Cheese Bread Recipe with Yeast

A slice of soft cheese sandwich bread with a pat of butter sitting on it.

4.82 from 11 votes

Cheese Bread Recipe with Yeast

You cannot beat the comfort and flavor of a good loaf of bread. My homemade cheese bread recipe makes a beautiful, cheesy, delicious addition to any meal.

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Rising time 1 45

Total Time 2 30

Servings 2-Loaves

Author Julie Menghini

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Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

3 cups water - divided warmed to a temperature of 90 °F- to 95 °F
2 tbsp active dry yeast
1 tbsp sugar
⅔ cup olive oil
8 cups all-purpose flour - bleached or unbleached
2 tsp salt
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese -if you choose to make the swirl add 1 cup
1 tbsp Italian seasoning - can also use dried parsley

Egg wash - optional

1 egg - beaten
1 tsp water

Instructions

In the bowl of a stand-up mixer fitted with a dough hook, add 1 cup of warm water, yeast, and granulated sugar. Let it stand for 4 to 5 minutes or until the yeast is blooming (foams).
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, cheddar cheese, and Italian seasoning. Mix until the ingredients are all combined. *NOTE* If you decide to make the swirl cheese in the middle, add only 1 ½ cup in the flour and reserve ½ cup.
Add half of the flour mixture to the yeast mixture and mix on slow speed until there is no more loose flour.
Add the remaining water and oil. Mix on low speed until it's all combined.
Add the remaining flour mixture and mix on low speed until it's all combined.
Increase to medium speed for 4 to 5 minutes to allow the gluten to develop (all ingredients to combine together). You should have a nice, slightly sticky mixture.
Put the dough into a large mixing bowl that you previously oiled. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for 50 minutes to 1 hour in a warm, draft-free place.
Butter 2 loaf pans. Set aside.
Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and put the dough on a lightly floured working surface. Separate the dough into 2 equal-sized pieces.
Take one half and push it down into a rectangle. approximately 9 x 10 inches. *NOTE* If you do decide to make a swirl, sprinkle some cheese in the middle of the bread. I use approximately ½ cup of shredded cheese per bread.
Roll the bread into a log and place it into the prepared pan. Do the same thing with the second piece of dough.
Loosely cover the dough with plastic wrap and place it in a warm draft-free place for 15 minutes.
Score each bread loaf with a sharp knife 3 or 4 times. Re-cover the loaves with the plastic wrap and put them back into a warm draft-free place for 20 to 30 more minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 °F
Gently take the plastic off the bread. Combine the egg and water and brush the egg wash over the top of each loaf.
Put the bread loaves into the preheated oven. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until you have a nice golden crust. The internal temperature of the bread is 190 °F to 195 °F.
Remove the bread from the loaf pans and allow the bread to cool completely on a cooling rack.

Notes

Warm water between the temperature of 90 to 95-degrees F is the best temperature to activate the yeast. Think about warm bathwater. If it is too cold the yeast won’t activate and if it is too hot it will kill the yeast)
Sugar works better than honey or maple syrup to activate yeast so I don't recommend making a substitution.
You can use oil or a non-stick spray to prepare the pans but I like using butter because it makes the crust even better
The egg wash will give a crunch to the bread and the brushing butter gives a soft crust. Both are excellent.
Mixing the cheese with the flour helps the cheese to be uniformly distributed throughout the dough

Nutrition

This recipe was calculated using the exact brands and measurements I used to make this recipe. If you are following a strict diet please note changing anything will cause the nutritional info to change. My calculations are intended as a guide only.

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