Recipe: Crusty Meat Braid

Are you looking for a delicious recipe to make on a cold night? I've got one for you! I enjoy Wednesdays, as I'm usually home all day and have more time to cook. Tonight, I made this recipe, and from the "umms" punctuating the air between bites, I think it was a hit. It also looked really pretty, before it got devoured!

Crusty Meat Braid
Turkey or Beef Filling (see below)
2 to 3 cups whole wheat bread or roll dough
2 TBSP finely grated cheese

Prepare filling as directed. Roll dough into a large rectangle, approximately 9 x 15 inches and 1/4 inch thick. Spread filling lengthwise down the center third of the dough. Cut dough into 1 inch strips on each side of the filling (you'll have two strips on each side). Braid dough over filling, tucking in the last strip. Place on a large, heave baking sheet (or simply roll it out and braid it on the sheet). Let raise 5 to 10 minutes. Bake in a 350* oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Pour remaining soup or sauce over top and sprinkle with cheese.

Turkey Filling
2 cups cooked and cubed turkey or chicken
1 tsp. instant minced onion
1 cup frozen peas and carrots, slightly cooked
1 4-ounce can mushrooms, drained
1 10.5-ounce can cream of mushroom soup
Salt and pepper

Mix first 4 ingredients. Add half the soup to the turkey mixture. Season with salt and pepper. Mix the remaining soup with a few tablespoons water or milk to achieve gravy consistency, and reserve for baked bread.

Beef Filling
1 lb ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 cup frozen mixed vegetables, cooked
3 TBSP taco or pizza sauce seasoning mix
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
Salt and pepper

Cook ground beef and onion; drain well. Stir in mixed vegetables, seasoning mix, and 1/2 cup tomato sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Reserve remaining tomato sauce for top of baked bread.

The original recipe comes from Set For Life.

Now, for a few slight changes I made. =) I made the turkey filling, as it's a great way to use up some leftover turkey we had from, yes, last Thanksgiving! I don't care for mushrooms that much, so I omitted them and used cream of chicken soup instead. I also added a tad more meat and veggies then it called for and didn't measure the cheese, but just sprinkled some on top. I've gotten to the point that I'm a bit lax on my measurements, but it hasn't hurt me - yet!

Since we were almost out of bread, I made up a batch of bread, used one loaf's worth for the meat braid and made two more loaves. It's a great way to make two things at once! The bread I make about once-a-week (my family is spoiled now - although we occasionally get store-bought bread when we're busy, it just doesn't taste as good anymore!) is a recipe the Harts shared with me. It's pretty quick and easy and delicious!

1 1/2 cups hot water
1 cup milk
3 eggs
1/3 cup oil
1/3 cup honey
5 tsp. instant yeast
2 TBSP wheat gluten (optional, but improves texture)
6 to 7 1/4 cups flour (I use mostly fresh-ground wheat flour, with some unbleached white to make a good consistency)
1 TBSP salt

Combine first 5 ingredients. Add yeast, gluten, and 5 cups of flour. Add the salt, then continue to mix adding the flour 1/2 cup at a time.

Knead until you think it's ready (dough will be pretty smooth and elastic and just feel right). Let rise until double (around 1 hour). After rising, form into loaves or other shapes (rolls, bread braids, etc.).

Place in a greased loaf pan. Let rise until at least double in size. (I heat the oven to 150* then turn in off, placing the pans inside the nice warm space. The loaves rise nicely, taking about 30 minutes). Bake loaves at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes. Makes about 3 large sized loaves.

Enjoy! Happy baking to you!