Bread Bowls

Here is the recipe I used to make bread bowls for my Irish lamb stew. Bread bowls are a fun way to serve thicker soups and stews without having to bother with dishes. Then you have an edible bowl at the end. This bowl already has a lot of flavor from the honey, molasses, and whole wheat flour. However, the bread will also absorb some of the flavor of the broth of the stew, which moistens it and makes it especially tasty – no need for butter. These bread bowls are fairly sturdy, and small but definitely filling enough. They can be made bigger, or just refilled with soup twice!

Bread Bowls

1 1/2 cups bread flour

2 packages quick-rise yeast

1 Tablespoon granulated (white) sugar

2 teaspoons salt

1 cup milk

1 cup water

¼ cup honey

2 Tablespoons molasses

2 Tablespoons butter or hard margarine

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 cups all-purpose (plain) flour

In a large bowl, stir together the bread flour, yeast, sugar, and salt.

In a medium saucepan, heat the milk, water, honey, molasses, and butter until approximately 120-130◦F (50-55◦C). Stir into flour mixture. Stir in remaining flours.

Knead until smooth and elastic, about ten minutes. Cover and let rest ten minutes.

Divide dough into eight equal portions, form each into a round ball. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and allow to rise for about 45 minutes until doubled in size.

Bake at 350◦F for 30 minutes until bread is firm, golden, and sounds hollow when tapped.

To make bread bowls: cut a cone shaped piece from the middle of each bowl, or trace a circle with a knife and hollow the bread out with a spoon. If removed in one piece, the insides can be used for garnish, if not they can be eaten as is or used for breadcrumbs or toasted as baguettes. The bread bowls are best served warm, so if baked in advance they can be hollowed out once cooled then reheated in the oven, wrapped in foil, until warmed.