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With only a handful of ingredients, this Easy Homemade Bread Bowl recipe is simple, tasty, and freezes well. Fill with your favorite soup, like Broccoli Cheddar, and dinner is served!
Instant Pot Potato Soup makes a great filling for these Easy Homemade Bread Bowls which are made with only a handful of ingredients. These Easy Homemade Bread Bowls are perfect for when you want to indulge at home, and not break the bank at a restaurant. Pair this delicious homemade bread bowl with some hearty soup, and you have a winning meal! I love using them for Hamburger Soup, Beef Chili Recipe, Chicken Mushroom soup or Loaded Cauliflower Soup also!
How to make the Easy Homemade Bread Bowl recipe:
**scroll down for full ingredients list and printable directions**
Using a stand mixer or large mixing bowl, add warm water and sprinkle in yeast. Let the yeast dissolve for a few minutes until yeast becomes foamy (You only have to do this step if you are using regular yeast, not fast acting. If you are using fast acting, just sprinkle it in the water and move to next step, no waiting needed). Add butter, sugar, and salt, then mix well.
On the lowest speed, slowly add the flour until completely combined. Remove paddle attachment and insert the dough hook. On a medium/high setting, 'knead' the dough for 4-5 minutes or until smooth. Place the dough into an oiled bowl, then cover with a damp kitchen towel. Let the bread sit for 45 minutes in a warm dry place.
Remove the towel and punch the dough down in the center. Remove from the bowl and cut into 6 even sections. Form each section into a small ball. Place the dough balls on a lightly greased baking sheet, a few inches apart. Cover loosely with damp towel, and allow to rise again for 40 minutes.
Brush an egg wash all over the tops and sides of the bread bowls, then sprinkle with your favorite herbs. I like oregano and thyme.
Place in a preheated (400 degrees) oven, and bake for 15 minutes. Remove and brush again with the egg wash. Place back in oven and bake 10-15 additional minutes, or until tops are browned and slightly crisped. Remove and cool on a wire rack.
Once the bread bowls have cooled off, you can cut a pocket out of the top center, and then pour the soup into the bread bowl.
Soup ideas for the Bread Bowls:
Hamburger Soup
Chicken Mushroom soup
Healthy Instant Pot Lasagna Soup (vegetarian and meat option)
Instant Pot Potato Soup (with bacon and cheese)
Instant Pot Loaded Cauliflower Soup (low carb)
Chicken Tortilla Soup (Crock Pot)
Instant Pot Roasted Red Pepper Soup
Skinny Cheesy Enchilada Soup
Loaded Vegetable & Wild Rice Soup
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With only a handful of ingredients, this Easy Homemade Bread Bowl recipe is simple, tasty, and freezes well. Fill with your favorite soup, like Broccoli Cheddar, and dinner is served!
Servings: 6bread bowls
Ingredients
2cupswarm water,+ 4 TBS water
2packages active dry yeastor 4 ½ teaspoon fast acting yeast
½cupbutter, melted
2TBSgranulated sugar
3teaspoonsalt
6 ½cupsbread flour
1egg white
Instructions
Using a stand mixer or large mixing bowl, add warm water and sprinkle in yeast. Let dissolve for a few minutes until yeast becomes foamy (You only have to do this step if you are using regular yeast, not fast acting. If you are using fast acting, just sprinkle it in the water and move to next step, no waiting needed).
Add melted butter, sugar and salt and mix until combined. Gradually add flour.
Once combined, allow your mixer to knead the dough for about 5 minutes (you could do this by hand if you weren't using a mixer).
Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.
Punch dough down, and divide into 6 equal portions. Shape each portion into a 4 inch round loaf. Place loaves on lightly greased baking sheets sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover with damp towel and let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, until doubled in bulk, about 35 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a small bowl, beat together egg white and 1 tablespoon water; lightly brush the loaves with half of this egg wash. Sprinkle with any seasonings you may like (I use thyme and oregano).
