Patri, author of Sabores&Momentos , brings us a recipe to enjoy dipping: an easy-to-make bread recipe prepared in a frying pan , which is added to cream cheese, spinach and artichokes, a combination that is perfect for dipping bread (pun intended! !)

Fully immersed in this beautiful season that is autumn, the flavors and textures become warm to keep us warm... But that the recipes continue to be easy and successful is what we all continue to look for.

Just this week we had a very rough time, so instead of going out to dinner on the weekend, we decided to invite some friends to have some appetizers and some wines at home. I wanted to surprise but with something simple and, look how precious what I ended up triumphing with that night…. A crown of freshly made bread with spinach and artichoke gratin cream in the center to “dip”!!

Le Creuset Skillet Frying Pan

You will think that it is very elaborate but not at all!!! I can promise you that it does not have any complications, you make the bread dough in the morning and leave it rising. Then you assemble the dough balls and you will get a “pull-apart” of delicious individual buns, crispy on the outside and incredibly soft on the inside. The same dip cream , you leave it done in the morning, reserve in the fridge and just assemble and bake for a little while before your guests arrive.

Spinach, as I told you in the last recipe I shared here with you for creamed spinach , prepared in any way, is an excellent vegetable. And the artichokes, in this case, some good quality canned artichoke hearts are a true delight. A few strokes of the blender together with a few more ingredients from the bottom of the fridge and we will have the cream ready. We assemble our fantastic Le Creuset cast iron Skillets and there will be no one to resist: I love the thousand possibilities they offer and how fun it is to serve our dishes directly from the oven to the table, with that rustic touch that I like so much.

Bread crown in skillet with spinach and artichoke gratin cream dip

GRADES:

• With this recipe you will have enough both bread dough and artichoke and spinach cream dip to complete two medium skillets or one large one.
• Above all, let the skillet fresh from the oven temper before serving and always wrap a cloth around the handle so as not to burn yourself.

Ingredients (for 8-10 people)

For the mass:

• 475g of conventional flour
• 1 sachet of dry yeast (7g)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 240ml of hot milk (but do not burn)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable/sunflower oil

For the spinach and artichoke cream:

• 200g of fresh spinach leaves
• 180g canned artichoke hearts, drained and chopped (high quality)
• 150g Philadelphia cream cheese
• 120ml of “sour cream” (or alternatively 100g of cottage cheese and 1 natural yogurt -Bio- skimmed)
• 4 heaping tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1 ½ tablespoons of sifted flour
• 1 small garlic clove without germ (optional)
• A few drops of Tabasco sauce
• Salt and pepper
• 2 heaping tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 50g grated Emmental cheese
• Grated mozzarella cheese for gratin

Preparation

To make the dough:

1. In a large bowl , or the Kitchen Aid bowl (with the dough hook), put half of the flour and salt.
2. Heat the milk in a jug (in the microwave) without letting it burn and then add the yeast, stir and let stand for a few minutes.
3. Pour the milk with the yeast into the flour bowl and add the vegetable oil. We start mixing (by hand or with our robot). Add the rest of the flour and continue kneading for about 7-8 minutes, until you get a smooth and homogeneous dough.
4. Transfer to a bowl greased with oil, cover with cling film and let rise for at least an hour and a half or two.

Meanwhile, we take the opportunity to now prepare the cream:

5. Put the clean spinach leaves in a glass bowl with a couple of teaspoons of water and seal with cling film. We put in the microwave for 1-2 minutes depending on the power of yours. We take it out and let it rest like this covered for about 15 minutes to cool down.

6. We drain them well and put them in the glass of a blender . Add the rest of the ingredients and beat everything well until you get a homogeneous cream without bumps. Pour into a bowl, cover with cling film and store in the fridge.

Tokyo Design Fleur de Ligne porcelain bowl and Le Creuset skillet pan

We continue with the dough and conclude with the assembly and subsequent baking:

7. On a lightly floured surface, lightly knead the dough to extract all the gas, giving it the shape of a sausage to be able to cut into equal slices. With a dough cutter or a very sharp knife , we cut the portions until we obtain 16, which we will shape into balls. The best way is to start by cutting into two equal parts, these in turn into two equal parts, and so on until you get 16 that, with the help of a small scale, weigh gram above, gram below the same, so that later the crown is level.
8. Generously spread the skillet pans with butter (or pastry spray ) and also some plating rings (or oven-safe bowls upside down, which serve to mark the circle) and position the balls around them. Always pressing them so that they fit us well.
9. We melt a little butter and with a kitchen brush we paint them all so that later they are well toasted when baked. Cover in cling film and let them rest for another 30 minutes.
10. Preheat the oven to 180º with the rack in the center.
11. Remove cling film from the skillets, remove the serving rings (or whatever bowls you used) and generously fill the centers with cream. Think that then there has to be enough cream to dip!!
12. Cover with grated mozzarella cheese and some Parmesan if there is any leftover and put in the oven for 30 minutes until the buns begin to brown and sound hollow when touched with the nails. Then we take the skillets out of the oven, add a little more cheese on top, raise the rack to the top position and put our crowns back in, this time to brown for 5 minutes on the grill.
13. Once ready, take it out very carefully not to burn yourself and let them cool for a few minutes until they begin to warm up a bit.

And ready to serve and surprise your guests!! I hope you liked it.

Note: Recipe adapted from Seasons and Suppers blog