Easy Bread Bowls

I made Parmesan Bread Bowls last night and it was so easy to do! These are not your traditional baked loaf of bread with the top cut out bread bowls, but they were perfect as a last minute idea to accompany our clam chowder.

I made a few substitutions...

1 package regular or quick active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (105°F to 115°F)
2 tablespoons sugar
3 cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup shortening (I used 1/4 cup salted sweet cream butter)
1 cup buttermilk (I used 1 T lemon juice and filled the rest of the one cup with milk)


1. Dissolve yeast in warm water in small bowl. Stir in sugar; set aside.
2. Mix flour, baking powder, salt and cheese in large bowl. Cut in shortening, using pastry blender or crisscrossing 2 knives, until mixture look like fine crumbs. Stir in yeast mixture and just enough buttermilk so dough leaves side of bowl and forms a ball.
3. Place dough on lightly floured surface. Knead about 1 minute or until smooth. Cover and let rise in warm place 10 minutes.
4. Heat oven to 375ºF (the heat limit for our oven safe bowls is *350, so I baked at that temp for about 20 minutes or so-until golden brown). Grease outsides of six 10-ounce custard cups. (I used our Corelle bowls) Place cups upside down in ungreased jelly roll pan, 15 1/2x10 1/2x1 inch. Divide dough into 6 equal parts. Pat or roll each part into 7-inch circle. Shape dough circles over outsides of custard cups. (Do not allow to curl under edges of cups.)
5. Bake 18 to 22 minutes or until golden brown. Carefully lift bread bowls from custard cups--custard cups and bread will be hot. Cool bread bowls upright on wire rack.

Perfect on a cold night with a Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale!


I have some extra dough because I only baked two bowls, so I just put them in baggies in the fridge and I plan to make more when I make Bethany's Double Thick Potato Cheese Soup. Talk about comfort food!