Jarlsberg twist bread

A massive thank you to alpha bakes this month, my bake was delicious! J is a very tough letter it has to be said, and I did not want to make something with Jam until I had really put my thinking cap on.

And then I found it... in my hairy bikers bakation book. Jarlsberg twist bread. I had actually wanted to make this a few months ago but was thwarted when I could not get the cheese.

Jarlsberg cheese is a lovely Norwegian cheese that has a slightly nutty flavour and melts really nicely.

This is a lovely bread and I urge you to try it. M declared after a bite it was quite possibly his favourite bread that I have made. The taste is fantastic, I really love the flavour of this cheese,  and the texture is lovely and soft with a good crust and a melty centre from the cheese. Not to mention it looks pretty!

Jarlsberg twist bread

makes 2 small loaves

7g packet of fast action yeast
tsp caster sugar
125ml warm water
250g bread flour
5g salt
135g Jarlsberg cheese, grated
50ml milk
25g butter
1 egg
Thyme

Put the yeast and sugar in a bowl and add half of the warm water, Mix and leave for 10 minutes, until frothy. 

Mix the flour, 50g of the cheese and the salt in a large bowl and make a well in the centre.

Put the remaining water, the milk and the butter in a saucepan and heat gently until the butter is just melted. Stir the melted mix and the egg into the yeast mixture. Gradually incorporate the liquid into the flour bowl, mixing with a wooden spoon, and then your hands, until a soft dough is formed.

Lightly flour a work surface and knead the dough for 5-10 minutes. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with clingfilm. Leave for ~ hour until doubled in size.

Lightly flour a surface and knock back the dough. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and roll each into a rectangle roughly 25 by 20cm. Mix the remaining cheese with thyme (as much or as little as you like) and sprinkle evenly over the rectangles, leaving a 1cm gap around the edges. Roll up tightly form the short edges and squeeze the ends to seal.

Place one roll vertically in front of you and cut up the middle, leaving ~ 1cm at the top.

 Braid the two halves over each other, trying to keep the exposed cheese and thyme centre on the top. Place on a baking sheet and leave in a warm place for 30 minutes or so until increased in size. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C FAN . 

Place in the preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until golden and hollow sounding when tapped on the base. 

Leave to cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack and then dig in!

This bread is lovely on its own, with soup or split and used in a sandwich. On a final note, the bikers use parsley, but I am not its biggest fan, especially not with cheese.