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The cheesiest swirled Soft Garlic Herb Cheddar Cheese Bread. Simple to make and even more delicious to eat! This light, doughy, and super soft bread is swirled with sharp cheddar cheese, Italian herbs, and hinted lightly with garlic. It makes for the most delicious companion to your dinner table or game day spread. It’s easy yet impressive. And it’s best served warm, right out of the oven, while it’s still gooey and cheesy. You will LOVE this bread.
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It’s so funny how this time of year I always bake bread. In fact, so much bread. It’s the days getting shorter and the nights getting cooler. This always leaves me thinking about the bread my mom would bake up in the fall. She kept her loaves of bread simple. But it’s her love for fresh bread that inspires me to bake my own every single fall.
This year I’m adding cheese and herbs for a savory twist. This makes the bread great to serve with dinner or as an appetizer.
Shockingly, I’ve never shared a homemade cheesy bread with you guys, so I’m especially excited about this recipe! I love how easy it is to make, how impressive it looks, and of course, how delicious it is!
Here are the details.
For the dough, I like to keep it simple with a mix of flour, yeast, and a pinch of salt. My secret is to use a good amount of eggs to make more of a brioche-style dough. The combination creates a dough that stays incredibly soft and fluffy. It’s my favorite dough to use and is always so easy to work with.
I prefer to use active dry yeast, which I personally think rises nicer than instant. And it really is just as quick and easy.
And that’s the dough. Once you have it made, let it rise until it has doubled in size. Nothing too fancy here.
The cheese
While the bread is rising, you can mix up the cheese blend. I’m using a combination of sharp cheddar, melty mozzarella, and parmesan. It’s a pretty simple everyday mix, but one that just about everyone enjoys!
And then for the herbs, I used a mix of fresh sage, oregano, and thyme. It’s everything we still have on hand right now from the summer harvest. I love the sage, it’s really nice and warming for fall and goes great with the cheddar!
Once the dough has risen
Roll it out, just like you might roll out a cinnamon roll, into a flat rectangle. Then sprinkle on the cheese blend and roll the dough into a log.
Next, cut the log in half vertically to expose the cheese. Twist the two pieces of dough over each other to create a loose twist. And finally, coil the dough up into a circle. It’s going to be messy, but don’t stress. Stuff any cheese that falls out back on top of the bread. It does not need to be perfect!
Once you have the bread shaped, let it rise, and then bake. Please, please, please, enjoy this warm, right out of the oven, and while the cheese is still gooey inside!
I love this as a Sunday night football appetizer or side dish to a big family dinner.
A few dinner recommendations to serve alongside this cheesy bread.…autumn soup, hearty lasagna…with a big fall salad, a family casserole, or a creamy pasta.
Looking for fall bread recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Parmesan Popovers with Crispy Sage Garlic Butter
Pull Apart Parmesan Sage Butter Brioche Rolls
Easy Pull Apart Garlic Parmesan Bread
Lastly, if you make this Soft Garlic Herb Cheddar Cheese Bread be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Soft Garlic Herb Cheddar Cheese Bread
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup warm whole milk
- 2 1/4 teaspoons yeast
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 3 large eggs
- 3 1/2 – 4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups shredded cheddar
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 1/3 cup chopped Italian herbs such as sage, oregano, basil, and thyme
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
Instructions
- 1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the milk, yeast, and honey. Let sit 5-10 minutes, until bubbly on top. Add the eggs, 3 1/2 cups flour, and salt. Using the dough hook, mix until the flour is completely incorporated, about 4-5 minutes. If the dough is still sticky, add the additional 1/2 cup flour, adding more as needed until the dough is smooth to touch.2. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour or until doubled in size.3. In a bowl, combine the cheeses, herbs, and garlic.4. Punch the dough down and roll out onto a lightly floured surface, creating a large rectangle about 12 x 18 inches. Sprinkle the cheese mix evenly over the dough. Starting with the long edge closest to you, roll the dough into a log, keeping it tight as you go. When you reach the edge, pinch along the edge to seal. 5. Using a sharp knife, cut the log of dough in half lengthwise, leaving a small portion at one end intact (see above photo). Turn the halves out to expose the filling. Cross the dough ropes over each other, repeating the twisting until you have a long, twisted dough.6. Coil the dough into a circle (see above photo). Carefully transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover and let sit 15 minutes.7. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Bake the bread for 30-35 minutes, until the top is golden brown. Slice and serve warm.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
How well does this recipe do being baked in a Dutch oven? And do you have the baking times? Thank you.
Hi Amanda,
So sorry, I have never tested that with this recipe, I would just stick with the baking sheet:) I hope you love this recipe! xx
If I wanted to start this the night before, which step could I stop at to put it in the fridge? Could I go all the way until shaped into a circle and then take out of fridge and bake the next day?
Hi Lauren,
You could go all the way to step 6:) Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT
Aleays been intimated to make my own bread but this was easy to make! Looked and tasted amazing! Definite crowd pleaser. Yummy toasted up the next day!
Love to hear this Anne! Thanks so much for trying the recipe and sharing your comment! xx
Hi! For the herbs, do they have to be fresh or can they be dried? And how would that affect the measurements? Thank you!!
Hey Laura,
For this recipe, I would highly recommend using the fresh herbs:) Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Hi, Will this work with almond milk?
Thanks!
Hi there! I haven’t personally tried this recipe with almond milk so I can’t say for sure! xT
So east and fabulous and dramatic looking. I have made it twice and it sure wows. Makes great toast later too.
Thank you for trying out the recipe! Have an amazing week! xT
Please check and make correction of the metric measurements in your recipe. about 1 kg flour is a very big amount for 183 g milk.
Thank you so much for pointing this out, I almost made this with twice the amount of flour than necessary.
The dough seemed SO dry, despite following the recipe as described 🙁 almost like too much flour? Please double check the amounts or let me know if you mix a specific way!
Is it possible to make this recipe without a dough hook/stand mixer?
Hi Abigail! Yeah definitely, you can knead/mix by hand! xT
Hi, I believe I read somewhere that you’re at a higher altitude, so what alterations would I need to make for lower altitude?
I’ve made this once before and the outside was fully done but the inside still had doughy areas
Thanks!
Hey Carly! I don’t adjust my recipes for altitude but I would say if you’re needing to adjust, just add a little less flour and maybe bake for less time! xT
Made this today and is absolutely delicious. Super easy to make. Everyone loved it.
So glad to hear this recipe was enjoyed! Have a great day! xT
Would it be possible to make the dough ahead of Ting and leave it in the fridge??
Yes! that should work well! xT
I was wondering this also. Curious if you tried it? Thanks!
This was amazing!! Super easy, delicious, and looked very impressive. I’ve made a few HBH breads and this one is definitely my favorite so far. I dipped it into a cottage cheese/pesto sauce and it was incredible.
Hi Alyssa,
Amazing!! Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and sharing your feedback! Thanks for making it:) xx
If I wanted to make this into 2 smaller breads, how long would they bake?
P.s this bread is amazing!!!
Hi Cassie,
Sorry, I haven’t tested that, but I would say at least 20-25 minutes:) Let me know how they turn out! xT
25 mins was perfect and they were still huge delicious loafs of bread!!!
Hi Cassie,
Love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it and your comment! Have a great Wednesday! xx
Does it freeze and reheat well? It’s just my hubby and I. I’m looking for bread recipes that do well in freezer and reheating
Hi Tricia,
Yes, you can easily freeze and reheat this bread:) Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xT
I love this recipe! It’s so fun to make the twist, each loaf comes out unique but equally delicious!
Hi Erica,
Happy Monday!! I am so glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! xT