Laura’s Italian Cheese Bread
Ingredients
Dough:
- 3 cups flour
- 1 Tbsp yeast
- 1 Tbsp sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cup warm water
- 2 Tbsp olive oil for the pan
Topping:
- 1/3 cup bottled Italian dressing
- 1/2 tsp dried basil
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp tsp salt
- pinch of thyme
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir together the flour, sugar, yeast and salt.
- Add the water and mix until the dough starts to come together in a ball.
- Continue kneading about 3 minutes.
- Cover the bowl and let the dough rise until puffy, 30-60-minutes
- Preheat the oven to 450.
- Brush 2 Tbsp olive oil evenly across a half-sheet pan.
- Turn dough out onto the prepared pan. Press lightly into a rough oval shape. It won't cover the whole pan.
- Brush the top with the Italian dressing.
- In a bowl, combine the basil, oregano, garlic, salt, and thyme. Evenly sprinkle this mixture over the dressing.
- Sprinkle with the mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.
- If you want slightly fluffier bread, let the bread rest for 10-20 minutes before baking.
- Bake for 15 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is sizzling.
- Let rest for about 5 minutes before cutting.
Notes
This is the dough I use for my homemade pizza. I just substitute pizza sauce and toppings for the toppings listed above.