Italian Herb Bread Bowls

I remember the first time I discovered a bread bowl when I was about 11. I was astonished at the ingenuity it. Not only is your bowl completely edible, but it automatically comes with bread to dip into your soup!

I think many people share this fascination and utter enjoyment. I have found that whenever I am at a restaurant offering bread bowls, most of the people I'm with, myself included, can't manage to pass it up.

 So I decided it was time to try and make my own and stop relying on restaurants to provide them. I hunted around and settled on a recipe from Mel's Kitchen for Italian Bread Bowls. I adapted it a bit and decided to add some herbs to them. Then I sprinkled sesame seeds on top to make them a bit more interesting.

I always bake late the night before I'm actually having people over, and it becomes problematic when the food smells as good as these did. The rosemary and basil came through really well and by about midnight I was ready to have one of the bowls as a bedtime snack. I was cooking dinner for 8 people so I stretched the dough a bit and made smaller bread bowls so everyone could have their own. Most people had 2 or 3 servings of the soup and just continued to nibble through the bread bowl as they ate. They were a huge hit with everyone and went beautifully both the clam chowder and the chili we had.

Italian Herb Bread Bowls

Makes 6-8 bread bowls

1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast (use 1 tablespoon instant yeast)

2 1/2 cups warm water

2 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp Rosemary
1 tsp Basil
1 egg, beaten
Sesame seeds for sprinkling

• In a large bowl (or bowl of an electric mixer), dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. (You can omit this step if using instant yeast.)
  
• Add salt, oil and 4 cups flour to the yeast mixture; beat well. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well with an electric mixer at medium speed after each addition until a soft but not sticky dough is formed. This bread bowl dough needs to be a bit firmer than a roll/bread dough so that the bread bowls rise up instead of out.
• When the dough has pulled together, add in the herbs and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6 minutes (or let knead in an electric mixer).
• Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.
• Punch dough down, and divide into 6-8 equal portions. Shape each portion into a round ball. Place loaves on baking sheets lined with parchment paper
•  Slash the top surface of the bread bowl several times with a sharp knife or razor, brush with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Cover and let rise in a warm place, free from drafts, until doubled in bulk, about 35 minutes.

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake in preheated oven for 15-18 minutes until golden brown and baked through.

• To make into bread bowls, used a serrated knife and cut a circle in the top. Wedge a large spoon inside and pull out the top piece of the bowl.

• Pour in some chowder, and devour mercilessly

Recipe Source: adapted from Mel's Kitchen