Spicy Cheese Bread!

Love spice? Love cheese? Love bread? Who the fuck doesn’t? This recipe is right up your alley, and easy as hell to make (and even easier to devour!)

Ingredients:

• 3 1/4 cup AP flour
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 packet instant dry yeast
• 1 tbsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tbsp kosher salt
• 1/2 cup 110F water
• 2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
• 4-6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• 8 ox jack or pepper jack cheese (depending on preference), shredded
• 8 oz gruyere cheese, shredded
• To top: 1 egg, additional red pepper flakes, and 2 tbsp melted butter

Instructions:

• Using a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, whisk together the flour, sugar, instant yeast, red pepper flakes, and salt
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the heated water, eggs and additional egg yolk, and 4-6 tbsp melted butter until well combined
• Incorporate the wet ingredients into the dry mix and use the dough hook to mix together on medium until the dough fully mixes wet and dry, and the dough starts to pull away from the edges of the bowl (about 6 minutes)
• Use some oil to grease the mixing bowl across all sides while you simultaneously form the dough into a ball, covered in the oil
• Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow to sit in a warm area until it doubles in size, about 2 hours
• Lightly oil either a 9-inch round cake pan or an 8×8 square brownie pan
• Move the dough to a lightly floured surface and punch down to deflate, releasing extra air
• Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a rectangle until it is about 1/4 inch thick
• Spread the cheeses evenly throughout the rectangle, leaving about 1/2 inch from the edges so it doesn’t spill out
• Starting with the longer edge, roll the cheese-covered dough into itself so it makes a nice log (if the cheese starts peeking out the ends, pinch the ends together)
• Once rolled, use your hands to massage the dough to an even longer situation until it reaches about a foot and a half in length (this will thin out the thickness)
• Coil the dough into your prepared pan in a circular shape (see image above)
• Cover the prepared dough with a clean paper towel and allow to rise again, about 1 hour
• Preheat the oven to 350F
• In a small bowl, mix the topping ingredients into the same bowl and whisk until well combined – brush this on top of the prepared loaf, being sure to get into all nooks and cranies
• Once done, remove the load from the oven and baste again with additional melted butter
• Cool and then…ENJOY!