Whole Wheat Bread Bowls

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When I was growing up, therewas a huge street fair every fall. Several streets were blocked off as all sorts of vendors unfurled theirawnings and displayed their wares.  Andof course, one entire street was dedicated to food trucks and stands.  It is there that my mom took me, every year,to one truck that served Wisconsin Cheese Soup in fresh Bread Bowls.  We’d take out bread bowls on their flimsypaper plates and squeeze onto a crowded bench to quickly eat the hot soup anddevour the bread bowls.
It’s been many years sinceI’ve made it home for the street fair, but those bread bowls stick in mymind.  And since I’ve discovered my lovefor baking, I decided it was high time I made some bread bowls.
The recipe itself isn’t allthat different from other bread recipes, it’s rather the handling of the doughthat makes a loaf of bread into a bread bowl. Also, the second baking to seal the inside helps create a very sturdybread bowl.

Recipe Notes:*Measure the olive oil in a measuring spoon just before thehoney, then the honey will slide right out!*When using a stand mixer to knead dough, never go higherthan speed 2 or low.*The vital wheat gluten helps keep the whole wheat flourelastic and less dense.  It is found inmost grocery stores in a small box near the flour.


Whole Wheat Bread BowlsAdapted slightly from How Sweet Eats
2 cups warm water (about 115degrees F)2 tbsp active dry yeast2tbsp extra virgin olive oil2 tbsp honey2 tbsp vital wheat gluten3 cups whole wheat flour2 ½ - 2 ¾ cups all purposeflour1 ½ tsp salt1 egg + 1 tsp water, whisked

Place the water, yeast, oliveoil, and honey into the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk the mixture lightly with a fork and let sit for 5-7 minutes oruntil the mixture is light and foamy.
Add in the salt, vital wheatgluten, whole wheat flour, and half of the all purpose flour.  Fit the mixer with a dough hook and beginmixing on low setting 1 or 2.  As the doughcomes together, slowly add the remaining flour as necessary.  The dough will be slightly tacky.  Knead the dough in the mixer for 8-10 minutesor until the dough ball is smooth and satiny, but still a bit tacky.  Remove the dough from the mixer.  Knead in a bit more flour, if needed.
Spray a large bowl generouslywith non-stick spray.  Add the dough andturn to coat.  Cover the bowl with a dampkitchen towel and set aside in a warm, draft-free place (I use the “proof”setting on my oven) for 1 ½ hours or until the dough has at least doubled insize.
Preheat the oven to 425degrees F.
Punch down the dough and cutinto 4-5 equal pieces (mine were each 8 oz or so.  I had 5 pieces) and form them intoballs.  I bring the edges of the doughtogether and pinch the seams at the bottom to form a nice ball. 
Place the dough balls on abaking sheet, cover with the damp kitchen towel and let them rise for 20-30minutes.
Form the dough into tighterballs, once again bringing the sides down and pinching the seams on the bottom.  Brush each dough ball with the egg wash.  Gently score the top of each loaf with a verysharp paring knife and place immediately into the preheated oven.  Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the bread isdeeply browned (convection ovens will take closer to 30 minutes, so adjust accordingly).  Allow the bread bowls to cool completelybefore slicing.
When ready to use, slice thetops off each bread bowl.  Cut a roundout of the center, leaving about ½ inch on all sides (including thebottom).  If desired, brush the inside ofeach bowl with olive oil and bake at 350 to seal the inside of the bowl beforefilling with dip or soup.
Makes 4-5 bread bowls

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