Bake in preheated oven (400 degrees F) for 15 minutes, remove, and brush with remaining egg mixture, and bake 10 to 15 more minutes or until golden. Cool on wire racks.
To make bowls: Cut a ½ inch thick slice from top of each loaf; scoop out centers, leaving ¾-inch-thick shells. Fill bread bowls with hot soup and serve immediately.
Wooden bowls have always been the preferred choice for bread-making because the heat generated by the yeast is retained in the wood, giving the dough an even rise—and because the bowl's high sides protect the dough from drafts.
Why Toasting Is The Best Bread Bowl Technique. Part of the appeal of bread bowls is the gradual disintegration of the bread into the soup; the key word here is "gradual." If the bread is too soft from the start, it will become soggy the moment you introduce your filling of choice into it.
Crafted from the same artisan Sourdough bread used in the classic Bread Bowl, the Double Bread Bowl features a crunchy crust and chewy center that pairs perfectly with all Panera soups, from sweet Creamy Tomato to the cheesy goodness of Broccoli Cheddar.
Allow dough to rise in a metal or glass bowl. They retain heat better than plastic bowls and you'll get a better rise. You can also run the bowl you're using under some hot water (and then dry it, then spray it with non-stick cooking spray for easy cleanup) before adding the dough so it will be nice and warm.
The most common options are butter, shortening, and cooking oil, and olive oil is one of the best options. Oil in a refillable mister or a store-bought spray oil makes quick work of greasing the bowl.
Tear bite-sized pieces of the bread bowl with your fingers.
Bread bowls are casual foods, so don't be afraid to use your fingers to eat the bread once you've finished most of the soup. Unfortunately, bread bowls don't keep well once you've filled them with soup, so eat as much of the bread as you want!
That's because when it's turned into a bowl, much of the dough is carved out and discarded, which is just a waste of food. Not only should bakers hate it, but we all should! There are enough people in the world with food insecurity that we shouldn't be throwing out perfectly good bread.
TESSA'S TIP: Once the bread bowls are baked and the centers have been scooped out, place them back on a baking sheet and toast in the oven at 350°F for a few minutes or until slightly dried out and crunchy at the edges. This will help prevent sogginess.
Bread bowls can be used to serve chili, New England–style clam chowder, and other thick stews (often, but not always, with a cheese or cream base). Soups with thinner bases are not generally served in bread bowls, as the broth would make the bread get too soggy too quickly.
To serve, fill the hollowed-out bread up with soup. In the case of French Onion Soup, top with cheese and pop them in the oven. Set your bread bowl on a plate or in a shallow bowl. Eat the soup with a spoon and eat the delicious, broth-soaked bread with your hands!
These dry patches won't stretch during rising to develop an elastic dough, resulting in a dense, squat loaf – not something you want! For best results, use a non-porous, tight fitting cover such as a saucepan lid, bowl cover or even a sheet pan laid on top of the bowl, weighted down with something.
Yes!If a recipe calls for proofing bread dough overnight in the refrigerator, it can be proofed on the counter at a warmer temperature for a shorter period. Rather than placing the dough in the refrigerator overnight, leave it covered on the counter for 1 to 4 hours until it's ready to bake.
The shape of a round bowl allows the dough to maintain a uniform structure during proofing, making it ideal for certain types of bread. For artisanal and rustic breads that rely on a more open crumb structure and irregular shape, a round bowl provides ample space for the dough to spread out naturally.
Glass mixing bowls are a popular choice for many bakers. They are transparent, so you can see what you're mixing, and they're also microwave safe. Glass bowls are also non-reactive, which means they won't absorb any flavours or odours from your ingredients.
Most bakers prefer to bake loaves of bread in metal pans. Metal loaf pans conduct heat quickly and easily, which helps bake loaves evenly by allowing the heat to pass through the pan and into your dough.
I typically use my large stainless steel mixing bowl, but glass, ceramic, or even plastic will be fine. This is one place where size definitely matters. You want a bowl that's large enough to not only contain your ingredients but allow you to get your hands in there and knead the bread.
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