Tomato Bread (CBF Recipe of the Week)

This recipe is so versatile (I'm all about versatility) and can be made for everyday use as a loaf or flatbread, elegant (or casual) dinner parties as breadsticks or rolls. I've even used the dough to make soft pretzels sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds -- scrummy good!! It's modified a bit from one I found on All Recipes.com so can't take credit for it. I use pureed fresh tomatoes, of course, from the greenhouse, but you could easily used canned tomatoes or just tomato juice. Happy experimenting!

Tomato Bread

Ingredients

500g tomatoes, peeled, cored, seeded and pureed

7 mg active dry yeast

60 ml warm water

20 mg sugar

5 cups bread flour (with extra on hand if needed)

30 g olive oil or melted butter

6 g salt

5 mg dried oregano

5 mg dried basil

5 mg garlic granules

Directions

In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Add the tomato puree, sugar, oil, salt, herbs, garlic and half of flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1-1/4 hours. Punch dough down. Divide in half. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Shape into loaves. Place in two greased 1 lb. loaf tins. Cover and let rise in a warm place for another 30 minutes. Bake at 190C/375 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.