Cheese Bread

A little afternoon baking - just the thing when you're hankering for a quiet cup of tea and something to nibble and there just ain't a thing in the house...!

Cheese Bread (From Better Cooking; A year in the kitchen)

2 cups plain flour

1 tablespoon caster sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

60g (2 1/4 oz) butter, cut into cubes

2 cups grated cheddar cheese

2 spring onions, thinly sliced

1 cup milk

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees, lightly grease a large loaf tin and line the base and sides with baking paper. Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and pepper into a food processor. Add the cubes of butter to the dry ingredients and process until the mixture is like fine breadcrumbs. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl, add the cheese and spring onion and stir until combined.
2. Whisk together the egg and milk. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients. Add the combined milk and egg and mix with a table knife to form a soft dough. Do not over mix.
3. Scoop the mixture evenly into the prepared loaf tin. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes or until the bread is golden and sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from the oven and stand on a wire rack in the tin for 5 minutes before turning out. Cut into slices before serving.

What I did differently;

Tasty cheese instead of Cheddar, a handful of garlic tops (from the garlic growing in the garden - you could use garlic chives), chives & parsley instead of the spring onions & since I don't have a food processor I just mixed all the stuff in step 1 & mushed the butter into the flour with my fingers until it got all crumbly like breadcrumbs. Next time I think I might use Parmesan too - for some extra cheesy bite.

Punky and I had a slice each, not long from the oven, for afternoons'es.

Scrumptious.