Homemade Bread Bowls

Tie on your aprons, gather your determination, and heat up that creamy soup. Let’s make deliciously soft and crusty bread bowls together!

If breadmaking intimidates you, think of it this way: it’s one of the most basic foods. Just simple ingredients mixed together, left alone to work some magic, shaped, and baked. That’s the process and it’s 100% something you can handle.

These homemade bread bowls start with an ordinary bread dough. Dissolve the yeast in warm water to get things going. I highly recommend using a quality yeast like Red Star Yeast– it’s always my go-to brand for the best tasting breads!

Just 4 more ingredients: salt and olive oil for flavor, a bit of sugar to “feed” the yeast which creates carbon dioxide bubbles and allows the dough to rise, and bread flour. Bread flour contains a lot of protein which helps form a chewier, more dense, and, well, more bread-like… bread. We want a strong and crusty bread for our bread bowls… and bread flour will help us achieve that!

To give you the full picture, I usually use all-purpose flour when I’m making richer, softer, and more fluffy bread. Things like cinnamon rolls, butter rolls, doughnuts, and monkey bread. I typically use milk instead of water and I add additional fat like eggs and/or butter. More fat usually means the dough takes longer to rise. Today’s bread bowls are a particularly “lean” dough, so the rise time is quicker.

After the dough rises, you’ll shape the dough into 6 balls and bake them. But here’s the wonderful thing about this recipe: you’re not limited to bread bowls! This dough can easily turn into a couple pans of traditional dinner rolls, crusty loaves of bread, or even a few pizza doughs.

Homemade Bread Bowls

Make deliciously soft and crusty homemade bread bowls with this recipe. This is a basic bread dough recipe you can use for dinner rolls, too!

Yield 6 large bread bowls

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Ingredients

• 2 (0.25oz each) packages (14g) or 4 1/2 teaspoons Red Star Active Dry Yeast
• 2 1/4 cups (540ml) warm water (110-115°F)
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons (30ml) olive oil
• 6 cups (780g) bread flour (plus more for hands and surface)
• Egg wash: 1 large egg plus 1 tablespoon milk (beaten together)

Instructions

• Pour the warm water over yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Or, if you don't have a stand mixer, a regular large mixing bowl. Whisk together and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Cover the bowl with a towel. The mixture should be frothy and foamy after 5 minutes.
• If you do not have a mixer, you can mix by hand in this step. With the stand mixer running on low speed, add the sugar, salt, olive oil, 4 cups of bread flour, and seasonings (if using, see recipe note). Beat on low speed for 1 minute, then add remaining 2 cups of flour. Beat on low speed for 5-6 minutes. The dough should be thick, yet soft. And only slightly sticky. It should pull away from the sides of the bowl as it mixes. If it's too sticky, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
• Form dough into a ball and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. And place into a large greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. (I just use the same mixing bowl– remove the dough, grease it with nonstick spray or olive oil, put the dough back in.) Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it in a warm environment to rise until doubled, about 90 minutes.
• Once doubled in size, punch down the dough to release any air bubbles. Remove dough from the bowl and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Punch down again to release any more air bubbles if needed.
• Using a sharp knife or dough scraper, cut into 6 even pieces. Form each into a large ball.
• Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Place 3 dough balls onto each. Cover lightly and set aside to rest for 20 minutes as the oven preheats.
• Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C). Brush each dough ball with egg wash and, using a sharp knife, score an X into the tops of each.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool until ready to handle. The longer you cool, the easier they are to cut open!
• For serving, cut a large round out of the top of each bread bowl. Scoop out the center (save the center to dunk into soup!) and fill with soup.
• Cover and store leftover bread bowls at room temperature for a couple days or in the refrigerator for 1 week. You can also freeze the baked bread bowls for up to 3 months, then thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Notes

1. Make Ahead Instructions: After dough has risen in step 3, punch down the dough inside the mixing bowl and cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight or for up to 2 days, then remove from the refrigerator and continue with step 4. 
2. Adding Flavor: I love adding a little flavor to the bread dough. I tested the recipe with a couple teaspoons of garlic powder and could hardly taste it. (Though I could certainly smell it.) I increased to 1.5 Tablespoons and it left a light and lovely garlic flavor. Adding garlic powder is optional, but tastes wonderful in the bread. If it pairs nicely with your soup of choice, definitely add it. You can also add 1-2 Tablespoons Italian seasoning or rosemary, or a Tablespoon of onion powder.
3. Dinner Rolls: Makes 24 rolls, which is likely more than you need, but you can freeze half of the dough for later. Prepare dough through step 4. Instead of forming into 6 balls in step 5, divide the dough in half. Freeze half of the dough for later use (see make ahead tip) and form the other half into 12 balls. Place balls in a greased 9×13 baking pan. Cover lightly and set aside to rest for 20 minutes. Brush with egg wash, score with an X if desired (not necessary) and bake at 350°F (177°C) for 25-28 minutes or until the tops and edges are golden brown.
4. Pizza Dough: Makes 4 12-inch pizza crusts, which is likely more than you need, but you can freeze half of the dough for later. Prepare dough through step 4. Instead of forming into 6 balls in step 5, divide the dough in half. Freeze half of the dough for later use (see make ahead tip) and form the other half into 2 large balls. Cover lightly and set aside to rest for 20 minutes. Flatten each ball of dough 1 at a time on a lightly floured surface or on a silicone baking mat. You could also do this directly on your greased pizza pan. Flatten and stretch into a 12-inch round circle. Brush with a little olive oil (no need for egg wash). Add toppings and bake in a super hot oven at 475°F (246°C). Pizzas typically take 12-15 minutes.
5. Crusty Bread Loaves: Makes about 3 loaves of crusty bread. Prepare dough through step 4. Instead of forming into 6 balls in step 5, divide the dough into 3 pieces. You can freeze 1 or 2 pieces for later use (see make ahead tip). Round into a ball as best you can and place onto a lined baking sheet. Cover lightly and set aside to rest for 30 minutes. The dough will spread out a bit. Brush with egg wash, score with an X, and bake at 400°F (204°C) for 30 minutes or until the tops and edges are golden brown.

 

Recipe by Sally’s Baking Addiction.