Garlic Bread with Cheese

I think the first time I had garlic bread was at either Pizza Hut or Bombay Blues and I couldn’t understand what was so great about it. Then I had garlic bread with cheese and it remains a favourite till date. The easiest way to make garlic bread with cheese is to simply slather some butter mixed with minced garlic on any bread…sprinkle some cheese and toast it. But in this post I am talking of making garlic bread from scratch for that full satisfaction of having actually made it.

One bonus of making this is the house really smells great as it bakes away in your oven. Here’s how I made it…

Ingredients

 

2 cups refined flour,

1 teaspoon of instant dry yeast,

1tablespoon sugar,

1/2 teaspoon salt,

4 tablespoons neutral smelling oil,

2 tablespoons milk,

1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese,

1/4 cup grated processed cheese,

1 teaspoon oregano or pizza seasoning,

1 teaspoon chili flakes,

1/4 cup melted butter,

2 tablespoons coarsely ground garlic,

1 cup of lukewarm water for kneading,

Milk for brushing

 

Method

 

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a small bowl and stir in about a teaspoon full of coarsely ground garlic paste. Set this aside.

 

In a mixing bowl, add the refined flour, instant yeast, sugar, salt, milk, remaining garlic paste, remaining butter and two tablespoons of oil. Add in the lukewarm water and knead the dough until it is soft and sticky. This should take you about ten minutes.

Pour some oil over the dough ball and keep it covered in a warm place till it doubles up in size.

 

Once it doubles in size, transfer it onto a flat surface and punch out the air and knead it again. Roll it into a circular shape.

 

Brush the entire circle with the butter garlic mixture (reserving a little) and spread the grated cheese, pizza seasoning or oregano and chilli flakes on half of the circle. Fold the dough to form a semi-cirle and lightly press the edges. Brush this with milk and sprinkle some oregano over it. Make shallow incisions using a knife and let it rest for about half an hour.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees for ten minutes. Place the garlic bread on to the baking tray and bake it for about 20-30 minutes or until a golden crust is formed. Remove this from the oven and brush it with the remaining garlic butter. Serve warm.