re usually afraid to work with dough/yeast, this is a good one to start with!
I make this loaf in a classic 2lb loaf tin (like this one) 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 Red Pepper and Feta Puffs or these Cheese and Sun-dried Tomato Bread Swirls. For more baking inspiration and videos, head on over to my Instagram.
Pull Apart Garlic, Cheese and Chilli Jam Loaf
Ingredients
- 7 g Dried Instant Yeast
- 250 ml Lukewarm Water
- 1 tsp Sugar
- 55 g Salted Butter Melted
- 200 g Strong White Bread Flour
- 150 g Plain Flour
- 3 tsp Salt
For the Filling
- 3 tbsp Italian Seasoning
- 3 tsp Minced Garlic
- 100 g Full Fat Cream Cheese
- 200 g Strong Cheddar Grated
- 4 tbsp Chilli Jam
Instructions
- In a large bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook attachment, add the yeast, sugar and warm water and let sit to 'bloom' for 10 minutes. It should look bubbly. Then add the butter, both types of flour and seasoning and bring together. Once a shaggy dough has formed, knead for 10 minutes by hand or 5-7 mins in the mixer (on medium).
- The dough should form into a ball, but will be a little springy. Lightly oil the bowl you just used, place the dough back into it, cover with a tea towel and let rest in a warm place for 1 hour + (until doubled in size).
- Lightly oil a 2lb loaf tin. Roll the dough to a 14×14 square. In a bowl, combine the cream cheese, garlic and Italian seasoning. Spread this over the dough in an even layer. Top with the chilli jam – we want a thin layer. Then top with the cheese
- Cut 3 strips lengthways and 4 widths – leaving you with 12 squares. Stack these up, one on top of the other, then place into the tin. Let rest 30 mins
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6. Brush over the remaining pesto garlic butter over the top before baking for 45-50 minutes. It should be a golden brown on top.
- Brush with some melted butter and serve warm!
