Homemade Pesto Bread

   I love pesto sauce and decided to finally make bread of it. I find this recipe in a international blog and had a friend translate the recipe to me. It came out divine. Two things I added more to it was the flour it called for 5 1/2 cups flour and I used almost 6 1/2 cups flour and instead of skim milk I used whole milk.
Here is the recipe.

2 cup warm water

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tsp sugar

½ cup skimmed milk ( I used whole milk)

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon instant dry yeast

5 1/2 cup flour( ( I used almost 6 1/2 cups))

For the filling:

2/3 cup pesto

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

 

 In a large bowl, combine water, olive oil, sugar, milk, salt and yeast. Mix well. Add a cup of flour and stir well to mix with a wooden spoon. Add another cup of flour and repeat. Pour ½ cup flour on top and pour the dough. Begin to knead and slowly add a little flour. Knead 8-10 minutes. Pour a little olive oil in a deep bowl and place dough. Cover with a cloth and let stand for about an hour to double in size.
Pour out the dough onto a very lightly floured surface. Cut in half. Using your fingers flatten out one of the pieces. Roll out to a  rectangle. Spread half the pesto and 1/4 of a cup Parmesan on top. Bring in the side by a half inch and then roll the dough like a jelly roll.

 Pinch the seam closed. Take a sharp knife and cut down the center length wise. Open the jelly roll exposing the inside of the roll.Take the two cut pieces and braid them together with the cut side always facing up. Place the bread into a greased  loaf pan. Now, repeat this whole process with the second piece of dough. Then cover both loaves with plastic wrap and allow to rest for an hour or till double in bulk. Sprinkle the tops with the remaining Parmesan cheese and place into a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 - 35 minutes. Check the bread about 10 minutes before they are finished to see if you need to cover with tin foil if they are getting to brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Marianthi