Spinach and Parmesan (Cheddar) Bloomer

A lovely and tasty bread, perfect for sandwich. This bread has a chewy crust and soft texture inside. One  tasty bread! Packed with the delicious taste of the spinach, onions and cheese. The original recipe calls for Parmesan Cheese, but I used Cheddar Cheese instead, as that was what I had. I reduced the salt slightly as the Cheddar Cheese is already salty. 

The onions are sauteed until light brown and spinach is added in. Stir, remove saucepan from heat, keep covered for 5 minutes, stir and leave to cool uncovered. The spinach mixture is then added to the bread pan along with the water and egg. Scatter the bread flour all over, top with grated nutmeg, cheese, salt, sugar and yeast. Set the machine to Basic Dough setting and add in the pine nuts at the sound of the beep. That's it! Let the machine do the kneading!

At the end of the cycle, tip out the dough from the bread pan, it will be a beautiful green, roll it out into a rectangular shape about 1" thick and roll it up like a swissroll from the long side. Place in on a greased baking sheet, with the seams facing up. Cover with lightly oiled cling wrap and leave to rest for 15 minutes. 

Have another greased baking sheet ready. Transfer dough to the second baking sheet, with seams facing down, plump up dough by tucking sides and ends of dough. Cover with lightly oiled cling wrap and leave in a warm place to rise for about 30 minutes. Using a sharp knife, make five slashes diagonally on top of dough. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes until cooked.

 A beautiful bread is ready.

This bread has a crusty crust and the insides are soft and nice. It is really tasty, the flavours of the spinach, onions, cheese and grated nutmeg, all combined into one gorgeous bread.

 The spinach and onions are all mashed up in the bread, a great way to get your kids to eat up some veggies!

 The pine nuts added a nice nutty taste. 

We had a simple delicious dinner with bread, a change from our daily rice meals.

Made this into a sandwich with chicken ham slices, lettuce, tomato, cheese slices, mustard, mayo and chilli sauce. I had mine with some Hot Chilli & Jalapeno Relish which my sis bought from London, yum! We had some soup along with the sandwich. And don't forget that cup of Earl Grey! Lovely! This bread recipe is a definite keeper!

I'm sharing this with
Hearth and Soul Hop at Mom's Sunday Cafe
Bake With Bizzy at Bizzy Bakes
Full Plate Thursday at Miz Helen's Country Cottage


Spinach and Parmesan Bloomer
(adapted from "Bread Machine Kitchen Handbook" by Jennie Shapter)
Makes 1 loaf
15ml (1 tbsp) olive oil
1 onion, chopped
115gm (4oz) fresh young spinach leaves
120ml (generous 4floz / 1/2 cup) water
1 egg
450gm (1lb / 4 cups) unbleached white bread flour
2.5ml (1/2 tsp) freshly grated nutmeg
50gm (2oz/ 2/3 cup) freshly grated Parmesan cheese (I use Cheddar cheese)
7.5ml (1-1/2 tsp) salt  (I use 1-1/8 tsp as Cheddar cheese is already salty)
5ml (1 tsp) granulated sugar
7.5ml (1-1/2 tsp) easy bake (rapid-rise) dried yeast
30ml (2 tbsp) pine nuts

1. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan, add the chopped onion and saute until a light golden colour. Add the spinach, stir well to combine and cover the pan very tightly. Remove from the heat and leave to stand for 5 minutes. Then stir again and leave the pan uncovered, to cool.
2. Tip the spinach mixture into the bread machine pan. Add the water and egg. If the instructions for your machine specify that the yeast is to be placed in the pan first, then simply reverse the order in which you add the liquid mixture and dry ingredients.
3. Sprinkle over the white bread flour, ensuring that it completely covers the liquid mixture in the bread pan. Sprinkle the grated nutmeg and the Parmesan cheese over the flour.
4. Place the salt and sugar in separate corners of the bread pan. Make a small indent in the center of the flour (but not down as far as the liquid) and add the easy bake dried yeast.
5. Set the bread machine to the dough setting; use basic raisin dough setting (if available). Press Start. Lightly flour two baking sheets.
6. Add the pine nuts to the dough when the machine beeps or during the last  5 minutes of the kneading process.
7. When the dough cycle has finished, remove the dough from the machine and place it on a surface that has been lightly floured. Gently knock the dough back (punch it down), then carefully roll it out to a rectangle about 2.5cm/1in thick.
8. Roll up the rectangle of dough from one long side to form a thick baton shape, with a square end.
9. Place the baton on the prepared baking sheet, seam side up, cover it with lightly oiled clear film (plastic wrap) and leave to rest for 15 minutes.
10. Turn the bread over and place on the second baking sheet. Plump up the dough by tucking the ends and sides under. Cover it with lightly oiled clear film again and leave it to rise in a warm place for 30 minutes. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas 7.
11. Using a sharp knife, slash the top of the bloomer with five diagonal slashes. Bake it for 30-35 minutes, or until it is golden and the bottom sounds hollow when tapped. Turn the bread out on to a wire rack to cool.