Cheesy Chipotle Pull Apart Bread
Morita chiles are red, fully mature Chipotles. This gives them a unique, medium – hot smokey flavor which is popular in many Southwestern dishes. These can be added to sauces (including Mole) to add smokey flavor and maintain the red color of the sauces. These peppers are about 2-4 inches in length, 1 inch in width, and have a deep brick reddish brown color. The word Chipotle translated to smoked chile. Consider the Chipotle a 6.5 on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the hottest). Scoville heat units 7,000-25,000.
Suggested Use:
Use Morita in enchilada sauces, chili, stews, barbecue ribs, and corn bread. Their smoky quality combines well with poultry, meats and fall squash.
Words cannot explain how delicious this Cheesy Chipotle Pull Apart Bread is. It is the perfect tasty appetizer for any game day feast.
Yields: 6 servings
Ingredients
1 large loaf of Italian bread or Ciabatta bread
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons butter, melted
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chipotles, rehydrated in hot water and chopped
6 green onions, finely chopped, top third with green tops separated
12 ounces shredded cheese, (I used a combination of mozzarella, cheddar and jack)
8 ounces bacon ends and pieces, cooked
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Cut bread into slices that are about an inch apart, taking care to leave bottom in tact. Rotate 90 degrees and cut the other way. You want to see nice grab-able sized pieces of bread.
Place the bread on a piece of foil that is large enough to wrap around it.
Combine oil, melted butter, garlic, chipotle, and the bottom ⅔rds of the green onions. Spoon the mixture in the crevasses to evenly distribute. You want each piece to get the flavor.
Wrap the loaf up in the foil and place on a baking sheet for about 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 425 degrees F.
Open the foil and stuff the shredded cheese into the crevasses of the bread. Top with cooked bacon crumbles and remaining top third of the green onions. Continue cooking with the foil open until the cheese is completely melted, about 15 minutes.
Adapted from selfproclaimedfoodie.com