BBQ Chicken Bread Braid

It has been quite a while since I posted. I'm going to get better at it, I promise. I've had a couple of recipe flops and my computer died and I lost all my pictures. But with a new computer in hand and a few successful recipes to share, I'm back.

My husband loves BBQ chicken pizza. Whenever we make pizza or order pizza, that is always what he wants. As an alternative to BBQ chicken pizza, I found this recipe over at Mel's Kitchen Cafe for a BBQ Chicken Bread Braid. It looks impressive when it is all done and tastes fantastic. The crust is this perfectly tender, fluffy caspsule to store tender chicken, tangy BBQ, spicy red onion and gooey cheese. I'm salivating just reliving the experience. I slightly adapted the recipe by adding celery, because I love celery on my BBQ Chicken Pizza, otherwise everything else is the same.

This is a pretty versatile recipe too. If you don't want BBQ chicken fillings, go ahead and sub pizza fillings. Or maybe you want some breakfast and you can make some scrambled eggs, bacon, milk gravy and cheese in the middle. So many possibilities to add to my list.

BBQ Chicken Bread Braid
(yields 2 bread braids)
Slightly adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

1 recipe French Bread Rolls (recipe follows)
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
1 red onion, thinly slice into half moons
1/2 c. chopped celery
1 1/2 c. BBQ sauce
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar
1 cup shredded mozzarella

Preheat oven to 4oo degrees.

After french bread roll recipe has gone through the first rise, divide dough into 2 equal parts. Roll the first portion out into an 11x17 rectangle directly on parchment paper or baking sheet liner. Using a knife, cut 1-inch wide strips down the long side of the rectangle on both sides (looking like a fringe on the long side of the dough), leaving about a 2-3 inch strip down the middle for fillings. About 16-18 strips on each side. Spread half BBQ sauce down the middle and top with half of the chicken, celery, onion, and both cheese. Fold the strips diagonally over the toppings in a criss-cross fashion to the opposite side, alternating sides to create a braid effect. Pinch the ends to seal. Repeat with second half of dough.

Move braid to baking sheet on the parchment paper. Rest for 15 minutes. Bake each braid separately for 15-20 minutes until the top is golden brown and dough is baked through. Rest for 5 minutes, before cutting with a serrated knife or pizza cutter. Serve warm.

French Bread Rolls
From Mel's Kitchen Cafe

1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups all-purpose flour

In a large bowl, stir together warm water, yeast, and sugar. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

To the yeast mixture, add the oil, salt, and 2 cups flour. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough has pulled away from the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

Deflate the dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 12-14 equal pieces, and form into round balls. Place on lightly greased baking sheets at least 2 inches apart. Cover the rolls with a damp cloth (or greased saran wrap), and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Bake for 12-13 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.