66. Quick Cheese Bread with Bacon, Onion, and Gruyere

Date Cooked: February 5, 2009
Page: 703
Rating: B+

I had picked up some Gruyere cheese while at the St. Lawrence market awhile ago and really didn’t have a plan for it other than to use it in a recipe from the book. It just so happened that I was itching to bake something and I noticed this cheese bread recipe that used Gruyere cheese… and bacon. I was hooked and decided this would be a great thing to bake.

Yeasted breads still intimidate me but quick breads I am finding a fondness for. They really are quick to put together and are pretty tasty. This one had potential to be a great bread. I mean, does a bread that contains bacon sound bad? Can you see the chunks of cheese in the bread and the lovely cheese coating on the bread?

The first step was to crisp up the bacon pieces and then soften some minced onions. I intentionally cooked more bacon than required because I knew there would be some sampling along the way. Then the dry ingredients, your typical salt, flour and baking powder, were whisked together with a touch of cayenne pepper. The Gruyere cheese was chopped into chunks and then added to the dry ingredients along with the bacon and onions. They were tossed until nicely coated. Then the milk, eggs and sour cream were folded in.

The pan was greased and a layer of grated parmesan was added to the bottom. Then the thick and heavy bread mixture was added in and topped with another layer of grated parmesan. Into the oven it went until a toothpick came out clean. It took about 45 minutes and then a few minutes to get the toothpick to come out clean. Every time I inserted the toothpick I would hit cheese and I couldn’t tell if it was done or not, after several puncture wounds to the surface of the bread I finally found a cheese free spot and out came a clean toothpick. The bread was removed from the pan and cooled for 45 minutes before slicing. I resisted the desire to cut into it early and let the cheese in it cool so it could actually be cut.

Rating: B+. This bread was delicious but heavy. Two slices of this bread are a meal. I ‘snacked’ on two slices of this bread while cooking dinner a few days later and I was full before dinner was ready. If this bread could be a bit lighter I would love it way more… and I really like the bread.