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Easy Italian Asiago Bubble Bread

Yield: 14 rolls
Prep Time: 2 hours
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

Dough:

  • 1 ½ cups warm water
  • ¾ tablespoon instant yeast, or 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons oil, canola, olive, avocado, grapeseed, etc.
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ¾ cup (86 g) shredded Asiago cheese
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour, give or take a little (see note)

Asiago Topping:

  • 4 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 6 cloves garlic, finely minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 1 tablespoon total)
  • ½ cup (57 g) Asiago cheese, finely grated
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, or a blend of dried oregano/basil

Instructions 

  • For the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large bowl by hand, combine the warm water, yeast, sugar, oil, salt, Asiago cheese, and 2 cups of the flour (if you are using active dry yeast instead of instant yeast, let the yeast proof in the warm water and sugar for about 3-5 minutes until it is foamy and bubbly before adding the oil, salt, cheese, and flour).
  • Begin mixing; continue to add the rest of the flour gradually until the dough has pulled away from the sides of the bowl and the dough is soft and smooth but still slightly tacky to the touch.
  • Knead the dough for 2-3 minutes.
  • Lightly spray a large bowl or container with cooking spray, and place the dough in the bowl. Cover the bowl with lightly greased plastic wrap. Let the dough rise until it has doubled (about an hour, depending on the temperature of your kitchen).
  • Punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly greased (or floured) countertop.
  • For the Asiago topping: in a shallow dish or bowl, whisk together the melted butter, olive oil, garlic, Asiago cheese, and Italian seasoning.
  • Lightly grease a 9X13-inch baking pan.
  • Divide the dough into 14-20 equal pieces and shape the dough into round balls.
  • Roll the top and sides of each ball in the Asiago mixture and place in the prepared pan.
  • Pour/scrape the remaining filling and cheese over the dough.
  • Cover the pan with lightly greased plastic wrap and let the dough rise for 30-45 minutes until doubled in size.
  • Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
  • Bake the bubble bread for 25-30 minutes, until golden and baked through to the center.
  • Let cool for 5-10 minutes before digging in.

Notes

Flour: the flour amount called for in the dough recipe is just a guideline; I always advise to add flour gradually to yeast dough recipes until a soft dough comes together and clears the sides of the bowl. It should be soft and slightly tacky without leaving a lot of residue on your fingers. The exact amount of flour will depend on a lot of factors (altitude, how each person measures flour, etc).
Asiago: if you want a more noticeable Asiago flavor in the bread dough, try cubing the Asiago cheese instead of grating. You can definitely use more Asiago cheese altogether in the recipe, too! The seasoning in the Asiago topping mixture is highly adaptable - I have a feeling many different Italian-style seasoning blends would work.