Presunto and Cheese Rolls : World Spice Merchants

Presunto and Cheese Rolls

"Every Saturday when I was growing up, my mother would go to the local Portuguese bakery and buy a dozen chouriço rolls—torpedo-shaped logs stuffed with sausage. By Monday, they were gone, mostly due to me. To dress up my childhood classic, I add presunto and cheese, and sometimes sautéed onions and garlic, to the dough. And I form the rolls into round loaves because I think they look elegant on the table."
- From David Leite

These rolls are as soft as a Hawaiian bun, but savory from the bits of meat and cheese inside. We split the dough in this recipe into roll-sized shapes, but you can easily just split the dough into four pieces and turn them into decadent sandwich rolls. When they bake they get a nice golden cheesy crust and the inside is airy, soft and luscious from the olive oil, while the fragrant spices will have your stomach growling! They're perfect to accompany soups, salads or serve at brunch. They also make a great breakfast egg sandwich, or serve them with warm marinara for dipping as an appetizer for movie night.

Ingredients

1 package active dry yeast or 2-1/4 teaspoons
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1-1/2 cups warm water (110°F)
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1/4 cup olive oil, plus for for greasing
4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed
1-1/4 teaspoons

Diamond Crystal - Kosher Salt

Diamond Crystal - Kosher Salt

Diamond Crystal is our go-to all purpose kosher salt. Developed in 1886 using a special process which creates a unique, hollow, multi-faceted crystals, this all-purpose salt is free ...
1/2 cup presunto, serrano ham or prosciutto trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1/4 inch cubes
6 ounces chouriço, linguiça or dried cured Spanish chorizo, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
2 tablespoons

A Taste of Portugal

A Taste of Portugal

We love making flavor dreams come true, especially this one! It began with an inspired conversation with David Leite, founder of the James Beard Award-winning website Leite's Culinar...
1/2 pound semi-firm sheep's milk cheese, such as nisa, roncal or manchego, coarsely shredded

Preparation

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, and let stand until the liquid is foamy, about 10 minutes.

Crack two of the eggs and add them to the yeast mixture along with the oil. Whirl on low speed until blended. Scoop in the flour and salt and mix on medium-low speed, scraping down the bowl once or twice, until a smooth, slightly sticky ball that thwacks and cleans the side of the bowl forms, 7 to 10 minutes. Add up to 1/2 cup flour a bit at a time, if needed.

In a medium-sized bowl, add the shredded cheese and 2 tablespoons of the Taste of Portugal spice mix. Toss the cheese until combined with the spice. Set it aside.

Dump the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times until supple, adding more flour if needed. Flatten the dough into a large disk, sprinkle with the presunto, chouriço, and cheese mixture, and knead to distribute the pieces evenly. It will seem like a lot, but press on.

Place the dough in a large lightly oiled bowl, turn to coat, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm, draft-free spot until doubled in size, 1 to 1-1/2 hours.

Line a 13-by-18-inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment and sprinkle with cornmeal. Lightly dust a work surface with flour, turn the dough out, and knead several times.

Portion the dough into 2.25 ounce sized rolls and shape each piece into a ball. Transfer the balls to the baking sheet and let rise, covered with a tea towel, until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, position a rack in the middle of the oven and crank up the heat to 425°F.

Whisk the remaining egg with 1 tablespoon of water and brush the rolls with the egg wash. Bake until the loaves are deeply brown and sound hollow when thumped on the bottom, 20 to 25 minutes.

Transfer to a rack to cool completely. The loaves will keep for up to 2 days wrapped in plastic, but you can’t beat them on the day they’re made.