Crazy Dough: One Easy Bread Recipe with Endless Variations - Gemma's Crazy Dough Bread Series Ep 1

Hi Bold Bakers. What if I told you that out of one simple dough, you could make a variety of different breads? In this series, I’m going to show you how you can take one bread dough and make it into pizza, naan bread, even cinnamon rolls. One dough with endless possibilities. So let’s get baking. So we call this crazy dough for the simple fact that it is pretty crazy that you can make sweet and savory breads out of the one dough. Now I know bread making can be intimidating but trust me, it could not be easier. I’m going to take out all of the fear for you in this video. We’re going to get started by mixing together our wet ingredients in a jug. So pour in some lukewarm milk. Now you want it to be warm because it helps the yeast grow. Next we’re going to add in some sugar. It’s really important because yeast actually feeds off sugar. And then next we’re going to add in some dried yeast. Now you can use active dried yeast or just regular dried yeast; both work really well. Then just take a whisk and whisk them all together until your yeast has dissolved. Then just set this aside, let the yeast activate, and you’ll see it bubbles a little bit. Now next we’re going to mix together the rest of our ingredients. So now in a separate bowl, we’re going to add in some yogurt and an egg and then whisk them together until well combined. If you don’t eat eggs you can leave them out and add a little more milk. Okay, that’s whisked up. Now we’re going to set this aside and mix together all of our dry ingredients. So into our large bowl, we’re going to add in some plain flour. Now for this recipe you don’t need bread flour; plain flour works really well. Next we’re going to add in a little bit of salt because all doughs and baking need salt to give it nice flavor. And then we’re going to add in some baking powder. Now it might seem weird that we’re adding in baking powder because we already have yeast, but we are making a variety of different things so it does need the baking powder. And then just take a whisk and shimmy them all together. Okay, so that’s that. Now we’re going to combine all of our ingredients together to make our dough. Go ahead and add in your yeast mix. And then follow that with the yogurt. Okay so now take a spatula or a wooden spoon and just bring all of your dough together. So now I’m seeing that my dough is a little bit dry. That’s totally okay if yours turns out like this. All we’re going to do is add in a small bit of extra milk, just to wet the extra flour, and then keep on mixing. And then likewise, if you find that your dough is too sticky, add in a little bit of flour and that will make it a little bit stiffer. So now you’ve probably noticed that you mix this dough by hand. You do not need a stand mixer or a bread machine to make this. It could not be easier. Okay, so our dough has formed a nice ball. This is what we’re going for. Now I’m going to take some cling wrap and then tightly cover the top of your bowl. You don’t want any air to get in here. Lovely. Then you’re going to take a nice clean tea towel, lay that over the top, and what we’re doing it making our dough lovely and snug, giving it a warm little bed so it can grow. We’re going to se this aside and let it proof for two hours. So our dough has been out at room temperature for two hours. Now, as you can see, it has probably tripled in size. It is lovely and big and light and fluffy. Now our dough is ready to be used at this stage. But if you don’t want to use it straight away, you can pop it into your fridge for up to three days. And best of all, you can actually freeze this dough if you portion it up, put it in baggies, and pop it into the freezer. But for now, one of the variations we’re going to make is a cheesy loaf of bread. So go ahead and turn out your dough onto a floured surface. Now just cut your dough straight down the middle because this recipe makes two loaves of bread. So now the best thing about this dough is that you can make one loaf of bread and then maybe you can make a naan bread as well. You don’t have to use it all to make the one thing. That’s the beauty of this. Then, just with your hand, flatten out the dough. And then we’re going to sprinkle over with some cheddar cheese which I absolutely love. Now the best thing about this dough also is that you can add in whatever you want. You want to add in sundried tomatoes, some herbs, it will take whatever you want to put in there. Okay, now our cheese is on there. And all you want to do simply is just need the dough and get that cheese all the way throughout. So now every Sunday I’m going to be releasing a new video of the different variations you can make from this dough like pizza, cinnamon rolls, even nutella loaf. So make sure you stop by every Monday and see what we’re baking. So our cheese is all kneeded in. So now what I’m going to do is roll out my dough to kind of a sausage shape. Lovely. And then I’m going to pop him into a loaf tin that’s been greased with oil. Now because I love to decorate things on Bigger Bolder Baking, I’m going to sprinkle even more cheddar cheese on top. I love cheesy bread. This is going to be so good. Then our next step is to cover this loaf in cling wrap nice and tight. Make sure there’s no air getting in there. And then we are going to take our dough and leave him sitting out at room temperature until he doubles, maybe even triples in size. It will roughly take an hour, an hour and a half. So it has been around 45 minutes or so and our bread is proofed. As you can see, he has risen up to the top of the tin and he’s nice and light and fluffy. Now depending on what country you are in and how hot it is, your timing may vary. But just look for this stage, when it’s risen up and lovely. Okay, this guy is ready for the oven. Bake your bread at 400 degrees Fahrenheit or 200 degrees Celsius for roughly 30 to 35 minutes or until your bread is golden brown. Our bread is done and it looks and smells amazing. I’m going to leave it in the tin for it to cool down for around 20 minutes. After a few minutes, turn your bread out of the loaf tin and place it on a wire rack until it cools down completely. When you’re bread is completely cold, now is a good time to slice it. This bread is great for sandwiches and also it makes delicious toast, but the way I like it is simply fresh with some butter. Oh I love this bread and it is so cheesy. I know you’re going to love this recipe. Now make sure to come back next Sunday because I’m going to show you how you can turn this dough into pizza. It is absolutely delicious. I hope you enjoyed it and I will see you back here every week for more Bigger Bolder Baking.