Of all the goodies I make in my kitchen there are few that smell as good as this bread while baking in the oven. There’s something about the combination of goat cheese, rosemary and sage inside a hot loaf of rising bread that creates a spectacular aroma. Indeed, if you make this bread you’ll be inhaling so deeply for so long that I dare say you’ll induce a near meditative state.

Rosemary Sage Bread: A seductive peak at what’s inside.
(View larger image here)

Sage is actually one of my favorite herbs. I love everything about it: from its silvery-green color, to its flavor, to its intriguing culinary history. The antibacterial properties of Common Sage have resulted in its widespread use as a medicinal herb, with the ancient Greeks and Romans using it to restore memory, treat snake bites and increase life expectancy. Later, during the Middle Ages, King Charlemagne encouraged its cultivation in Germany where it was used as a “cure” for all manner of afflictions. There are three varieties of sage: Common Sage, which is what you find in grocery stores or culinary gardens, White Sage, and “Diviner’s Sage.” Folklore ascribes “magical” properties to all three, but the latter two have particularly striking histories. For instance, although the Native Americans used White Sage as a flavoring in their food and as a medicinal plant, they also used it to make “smudge sticks,” a kind of incense. Sage leaves were bundled together, then burned - the idea being that the resulting smoke drove away evil spirits and purified anyone who was present. Traditional Algonquian First Nations culture used smudge sticks when sending prayers to the Great Spirit, and I’ve heard that sage smudge sticks are also popular among modern day practitioners of Wicca. Then there is “Diviner’s Sage,” also known as “Yerba de la Pastora,” which is a powerful psychoactive plant that was used by Mazatec Shamans embarking on a vision quest. The Mazatec are an indigenous people who live in southern Mexico and whose language is part of the Otomanguean language family. I mention this bit of obscure Mexican ethnography because on my maternal-grandmother’s side I have ancestors who were Otomi, meaning that they were also native Mexicans included in the Otomanguean family. Indeed, my great-grandmother spoke Otomi, while one of my great-aunt’s was a “healer” who used sage smoke in ways similar to the smudge stick method described above. I spoke with my Nana about this last night because I wanted to be sure about the details and she shared some fascinating stories about my family. Who knew a post about sage would head in that direction? Gotta love it.

All that said, I want to move on to the second part of this entry, which is a review of Beautiful Breads & Fabulous Fillings, by Margaux Sky.

What’s Good: I received this lovely book just before heading off to Israel back in December and have been happily sampling its recipes since I returned to the States in mid January. My two favorites, in case you haven’t guessed, are the “Rosemary Sage Bread” and the “Mozzarella Bread” (originally “Three Cheese Bread”), but there are others. For instance, I love Sky’s “Salsa Bread” and adore her recipe for making it into an avocado and melted Swiss cheese sandwich. The sheer abundance of inventive recipes in this book will definitely get your creative juices flowing. Divided into ten categories, chapters cover topics such as “Beautiful and Unique White Breads,” “Beautiful and Unique Brown Breads,” “Sauces, Dressings and Butters,” “The Best Sandwiches,” and “Sandwich Loaves.” This latter section was a particular favorite because it’s essentially a series of recipes for baking delicious sandwiches inside your bread. My husband really likes the “Pizza Sandwich Loaf,” while my favorite is the “Eggplant Parmesan Sandwich Loaf.” In the “Sauces” chapter Sky’s recipes for “Peach Jam Sauce” and “Real Apple Butter” made wonderful additions to our breakfast table, and there are many other sauces that would spice up any lunch or dinner gathering. For instance, “Creamy Viognier and Pineapple Sauce,” which is a combination of butter, red onions, viognier, brown sugar and pineapple, among other things. (Yum! Okay, now I’m getting hungry.) The book is well-bound with beautiful photos accompanying many of the recipes. Sky often includes tips and historical tidbits beneath her baking instructions which adds a welcome conversational vibe to the text.

What’s Bad: While I do like this book there were two things that rubbed me the wrong way. First, I felt the chapters on salads, soups, accompaniments and desserts were out of place. (Unless, of course, by “fabulous fillings” Sky meant “filling things that you eat” not “things to fill your bread with.”) This is not to say that the recipes in these sections aren’t good - they are - it’s just that I would have preferred that she use those 83 pages to share additional bread recipes or filling ideas. After all, who wants to see instructions for making a “Fruit Cup” in a bread book? (To be fair there are 161 pages of bread related recipes.) Second, while I did appreciate the conversational tidbits Sky includes with many recipes (see above) I noticed that several of them have spelling errors. That’s a big no-no if you ask me. After all, we are talking about coffee-table quality cookbook here.

