Pepperoni Pull-Apart Bread

This enticing, pull-apart loaf from “Great British Bake Off” winner Nadiya Hussain is essentially pizza bread. With both baking powder and yeast in the mix, you get a lofty, tender dough that is relatively quick to rise and manageable for even bread-baking novices.

For the Dough

3 1⁄4 cups (400 grams) allpurpose flour, plus more for dusting

4 3⁄4 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon dried oregano 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 1⁄2 teaspoons fine sea or table salt

1 package (2 1⁄4 teaspoons) instant yeast

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (270 milliliters) warm water

For Assembly

1-2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for greasing the pan surface and knead the dough by

1⁄4 cup (60 milliliters) sriracha hand, or attach the dough hook (or other hot sauce or tomato and knead in the stand mixer. If sauce of your choice) you are doing it by hand, it

8 slices (6-8 ounces/170-226 should take 10-12 minutes of grams) cheese, such as provolone continual kneading. If you are or mozzarella doing it with the stand mixer, 6

16 slices (about 3 ounces/85 minutes on medium speed grams) pepperoni, such as should do the trick. What you Boar’s Head Sandwich Style are looking for is a stretchy

8 basil leaves dough that is smooth, shiny and Instructions: In a large bowl or still just a little bit tacky. the bowl of a stand mixer, Cover the bowl with a clean combine the flour, baking dish towel, plate or greased powder, oregano, sugar, salt plastic wrap, and let the dough and yeast, making sure to keep rise in a warm spot until doubled the salt and yeast on separate in size, 35-45 minutes. sides until you begin. Whisk or Generously grease the inside

1⁄2-by-4 1⁄2-inch (900 stir together until thoroughly of an 8 combined. grams) loaf pan with olive oil.

Make a well in the center, add As soon as the dough has the water, and using a flexible risen, gently deflate it and tip it spatula, wooden spoon or even out onto a flour-dusted work the dough hook of a stand surface. Pat or roll it out to a mixer, stir the dough by hand rectangle that is 10 by 14 inches until it starts to come together. (25 by 35 centimeters). The

Now, either flour a work dough can be sticky, so don’t be shy about dusting your hands, rolling pin and counter with flour.

Brush the top with the sriracha, and distribute the 8 pieces of cheese evenly over the dough. Place 2 slices of pepperoni on each slice of cheese and then top with a basil leaf. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut the rectangle into 8 equal squares. Take each square and fold it in half like a book. Stack them side by side in the pan with the filling a bit exposed at the top. If your pieces are not of completely equal thickness, place the thinner pieces at the two ends of the pan and save the thicker ones for the middle. This will keep the dough from rising and baking over the edge. Then let rise, covered with a bowl large enough to fit over the pan, a large reusable ziptop bag or greased plastic wrap, for about 15 minutes, or until the dough is puffy and just a little higher than the edge of the pan.

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 400 degrees with a rack in the middle position.

Once the dough has risen, uncover the pan and place on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any sauce or cheese that may bubble over.

Bake for about 25 minutes, or until the top is pale golden brown. Brush the top of the loaf all over with some of the oil. At this point, the bread will not be cooked through. Cover loosely with aluminum foil to prevent the top from burning and bake for an additional 20-25 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center of the loaf comes out mostly clean with no raw dough (you may get melted cheese, depending on where the tester lands).

Brush the top of the loaf with another light coating of olive oil, then let cool in the pan for 20 minutes before pulling apart and tearing and sharing.

Notes: Feel free to customize this recipe with whatever cheese, meat or sauce you like or have on hand. As written with the sriracha, the bread skews spicy, so adjust accordingly to your tastes. You can even use it as a template for other pullapart loaves, including garlic bread made with an herbpacked compound butter.

While the bread is best when freshly baked and warm from the oven, you can store leftovers in the fridge for up to 2 days and reheat individual portions in the microwave for 20 to 30 seconds.

Makes makes 1 (8 ½-by-4 ½-inch) loaf, 8 servings Adapted from “Nadiya Bakes,” by Nadiya Hussain (Clarkson Potter, 2021).