Georgian Cheese Bread and Canada Geese!

I have been trying for days to get some photos of the geese overhead, on their migration north to their breeding grounds. There were hundreds of geese flying today. I am obviously not good at photographing them, but here some are, in their glorious V. I do love them and their honking, excited to be back home in the northland.

I got my new issue of Gourmet magazine the other day. This recipe caught my eye, Georgian Cheese Bread, from the Republic of Georgia. I made it for dinner tonight, well I made two. I served it with a delicious spinach salad. It was delicious, yes rich and cheesy, but once in awhile we just need a good hit of rich and gooey cheese!

Georgian Cheese Bread

2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast

7 tbsp. warm water

1 2/3 cups unbleached flour, divided

3/4 tsp. salt

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1/4 lb. Havarti cheese, coarsely grated

1/4 lb. mozzerella, coarsely grated

1 tsp. butter, melted

Sprinkle yeast over warm water and stir in 1 tbsp. flour. Let stand until creamy, about 5 minutes. Stir together salt and remaining flour in a large bowl, then stir in egg and yeast mixture to form a dough.

Turn dough onto a well-floured surface and turn to coat with flour, then knead until smooth and elastic, a bout 5 minutes. Form into a ball and dust with flour. Let dough rest in a bowl covered with plastic wrap, (I put the dough on a lightly floured surface and cover with an overturned bowl) punching down with a wet fist every hour, at least 2 hours and up to 3.

Preheat oven to 500°F with rack in the middle.

Turn the dough out onto floured pizza pan, turning to coat, then flatten with your fingers into a 7" disk.

Toss together cheese, and press into a compact 3" ball with your hands. Place ball in middle of dough, then gather dough up around the cheese, squeezing excess dough into a topknot. Press down on topknot with damp fist to press cheese out from center, until dough is an 11" disk.

Cut a 6" cross (X) through the top to expose cheese. Bake until pale golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Brush surface with butter and bake until golden and cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes more. Cut into wedges to serve.

Serves 8.

Enjoy, we sure did!