Melting cheese with poppy & apricot bread wreath

Baked Camembert just got a whole lot better – try home baking a decorative ring and tear off chunks to dunk like fondue

  • Prep:30 mins
    Cook:55 mins
    Plus proving
  • Serves 10
  • Easy

Nutrition per serving

  • kcal 409
  • fat 24g
  • saturates 10g
  • carbs 32g
  • sugars 9g
  • fibre 2g
  • protein 20g
  • salt 1.3g

Ingredients

  • 500g pack white bread mix
  • 100g walnut pieces
  • 140g dried apricots, sliced
  • 25g poppy seeds, toasted
  • 400ml milk
  • a little oil, for greasing
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 1-2 soft cheeses in boxes, like brie or Camembert
  • splash white wine

Method

  1. Tip the bread mix into a food processor, add the walnuts and whizz until fully incorporated. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the apricots and most of the poppy seeds. Warm the milk to hand temperature, then stir into the flour mix with a wooden spoon. Knead in the bowl until smooth. Cover with oiled cling film and leave somewhere warm-ish to rise for 1 hr.

  2. Find a heatproof dish the same size or a bit bigger than your cheese box. Sit it in the middle of a big baking tray.

  3. Shape the risen dough into a long, thin log that will wrap around the dish on the sheet, like a wreath. Press the ends together, loosely cover with oiled cling film and leave to rise for 20-30 mins.

  4. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Brush the egg all over the loaf, then sprinkle with the remaining poppy seeds. Using kitchen scissors, randomly snip into the dough, to give a spiky finish. Bake for 35-40 mins until golden and crusty, and the bottom sounds hollow when you tap it. Remove the dish from the middle.

  5. To serve, unwrap the cheese and put it back into the box. Stab a few times, add the wine and tie kitchen string around the box to secure it in case the glue comes undone. Sit the cheese in the middle of the bread, without its lid, and bake for 10-15 mins until molten. Serve straight away and, if you like, pop another cheese in the oven so you can finish off the bread when the first cheese box is wiped clean.

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