Garlic and Herb Wool Bread
Are you looking to upgrade your garlic bread or are you a keen bread baker and want something new to try? If your answer is yes then you are in the right place and even if your answer is no, well, you are still in the right place.
You may have seen this bread floating around the internet recently and let me tell you, there is definitely something behind the hype. Just think of a bread with the fluffiness of milk bread and the flavour of brioche— sounds good right? Most wool bread recipes out there are sweet but considering my love for garlic, I thought, let's do this! It was definitely a success and the loaf didn't even last on day in my house. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I did.
In this post:
Wool bread flavour inspiration
The recipe for this dough is actually very versatile and goes well with any sweet or savoury filling.
Garlic and chilli: for this combination, you can use the garlic and herb recipe in just the same way but instead of using fresh herbs you can replace them with a couple teaspoons of chilli flakes—depending on how spicy you want it.
Red onion: again, you can use the garlic and herb recipe in the same way but you will need to replace the garlic with red onion. Just finely chop a small red onion and caramelise is in a pan first. Allow the onion to cool and then mix it in with the butter as normal.
Hazelnut and chocolate: sweet fillings work just as well so with a hazelnut and chocolate filling there's only a few changes. Melt 50g of chocolate with the butter and then cool it down until it is the same texture of softened butter. Add around 2 tbsp of ground hazelnuts and mix. With this flavour combination, I wouldn't recommend using the excess to brush over the top of the bread before baking (as I do with the garlic and herb wool bread) but you can save it as a spread for later.
Which herbs should I use for garlic and herb wool bread?
You can use any combination of herbs that you want for this garlic and herb wool bread. I used two springs of sage, two springs of thyme and about five oregano leaves. I wanted a good mixture but you don't have to do the same. You can even add a couple of spices if you're feeling adventurous.
What to eat with garlic and herb wool bread?
I'm not going to lie, I did just eat chunks of this bread by itself— it's just so addictive. But, if you don't want to fall for the trap of constantly eating bread, there are some great meals that this wool bread goes well with.
Garlic and herb wool bread is a great alternative to garlic bread which makes it a great addition to any Italian dish. For example, meatballs, pasta or even with some melted cheese on top. And, there is always the classic accompaniment of soup.
How should I store garlic and herb wool bread?
If you don't eat it in one day, which is what happened in my house, store your wool bread in an airtight container. It can keep for a couple of day before going stale but it is softest on the first day. Although, you can revive this garlic bread when it goes a little stale by placing it an oven at 180C/ 160C fan for 5 minutes or so.
Can I freeze garlic and herb wool bread?
Of course, just wrap your wool bread in cling film and then place in an airtight container to avoid freezer burn. It can keep for over a month in the freezer. To make it easier, you can freeze the wool bread in slices so that you don't have to worry about cutting a slice from a frozen loaf.
Garlic and Herb Wool Bread (extended)
Prep time
25-35 minutes
+ 2-4 hours proving
Cook time
20-25 minutes
Serves
6-8
80ml Whole milk, lukewarm
7g (1 sachet) Fast action dried yeast
300g Bread flour
1tsp Sea salt
30g Caster sugar
1 Egg
100g Whipping cream
5 Garlic cloves
5 Sprigs of fresh herbs
100g Salted butter, plus extra for greasing
Making the dough
For the dough, mix the lukewarm milk with the yeast and let sit for at least 5 minutes. In a large bowl mix together the flour, sugar, salt, whipping cream, egg, and yeast milk. Knead the dough for around 8 minutes or until you get a smooth, yet sticky, dough. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel or cling film and then leave in a warm place for 1-2 hours until the dough has doubled in size.
Making the garlic butter
While the dough is rising make the garlic butter. Finely chop your chosen herbs and crush the garlic. Soften the butter until is an easily spreadable texture. Add the chopped herbs and garlic and stir well. Place in the fridge until needed. While the dough is still rising, melt your extra butter and use it to thoroughly grease the inside of a deep, springform 8-inch tin.
Rolling the dough
Remove the garlic butter from the fridge and separate about 1tbsp for brushing over the top of the bread before baking.
When the dough has doubled in size, remove the dough from the bowl and place on a floured surface. Divide the dough in to five, roughly, equal pieces and then roll each piece into a ball.
Put four balls of dough aside and roll one into a long oval about 10x15cm in size. Cut into the top half of the dough multiple times (the more cuts the better the pattern) so that it kind of looks like a fringe. The whole oval should still be together.
On the half of the dough that hasn't been cut, place just over a teaspoon of the garlic butter. Roll the dough up from the filling side so the fringe of dough is on the outside of the log once it has been fully rolled. Place the rolled dough at the edge of the prepared baking tin. Repeat with the other pieces of dough to create a ring of rolled dough in your baking tin.
Note: don't worry if you have any leftover garlic butter, just add it to the tablespoon of garlic butter that you set aside earlier.
Baking the garlic and herb wool bread
When you have finished rolling and filling your dough, cover the baking tin with a tea towel or clingfilm and leave in a warm place for 1-2 hours or until it has doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan. Melt the tablespoon of garlic butter that you set aside and then gently brush it over the risen bread. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the top is a nice golden brown—it can still be quite light on the sides. Take out of the oven and let cool down in the tin.
Tip: If you want a glossy finish, brush the top of your wool bread with a little olive oil when it comes out the oven.
Did you make this recipe? I would love to see your baking masterpiece over social media or by email.
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