Braided Savory Spinach and Feta Bread

I had this desire for a warm slice of bread filled with spinach and feta cheese. I began my online pursuit for a delicious recipe and came across a website called Artisan Bread in Five Minutes. Needless to say, I am completely enthralled with this website. There are so many different assortments of bread to be created. This is the first of many loaves of bread to be baked:) I hope you find this recipe just as fun as I found it to make.


Now bread as you may know is made in two parts: the dough is made first, preferably the night before and the actual bread is made second.

Basic Ingredients:

Dough:

(Challah Bread)

1 cup lukewarm water
2 eggs
2 egg yolks (save the egg whites)
2 Tbsp oil
3 Tbsp honey
4 1/2 cup bread flour*
1 tbsp flax seeds*
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp instant yeast

*If you do not have bread flour, simply add 1 tsp of gluten to every cup of flour that you use. The gluten will give the dough a wonderfully elastic quality.
*The flax seeds can be omitted. However, for those of you lacking those necessary omega 3s in your diet, the flax seeds will add those vital vitamins for your health.

The Filling:

1 pound spinach
1 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper
1 cup feta cheese
sesame seeds
egg whites

Making the dough:

In a separate bowl, add yeast and honey to the warm water, set aside for 10 minutes. The yeast mixture can be added to the rest of the ingredients once it has become foamy.

In an electric mixer, beat the eggs, egg yolk, oil and yeast mixture. Add two cups of the bread flour and the salt. (Make sure the salt stays somewhat separate from the yeast). Continue to add the rest of the flour, 1/2 cup at a time. Once the dough becomes firm, make sure its not sticky, you can begin kneading the dough for about 10 minutes, until the dough becomes soft and elastic.* It will make a slapping sound in the bowl.
*If using the electric mixer, change the mixing handle to the hook. If you do not have an electric mixer you can knead by hand on a hard surface.

After the dough has been kneaded, place it into a greased bowl. Cover with wax paper and allow to rise in a warm place, until it doubles in bulk. This will take a few hours.


Begin preheating the oven to 350 degrees F.

Once the dough has risen, place on a flat surface and roll it into a rectangle, about 8 by 18 inches. Set aside.

Saute the spinach in the olive oil, until it is well- wilted and has given up a good amount of liquid. Make sure you press the excess liquid out of the spinach so that it does not make your pastry soggy. Add salt, pepper, the red pepper flakes as well as any other spices.


Place the crumbled feta cheese in a line down the center of the rectangle. Then, layer the drained spinach over the top of the feta.


Using a pizza wheel, make 1/2 inch wide strips down each side.


Cris-cross the strips, one side after another over the filling, creating the illusion of a braid.


Place the braid on a baking sheet, cover it and allow it to rise for about an hour. Once the braid has doubled in size, coat the top with egg wash made from the egg whites. Sprinkle the top of the loaf with sesame seeds. Place the loaf in your pre-heated oven for about 30 minutes.




Enjoy!