Traditional cheese bread scented with saffron and nutmeg

Another delicious homemade bread to enjoy as a snack or along with any comfort meal. A bit different from the classic recipes this cheese bread is enriched with the distinctive but elegant aroma and taste of the saffron and a pinch of nutmeg which together make it really special in taste

Recipe of Elias Demirtzoglou,

from "Cook Book" magazine of "ETHNOS" newspaper

Ingredients (for 1 large loaf):
1 Kg of all-purpose flour (and maybe a bit more), sifted

1 sachet of dried yeast

1 tbsp of granulated sugar

1 tea-cup of lukewarm milk

1/4 tsp of saffron (in powder)

2-3 tbsp of lukewarm water

4 eggs, beaten

1 ½ tea-cup of Greek Kefalotyri cheese, grated

1 pinch of nutmeg

1 tsp of salt

2-3 tbsp of olive oil

Method:

Put the 2-3 tbsp of lukewarm water in a small bowl, add the saffron and leave aside for 10 minutes to dissolve.

In another bowl, dissolve the yeast and the sugar in the lukewarm milk and leave aside for 10-15 minutes until it becomes frothy.

Sift the flour in a large plastic basin. Make a small well in the centre of the flour and add the dissolved yeast, the dissolved saffron, the beaten eggs, the grated cheese, the salt and the nutmeg.

Knead the ingredients with your hands for 10-15 minutes until you end up with a firm dough (if needed add some more lukewarm water). In the end, add the olive oil and knead some more.

Transfer the dough into a bowl (which you have dusted with some flour) and leave in a warm place for 1 ½ hours until it doubles in volume. When the time passes, knead the dough a bit more so to free the trapped air and transfer into a round oven pan, which you have brushed with some oil. Leave the bread aside for 20-30 minutes so to rise.

In the meantime preheat the oven to 180°C.

When the bread has risen put the pan in the middle shelf of the oven and bake for about 50-60 minutes. Take out of the oven and allow the bread to rest for a few minutes before you serve.