INGREDIENTS
strong bread flour (500g)
warm water (approx. 300ml of warm water)
1 sachet of dried yeast (7g)
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 heaped tsp salt
2 tbsp of sun-dried tomato purée (or tomato paste)
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary, or 1 tbsp of dried rosemary
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
mayonnaise (200g)
handful of fresh basil
1 lemon
20 rashers of bacon
4 plum tomatoes
handful of mustard cress
1 little gem lettuce
a ball of mozzarella
RECIPE
Sift the flour into a bowl and stir in the sugar and salt.
Mix the yeast with 100ml of warm water until it forms a smooth liquid.
Add the yeast to the flour and add the rest of the water a little at a time until it forms a dough, you may not need all the water.
Knead the dough for about 5-10 minutes on a surface until its silky soft and elastic or in a machine with a dough hook.
Dust a bowl with flour and place the dough inside, cover with Clingfilm and leave in a warm place for about an hour until the dough doubles in size.
Squeeze in the tomato purée, chop the rosemary and crush garlic, then add to the risen bread and knead again until well combined.
Press the dough into one large oblong loaf shape and place onto a floured baking tray then leave to prove again for another hour.
Preheat the oven to 180°C.
Place the loaf in the oven for 30 minutes until the loaf is cooked inside and the bread sounds hollow when tapped from underneath, then leave to cool on a wire rack.
Lay the bacon onto a grill tray and cook under a medium heat for a couple of minutes before turning the rashers and repeating on the other side.
In a blender mix the mayonnaise up with the fresh chopped basil and zest of a lemon until smooth and green.
Quarter the tomatoes, remove the pulp and seeds (optional) and cut into a small dice.
Slice the bread into 8 doorstep slices and toast one side of each slice.
Smother the untoasted halves in basil mayo, scatter with cress, ripped up little gem leaves and tomato pieces.
Stack the hot crispy bacon on top and lay thin slices of mozzarella on top to begin to melt.
Finish with another slice of half toasted bread with more mayo and serve.
Makes 1 loaf and 4 sandwiches
Tom/Gar/Rosemary Bread by
Chakris1, on Flickr
Ultimate BLT by
Chakris1, on Flickr
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