Description
A cheese-filled recipe from the Republic of Georgia.
Ingredients
Scale
For the dough:
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter from
- 1 cup milk from
- 1 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp instant yeast or active dry yeast
- 2 3/4 cups bread flour
For the filling:
- 2 cups Moshannon cheese
- 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp bread flour
- 1/2 tsp table salt
- 1/2–1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 2 tbsp finely chopped chives
For assembly:
- Homemade dough
- Khachapuri filling
- Egg wash
- 8 quail eggs for garnish
- Additional fresh herbs for garnish
Instructions
For the dough:
- Heat the butter and milk together in a small saucepan or in the microwave until the butter melts.
- Place the sugar and salt in a large bowl, and pour the hot milk over it, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Cool to lukewarm, about 100-110 degrees.
- Stir in the yeast and flour, mixing until a shaggy mass forms. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 10 minutes.
- After the rest, knead until smooth: 8-10 minutes by hand, or 6-8 minutes at medium speed in a mixer. Knead in an additional 1-2 tablespoons flour if the dough is uncomfortably sticky.
- Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise for 1-1 1/2 hours, until it increases in size by at least one-third.
For the filling:
- Place all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and beat to combine, or pulse everything together briefly with a food processor.
For assembly:
- Line two baking sheets with parchment. Turn out the risen dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide it into 4 equal pieces.
- Roll each piece into an oval shape about 10 inches long and 6 inches wide. Cover with greased plastic wrap, and let rest for 15 minutes.
- Spoon ¼ of the cheese mixture into the center of each and spread to within 1 inch of the edges.
- Pull the dough’s edges up around the cheese, folding and twisting the ends to form a boat shape.
- Cover and let rise for 20 minutes, or until puffy but not doubled. While the breads are rising, preheat the oven to 375 degrees with two racks toward the center.
- Brush the exposed edges of the khachapuri with an egg wash and bake for 15-20 minutes, until they feel set; they will not have started to brown nor will the filling be bubbly, but don’t worry! They’ll continue to bake once you add the egg-and-butter garnish.
- Remove from the oven and use the back of a spoon to make an indentation about 3 inches across in the filling of each khachapuri. Crack two quail eggs into each and bake for an additional 8-10 minutes (for soft-set eggs), or 12-15 minutes (for firmer eggs).
- Remove from the oven and serve warm. Garnish with additional fresh herbs, if desired.