Cheddar and Green Onion Garlic Bread

Last week I went to a local farmer's market and bought a loaf of homebaked bread with cheddar, green onions and garlic...it was delicious.  But at $5 for a small loaf, it's a little steep to form a habit from.

Instead, I thought that I would try and bake it, and to my surprise, it wasn't actually that difficult to replicate! In fact, it might even be better (shame on me!)

This was the inspiration loaf:

Makes one 9-inch loaf

3¾ cups (18¾ ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the work surface
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup warm whole milk (about 110 degrees)
1/3 cup warm water (about 110 degrees)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 tablespoons honey, divided
1 envelope (about 2¼ teaspoons) instant yeast
1/3 cup chopped green onion
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup, plus more for topping, grated cheddar
1/4 grated parmesan cheese

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 200 degrees. Once the oven temperature reaches 200 degrees, maintain the heat for 10 minutes, then turn off the oven.

2. Mix 3½ cups of the flour, salt, garlic powder, green onions and 1/2 cup of grated cheddar in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix the milk, water, 2 teaspoons of butter, honey, and yeast in a 4-cup liquid measuring cup. Turn the machine to low and slowly add the liquid. When the dough comes together, increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough is smooth and satiny, stopping the machine two or three times to scrape dough from hook, if necessary, about 10 minutes. (After 5 minutes of kneading, if the dough is still sticking to the sides of the bowl, add flour, 1 tablespoon at a time and up to ¼ cup total, until the dough is no longer sticky.) Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface; knead to form as mooth, round ball, about 15 seconds.

3. Place the dough in a very lightly oiled large bowl, rubbing the dough around the bowl to coat lightly. Coverthe bowl with plastic wrap and place in the warmed oven until the dough doubles in size, 40 to 50 minutes.

4. Gently press the dough into a rectangle 1 inch thick and no longer than 9 inches. WIth a long side facing you, sprinkle with another 1/2 cup of grated cheddar and roll the dough firmly into a cylinder, pressing with your fingers to make sure the dough sticks to itself. Turn the dough seam-side up and pinch it closed. Place the dough seam-side down in a greased 9 by 5-inch loaf pan and press it gently so it touches all four sides of the pan. Brush with remaining tablespoon of melted butter, sprinkle with grated parmesan and cheddar cheese.  Cover with plastic wrap; set aside in a warm spot until the dough almost doubles in size, 20 to 30 minutes.

5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted at an angle from the short end just above the pan rim into the center of the loaf read 200 degrees, 40 to 50 minutes. Remove the bread from the pan, transfer to a wire rack, and cool to room temperature.  Approx. 2 hrs. Slice and serve.