Fondue Bread

Cheeeesy Fondue Bread…hmmmm…actually, in Switzerland, ONLY  Bread is dipped into the cheese… 😉
Of course, you could enjoy other Yummy Dips like Veggies, Nuts, Fruits & Meats too… 😉 BUT… you will still want to have a good quantity & quality of BREAD!

Any kind of bread with a sturdy crust and a fairly robust crumb is good:
Crispy white French bread, a decent baguette, kind of ‘artisan’ bread, brown bread, wholegrain bread, farmhouse bread, hearty country bread (Weizenbrot) or if you are gluten-intolerant, use a gluten-free bread.
Notice 😉 all the pieces must be cut so, that each of them has a side with crust.

Anyway, any Bread goes well with just about anything, but especially…guess?…right! with Cheeeese 😉

Making home-made Bread may seem difficult, but the process is really quite simple and the actual working time is minimal.
…Already the aroma of baking bread is a reward in itself…especially with a warm cheeeese 😉

Here some yummy Fondue.Wiki home-made Bread Recipes. Enjoy 😉

“Wholegrain Bread with Walnuts & Gruyère cheese”
♣ 200 g whole wheat flour
♣ 300 g all-purpose flour
♣  1/3 tsp. dry yeast or 45 g of normal yeast
♣ 1 1/2 tsp. salt
♣ 1/2 teaspoon white sugar
♣ 300 ml warm water
♣ 1/2 cups of roughly chopped walnuts
♣ 1/2 cup finely diced aged Gruyère
Ps. Pecans or chopped up black olives instead of walnuts are nice too

Put in 300 ml of warm water yeast, sugar, and a 1/2 of teaspoon white flour. Let for 20 mins. Now and 500 g of flour and mix. Let the dough for 40 Mins. Afterwards add walnuts and cheese, knead it and  form a shaggy ball (if the dough is too dry add a little bit of more warm water)  Let for another 30-40 Mins. Preheat the oven up to 180º. Bake for 45 mins or more until the Bread is baked. Let it cool…
Dip this delicious Walnut & Gruyère Bread into your Cheeeese Fondue

“Cheeeesy Cheddar Bread”
♣ 1 large loaf of white Sourdough bread or Italian or French bread
♣ ½ cup melted butter
♣ 1 clove garlic, minced
♣ 1 bunch scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
♣ 2 cups sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
♣ 2 cups of Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
Optional: Chopped fresh parsley, to garnish

Preheat oven to 180 C.
Cut a cross-hatch pattern into the top of the bread by slicing ½-inch grid lines into the bread, stopping about ¼-inch from the bottom of the bread so that it stays together. Place the bread on the backing foil. Stir together the melted butter, garlic and scallions. Gently separate the bread with your fingers, then spoon the butter mixture in all of the seams, making sure it is evenly distributed among the whole loaf. Wrap the loaf up in the foil and place on a baking tray and bake for 10 mins. Remove from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 220 C. Open the foil and sprinkle the shredded cheese on top of the bread. There will be a lot of cheese, so try to push down as much as you can in between all of the crevices in the bread. Leave the foil open and return it to the oven. Bake until the cheese is completely melted, bubbling and starting to brown on top, about 15 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving, then sprinkle with parsley and Enjoy 😉

“French Bread”
♣ 3 cups flour, plus a little extra in case you need it
♣  1 package dry yeast
♣  1/2 teaspoon sugar
♣  1 1/2 teaspoons salt
♣  1 1/4 cups water

Dissolve sugar in warm water; sprinkle dry yeast over water and leave until the yeast gets frothy – 5 to 10 minutes. While waiting for the yeast, using mixer mix flour and salt.Pour in the frothy yeast water and mix again till the dough forms a rough ball.Put the dough into a fairly large bowl (to allow for its volume when raised) and let rise, covered, in a warm draft-free place, until it has almost doubled in volume, about an hour. Sprinkle a little flour on a work surface. Scrape out the dough onto the floured surface and divide in half.  Press and knead each piece for a minute to get out any air bubbles, then roll into cigar-shaped loaves to fit the baking pan. Put loaves into lightly oiled pan. Make several diagonal slashes in the top. Let rise until almost doubled, about an hour.When the dough seems almost risen, preheat oven to 180 C. Bake for around 35 minutes.Remove from pan to cool down.

“Quick & Easy Cheesy Bread”
♣  3 1/4 cups bread flour
♣   2 tablespoons sugar
♣  1 teaspoon salt
♣  1 package yeast
♣  2/3 cup warm water
♣  2/3 cup warm milk
♣  1 egg
♣  2 tbsps butter
♣  1 cup any diced Cheeses

Stir the yeast into the mixture of warm milk, salt, sugar and water. Leave until the yeast gets frothy – 5 to 10 mins. Add egg, butter and cheeses. Put the dough into a fairly large bowl and let rise, covered, in a warm draft-free place, until it has almost doubled in volume, about an hour. Make a shape and let it rise until almost doubled, again for an hour. Now preheat the oven to 180 C and bake for 40 mins. Remove from pan to cool down. Enjoy 😉

“Ciabatta Bread”

