Cheese Herb Monkey Bread or Pull Apart Bread

This month I suggested to the group Kneading Bakers that we bake savory or sweet pull apart bread. Pull apart or monkey bread is made with individual size biscuits. These biscuits are shaped separately, placed next to each other in a bowl or a loaf pan and baked.


I thought the cheese and herb biscuits in a bowl looked adorable and wanted to try them. I used sharp cheddar cheese with dried parsley, oregano and thyme. The flavors went very well together.

You will need
For the dough
3 cups bread flour
1/4 oz. instant yeast
1 cup milk
1 tbsp. butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese

For the dip
2-3 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. parsley
2 tbsp. thyme
2 tbsp. oregano

To make the dough
Melt the butter. Warm the milk and beat it with the butter. Sift a cup of flour and yeast into the milk mixture. Let the sponge sit for 10 minutes.


In a separate bowl shred the cheddar cheese and mix it with the remaining flour.


Add it to the sponge and mix together to form a dough. Knead the dough for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place in a well oiled bowl, cover and allow to rise for at least an hour until double in volume. Meanwhile grease a bowl with butter and keep aside.


Transfer the risen dough on to a floured surface and roll it out in to a large rectangle. Using a sharp knife or pastry blender cut it into 2x2 inch squares.


Roll each square into a ball. Flour the working surface and using your palm roll the ball around on the surface to smooth it out. Repeat for each of the squares.


Melt the butter for the dip and mix in the parsley, thyme and oregano.


Pick up one of the balls of dough by the seam underside and roll it in the butter. Place it smooth side up in the greased bowl. Repeat for all the balls of dough. Cover and let it rise for about 30-40 minutes.


Towards the end of the rising period preheat the oven to 375 F. Bake the bread for 30-40 minutes. Check after 15 minutes and if the top is browning too fast tent it with aluminium foil. Continue to bake until the side and bottom are browned.


Serve hot.

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