If you’ve read any of my posts, I think that you might see a trend in the food that we eat in Bulgaria. Feta. Eggs. Bread. And more Feta! Because we love these three ingredients so much, why not put them all together? Well, we did, and let me tell you it is one of my favorite foods ever (I know I say that a lot, but it’s true). In Bulgaria, we often bake bread and put feta cheese and eggs in the dough when we are rolling it into little balls or shapes (you’ll see what I mean later), and when it is finished baking, the dough is fluffy, the cheese is salty, and what more could you possibly need from it?
This can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner, low-key, or even fancy occasions depending on how you decorate the bread. In Bulgarian, this bread has a specific name, and it is pronounced “Tootmanik.” And although it’s very caloric (I mean bread and cheese, how could it not be?), it is definitely worth the calories for sure. The recipe that I will include here is this one.
Ingredients:
- 3 eggs and one separated egg yolk
- 1 cup milk
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 small pack dry yeast
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Around 21 ounces white flour
- Around 4 ounces butter
- 13 ounces feta cheese
Directions:
- Empty the package of yeast into some water. Then, add the sugar and wait. It should expand.
- Make the dough by adding together all of the ingredients besides the cheese, separated yolk, and the butter.
- Let the dough sit for half an hour so it can raise.
- Split the dough in three and roll each piece into a rectangle.
- Brush each rectangle with the butter, and add cheese on top. Roll the dough so it creates a roll.
- Oil the baking pan.
- Cut the three dough rolls into smaller pieces and put them into the baking pan.
- Beat the separated yolk and use a brush to brush the yolk on top of the dough.
- Leave the dough to sit for 20 minutes, and the put the dough in the oven to bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for half an hour.
Final Product:
Ratings and Thoughts
Ratings:
Complexity (1 being easy/5 being hard): ♥♥
Time (1 being fast/5 being time consuming): ♥♥♥
Taste (1 being the worst/5 being the best): ♥♥♥♥♥
Would Recommend (1 being a hard no/5 being totally): ♥♥♥♥
Thoughts:
When you look at the steps to making this bread, it is not very complex, however there are certain ingredients that you’d need to make sure you have (feta and the yeast) in order to make the bread. Thus, it has two hearts for complexity- pretty straightforward, but a bit specific. Because the yeast has to sit and then the dough has to rise and bake, it does take a bit of time to make. Then again, it is bread, and baking bread does take time. The taste is one of the best because again, let’s be honest, what is there not to love about cheese and bread? Not only would I recommend it because of its taste, I would also recommend trying this at home because you can get creative with the way that you roll the dough and the shapes you make with it. Really, as long as there is feta and egg in the dough, you’re good to go. I’ll include a couple of photos for you to see what I’m talking about. So yes, try this at home, I promise you won’t regret it (unless you have celiac disease, in which case, try changing out some of the ingredients)! I hope you enjoy!
The Trials And Tribulations of A Learning Cook 