BIGA STARTER
♣ 45 g fresh yeast
♣ 1 cup warm water
♣ 3 cups bread flour or all-purpose flour
BREAD DOUGH
♣  45 g fresh yeast
♣  1 1/2 cups warm water
♣  1/4 cup warm milk
the biga starter (prepared earlier)
♣  4 1/2 cups bread flour or all-purpose flour
♣  2 teaspoons salt
♣  1/4 cup olive oil

BIGA STARTER
In a small bowl, put the fresh yeast into 1/4 cup of warm water and let it sit for 10 minutes.
Add the flour to a large bowl and form a well in the center.
Add the yeast mixture to the well and begin pushing the flour into the well. Add enough water so that the dough is firm, but not too dry.
Transfer the dough onto a floured work surface and knead it for several minutes to form a firm ball of dough.
Place the ball of dough into a bowl, cover it with oiled plastic wrap, and allow it to rest in a warm location for 14 hours.
BREAD DOUGH
After the starter dough has been allowed to rest for the required time, the bread can be prepared. In a medium sized bowl, add 1/2 cup warm water to fresh yeast and blend until the mixture is creamy. Then add another 1 cup of warm water and stir.
Pour the warm milk into the yeast mixture and stir.Pour the yeast and milk mixture into the bowl containing the biga starter and blend with a large wooden spoon.Gradually add 4 1/2 cups flour, first mixing with a wooden spoon, and then mixing with your hand as the mixture becomes thicker. The dough will be loose and wet. When all of the flour is incorporated, knead the dough within the bowl for about 12 to 15 minutes. Note: the dough will be too difficult to knead on a flat work surface. Add the salt and the olive oil to the dough and work it into the dough.
Cover the bowl with oiled plastic wrap and proof it until the dough has doubled in size. 2 hours is usually sufficient for this. After the dough has risen, do not punch it down.Using a wooden spoon, gently push half the dough onto a floured baking sheet and the other half onto a second baking sheet. Note: one large baking sheet may be adequate to accommodate both loaves.Shape the dough into long, low ovals and gently flatten the dough so that it is about an inch thick. Sprinkle the dough with flour and allow the loaves to proof for 30 minutes.Bake the loaves in a preheated 220 Cº oven for about 30 minutes. The bread should be golden 😉

“Rye Bread” 
♣  175 ml warm milk
♣  175ml warm water
♣  2 tbsp brown sugar
♣  1 x 7g  dried yeast
♣  250g rye flour
♣  200g white flour
♣  1 tbsp sea salt
♣  2 tsp caraway seeds

Put the milk, water, sugar, the yeast in a small bowl and leave for 10 minutes until there is a light froth floating on the surface. Put the rye and white flour in a large bowl, stir in the salt and caraway seeds, then make a well in the centre. Pour the warm yeast mixture on to the flour, mix and form a soft, spongy dough. Now knead the dough for 10 minutes or until it is smooth and elastic. Put the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl. Leave to rise in a warm place for about 1½ hours or until it has doubled in size. Now put the dough on a floured work surface and knead for another minute. Shape the dough to make a neat shape. Cover it loosely with the oiled cling film and leave to prove for a further 40–50 minutes until it has doubled in size again. Preheat the oven to 180 C and bake for 40 minutes or until it is done. Serve warm with a piece of a soft Cheese 😉

“Baguette”
♣ 250 g white flour
♣ 5 g salt
♣ 5 g dried yeast
♣ 30 ml olive oil
♣ 180 ml warm water

Place the flour, salt, yeast, olive oil and most of the water in a food mixer and start mixing on a slow speed, gradually adding the rest of the water until you have a smooth dough. This should take about five minutes.Put the dough into an oiled bowl, cover, leave the dough for two hours.Take the dough out and roll the dough into a baguette shape.Place on a tray, cover and leave to prove until it has doubled in size again. Preheat the oven to 220 C and bake the baguettes for 30 minutes. The baked baguettes should be golden-brown.

“Pretzels”
♣ 500 g white flour
♣ 10 g salt
♣ 7 g yeast
♣ 40 g butter, softened
♣ 1 tbsp malt extract
♣ 280 ml warm milk
♣ oil, for greasing
♣ 21 g bicarbonate of soda
♣ 20 g rock salt
Toppings:
♣ 50 g sesame seeds
♣ 50 g poppy seeds
♣ 125 g sugar

Add the flour, salt, yeast and butter to a bowl. In a jug, add the malt extract to the milk and stir to dissolve. Add the milk mixture to the flour and mix until a dough is formed. Knead the dough, it should be stiff but not sticky, and shouldn’t need any extra flour to knead. Continue for 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth. Place the dough into an oiled bowl, cover, and leave to prove until doubled in size (about 45 minutes). Preheat the oven to 200 C. Once proved, take the dough out and divide into six equal pieces. Using your hands make a long sausage shape, tapering the ends, and creating a slight bulge in the middle. Each piece should be about 40-50 cm in length. You may need to roll out each of the strands just part way at first, then rest them, allowing the glutens to relax, before continuing to roll them out to their full length. Shape the pretzel. You should now have a classic pretzel shape with three equally spaced sections.
Add the bicarbonate of soda to 7 litres of boiling water, and gently drop each pretzel into the boiling water for approximately five seconds. Gently remove and place on a baking tray. While the plain dough is still wet from the water, sprinkle over the salt, sesame or poppy seeds, or sugar. With a sharp knife, make a deep slash into the thickest part of the dough. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until they are a deep brown colour.