Cooking Like A Professional

Grocery bakeries offer a tempting array of baked goods and sweets like rolls, cakes, and cookies. But did you know many grocery store bakeries offer bread bowls? Bread bowls look like large round rolls with a crusty exterior and soft interior. Here are three compelling reasons to buy grocery bakery bread bowls on your next shopping visit.

1. Bread Bowls Can Be Tricky to Bake

If you are a novice bread-maker, your best bet is to purchase bread bowls rather than try to craft them in your own kitchen. Bread bowls do differ from traditional dinner rolls and require a different type of dough similar to pizza dough or French bread dough. Frozen roll dough is not an adequate substitute.

Bread bowls can be tricky to make because they must have a hard crust with a soft inside but still retain their shape. Sometimes beginner bakers fail to seal the dough into a tight ball prior to baking. Doing so helps the bowl keep its shape during baking. Too loose of a dough ball means it may deflate in the oven and turn out flat.

Turn to a grocery bakery if you want fat, round bread bowls that look flawless and taste incredible.

2. Bread Bowls Rev Up Your Meal Presentation

Many people have never heard of bread bowls, and will probably be amazed when they dine at your home and see the possibilities they present. Bread bowls are best served with thick soup or stew nestled inside their toasty shells. This creative presentation makes bread bowls into an edible bowl for guests to enjoy after the entrée inside is eaten.

Simply cut a one-inch slice off the top of a bread bowl. Set it aside and carefully remove the inside of the bowl. Preserve a thin shell of bread within the sides of the bread bowl to hold soup or stew. Set the top back onto the bowl until you are ready to serve your soup.

You can fill bread bowls with thick cheese soups, chili, or other denser soups. Thin, runny soup will soak right through the bread and run out. Some people like to serve other food inside a bread bowl like pasta, but hot comfort stews seem to naturally belong inside a rustic, hearty bread bowl.

3. Bread Bowls can be Custom Baked

Bread bowls can be custom baked to your specifications for special occasions. Ask your grocery bakery if they can fulfill an order the way you wish. For example, you can serve orange-tinted bread bowls to resemble pumpkins for an autumn dinner party. Or, order a large batch in advance for a baby shower or other get-together where food will be served.