Makes one 1-lb loaf or 4 mini loaves
Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients:
1 large russet potato, cut into smaller pieces (about 1 lb)
8 oz sour cream
2 tablespoons Land O Lakes® Butter
½ teaspoon salt
crushed black pepper
Directions:
In a medium saucepan, on medium high heat, boil potato pieces until fork tender, about 10 minutes. Strain water off, reserve 1 cup for bun dough.
In a bowl, fork together tender potato pieces, sour cream, butter, salt and pepper, until smooth. season additionally as you like. Cover and set aside.
Bread Dough
Ingredients:
1 ¼ cups reserved potato water, lukewarm
1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast
4 cups flour, plus more for dusting
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 tablespoons Land O Lakes® Butter, melted
8 oz Land O Lakes® Extra Sharp Cheddar Chunk, sliced into 24 equal pieces
4 oz bacon, rendered and cut into small pieces
¼ cup chives, cut
In a large bowl, whisk together the warm potato water and yeast until dissolved and foamy, about 1 minute. Let sit as-is another 5 minutes to continue foaming and growing, ready to do its work.
Ditch the whisk and grab a sturdy spatula. Measure the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl. Toss only the dry ingredients on top together with the spatula first, before truly stirring them into the wet ingredients below. This will result in a dry, shaggy mixture. Add the egg and melted butter in, and mix until the dough comes together as a thick, almost sticky mass. This should take 2-3 minutes.
Ditch the spatula this time, scraping any doughy remains into the bowl first, and roll up your sleeves. Either in the bowl or on a clean kitchen counter, knead the dough for an additional 5-6 minutes to fully develop the gluten, where your dough will become a smooth, round mass.
Grease the same large mixing bowl, toss the dough in the fat and leave seam side down. Cover with a dry towel and place in a draft-free spot (I like the microwave or a turned-off oven) to rise for an hour, until it’s doubled in size.
Grab the proofed dough, punch it down, and knock it out onto a clean, floured counter. With a knife or bench cutter, divide the dough into 24 equal pieces, then round each piece into a ball, seam side down. Cover with a dry towel and let rest 30 minutes.
Heat the oven to 375F and grease a 1-lb loaf pan.
Remove the towel and use the palm of your hand to flatten each dough ball, then use your palm and fingertips to spread the dough into a larger 4-inch round, similar in size to the dimension of the loaf pan (you’re going to stack each of these rounds into the loaf pan to create a pull apart effect!)
Divide the mashed potatoes evenly across the dough rounds and use the back of a spoon to spread it across each surface. Place a slice of Land O Lakes® Extra Sharp Cheddar at the top center of each round. Stack each dough round atop the next, then transfer the layered dough rounds into the greased loaf pan so it looks like a file cabinet full of mashed potatoes and cheddar cheese.
Bake the loaf at 375 for 50 minutes until the loaf has started to poof over the brim of the pan and the edges are a deep golden brown. Let bread cool in pan 10 minutes, before scattering the bacon bits and cut scallions atop and serving.
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