Conclusion: Overall I would recommend this book to bread enthusiasts, though inexperienced bakers may find some of Sky’s recipes to be a bit challenging. As I noted in my post about the Mozzarella Bread, whenever I have made a loaf from this book I’ve had to significantly alter the amount of liquid or flour I use to achieve my desired dough texture. This isn’t a problem for me because I know how I want my dough to look and feel, but for someone who is encountering bread making for the first time such modifications may prove frustrating. (As always, I highly recommend “The Bread Bakers Apprentice” as a starter baking book. “The Bread Bible” is fantastic also.) However, if you have made bread in the past and are relatively comfortable making changes to recipes, then the assortment of breads, sandwiches, sauces and ideas in this book will kick your baking into creative high gear.

A couple notes before the recipe:

• You can win a free copy of Beautiful Breads and Fabulous Fillings by signing up for the Baking and Books mailing list. Find out more by clicking here.
• I recently spent some time updating both the “About” and “Shop” sections of this site, in case you want to take a gander.

On to the recipe!

Rosemary Sage Bread
Reproduced with permission from “Beautiful Breads and Fabulous Fillings,” by Margaux Sky.
Step 1: Basic White Bread Dough
Ingredients: Makes 4 loaves

• 2 tablespoons yeast
• 4 cups warm milk
• 4 cups half-and-half (I used whole milk instead)
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 16 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
• 3 1/2 tablespoons salt

In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the milk and half-and-half. Let stand for 5 minutes, until the yeast is foamy. Add the butter and mix with a whisk. Add the powdered sugar and mix well to break up any clumps.

In a large bowl (or stand mixer bowl), combine the flour and salt. Slowly add the liquid mixture to the flour mixture and knead well. If you’re using a stand mixer, knead for 3 to 4 minutes. If you’re kneading by hand, knead for 4 to 7 minutes. Keep the dough moist for a soft, tender bread.

Place the kneaded dough in a generously buttered bowl, cover with a towel or loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm, dry place for 1 hour.

Punch down the dough with your fist, and divide into 4 portions, one for each loaf.

Step 1.5, meaning, you should do this step while your dough is rising in step 1: Make the filling!
Rosemary-Sage Sauce
Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 (13.5 ounce) can coconut milk
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 3 tablespoons finely diced fresh rosemary (Or 1 tablespoon dry rosemary) (Info)
• 3 tablespoons finely diced fresh sage (Or 1 tablespoon dry sage)
• 1/2 tablespoon Lawry’s lemon pepper (I actually used 1/4 tablespoon plain black pepper instead.)
• A pinch of salt

In a skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the olive oil, coconut milk, almond extract, vanilla extract, lemon juice and lemon zest. Stir to mix well. Add the rosemary, sage, lemon pepper and salt. Mix well and bring to a boil.

Boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove the sauce from the stove, pour into a bowl and let cool.

Notes: Extra sauce can be refrigerated in an airtight container. In addition to using it with this bread recipe you can serve it as a garnish for meat and veggies, or simply use it as a dipping sauce for a good loaf of bread. It is meant to be served warm.

Step 2: Add the filling!
Additional ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cup Rosemary-Sage Sauce
• Pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• 1/8 teaspoon salt (Unless the cheese you use is very salty, in which case you may want to cut back)
• 2 cups crumbled goat cheese
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons water

Roll out 1 loaf worth of dough from the basic bread recipe listed above (one quarter of the batch) into a 9 x 11 inch rectangle so that the long side is perpendicular to your body.

Spread 1 1/2 cups (reserving 1 tsp) of cooled Rosemary-Sage sauce evenly over the dough. Sky doesn’t mention that the sauce should be cool, but trust me, if it’s just off the stove it will run all over the place when you add it to the dough. Be patient when adding the sauce. Do so one tablespoon at a time and at the end allow about 1 minute for some of the sauce to absorb. Don’t worry if you can’t fit all 1 1/2 cups onto the dough, just add it until you are certain it’s going to start running off. (Though of course, the more sauce you use the better.)

Over the sauce, sprinkle the pepper, lemon zest and salt. Sprinkle the goat cheese over the spice and gently press it into the dough.

Generously butter a 9-inch loaf pan.

Tightly roll the dough into a loaf, with the rolling action going away from your body. To hold in most of the filling, fold the outer edges of the dough in as you roll. When finished, pinch the seam together firmly.

Place the dough into the prepared loaf pan seam side down. Take about 1 tsp of sauce and gently smear it over the surface of the dough. Loosely cover with plastic wrap, place the pan in a warm, dry place and allow the dough to rise for 60 minutes. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

Beat together the egg and water to make an egg wash. Brush the egg wash over the dough and place the loaf in the oven. Bake for approximately 1 hour. (Mine is usually done at the 50 minute mark.)

Ovens vary so test for doneness. Remove the loaf from the pan and tap the bottom. If it sounds hollow, it’s done. If not, continue to bake, checking every few minutes. When the loaf is done, return it to the pan and cool for 30 minutes. Remove the loaf from the pan and transfer it to a wire rack. Cool for another 30 minutes before serving.

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