Sourdough Cheddar and Chive Bread with Fresh Milled Flour

Sourdough cheddar and chive bread is a savory twist on toast, sandwiches, French toast or croutons! It has cheesy bites that melt a little in the toaster. The chives and garlic powder give the bread a deliciously savory flavor that make this bread a favorite for any time of year!

Why You will Love Sourdough Cheddar and Chive Bread

Delicious and Cheesy- I love the savory garlic and chive flavors of this bread. It is delicious even when you don’t get a bite of the cheesy parts. If you like to have a savory bread option, then you will love this loaf too!

Great Quick Breakfast Option – This sourdough cheddar and chive bread loaf is perfect for toast on a late morning! With a little butter or cream cheese on top it can be a filling breakfast in 5 minutes flat.

Freezes Well – Once baked, this bread freezes easily. If you slice or cube the bread then it is simple to pop into the oven or toaster to create croutons, toast, or garlic bread whenever you want it!

Ingredients and Substitutions for Sourdough Cheddar and Chive Bread

Dry Ingredients

Fresh Milled Flour – I use a Komo Mill to grind the wheat berries into flour. I love half hard red and half spelt or khorasan for this loaf. You could use hard white instead of hard red if you want to have a loaf that tastes more like a store bought loaf.

Salt – Any salt you have will work, but remember that some whole salts like Redmond’s Real Salt and Celtic Salt can leave a gritty texture in your bread because of the extra minerals they have.

Garlic Powder – Garlic powder is a great way to add extra flavor to this bread! We really like it, but feel free to leave it out if you like.

Dried Chives – The chives are really the star of the show for this bread! The bread uses a lot of dried chives, but is worth it for the flavor.

Cheddar Cheese – We really like to use sharp or extra sharp cheddar cheese to get a lot of cheese flavor, but you could use a mild or medium cheddar as well.

Wet Ingredients

Milk – You can use any milk or milk alternative you like. If you want to use water instead, you can do that too.

Honey – I use local honey in my loaf. You can use any honey you like for this bread.

If you want to use maple syrup, I would replace 100 grams of milk with 100 grams of maple syrup added to the dough. You will probably need to adjust the flour and milk to make sure the dough is the right texture.

Sourdough Starter – I prefer a sourdough starter with a dough like consistency. If you have a runny sourdough starter you may need more flour to balance it out.

Eggs – I use large chicken eggs, but you can use any eggs. Two chicken eggs are about 100 grams of egg.

How to Make Sourdough Cheddar and Chive Bread

Mixing the Dough Together

Mill the Flour. Use your mill to grind the flour.

Mix together all the dry ingredients. Mix the flour, spices, and salt together in a medium size bowl.

Combine the wet ingredients together. Mix the eggs and starter, then add the milk and honey.

Combine the dry and wet together. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients to the well. As you mix it together the dough will look like a sloppy mess right now.

Rest for 30 minutes for the flour to hydrate. Fresh milled flour needs extra time to soak up water.

Chop the cheese. Chop the cheese into small cubes about a quarter inch (half a centimeter) around.

Start the ‘stretch and folds’ or knead the dough. Knead the dough for 5-10 minutes or until it can pass the window pane test. If you want to do stretch and folds then plan to do 4-6 of them.

Let the dough bulk ferment for 5-8 hours. Once all the stretch and folds are complete let the dough bulk ferment for 5-8 hours. It will take more time if your home is cold (75°F or 23°C and colder) and less time if your home is warmer (76°F or 24°C and warmer).

Shaping the Everyday Sourdough Sandwich Bread

Turn your dough out on a clean or oiled surface. You want the dough to stick to the counter a little bit.

Roll to about an inch thick (about 2.5 cm) in a rectangular shape. Don’t stress about making the rectangle perfect, just get pretty close!

Sprinkle the cheese onto the rectangle. You probably wont be able to fit all the cheese onto the loaf. Just spread the cheese evenly.

Roll up the loaf from the bottom. Stretch the dough a little as you roll the loaf. Keep stretching and rolling until you have a log. It will be tricky because of the added cheese blocks, but do your best.

Gently flatten out the roll and sprinkle with cheese. Flattening the roll again gives you another chance to add cheese.

Roll up the loaf from the bottom. Stretch the dough a little as you roll the loaf. Keep stretching and rolling until you have a log. It will be tricky because of the added cheese blocks, but do your best.

Try to seal the bottom edge seam. Turn the bread vertically and use the pinky edge of both of your hands to use the dough back and forth along the counter.

It is hard to seal the seam since the cheese rips the gluten in the bread. If you cannot seal this seam, that is okay!

Tuck the ends under. Take the ends of your bread and tuck them under the loaf to get a smooth beginning and ending. Turn the bread and tuck the second end.

It is hard to tuck under the ends since the cheese rips the gluten in the bread. If you cannot tuck under the ends, that is okay!

Finishing the Sourdough Cheddar and Chive Bread

Place in a greased 9 by 5 inch loaf pan.

Cover and let rise until it it jiggles a little when gently shaken or passes the poke test.

Bake the loaf at 375°F (190°C) for 45 minutes. Cool and serve.

Tips for Making Sourdough Cheddar and Chive Bread

Do not flour the counter during shaping. Using flour on the counter is the biggest reason I see that there is separation between your layers when shaping the loaf. Use oil or water on the surface or shape on a bare counter.

Add more flour if you are uncomfortable with how wet your bread is AFTER the first stretch and fold. Remember that fresh milled flour has more bran and germ in it than store flour and so it will soak up a lot of liquid right away. It will continue to soak in more liquid as it sits until the flour is hydrated.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is there a Big Hole inside of my Bread?

If there is a large hole in the middle of your bread, that usually means that you need to practice shaping your loaf. Large holes can be caused by too much flour or oil during shaping and/or too little tension when shaping the loaf.

The Cheese Ripped my Bread. Is that okay?

Yes! The cheese rips the bread a little, but that will be okay during the bake. If you can try to make sure the top of the bread is without holes, but the holes won’t change how it tastes!

Why did my Bread Rip at the side?

If you bread broke at the side, it means that it wasn’t completely risen and it rose more in the oven. The bread had more expansion after the crust formed on the outside. So, the inside pushed up and broke the crust so that it could reach its full height.

How to Store Leftovers

If you have leftovers, store them in an air tight container. The air tight container will help your bread stay fresh longer.

After 2 days out on the counter, then store the loaf in the fridge to help it last longer.

You can also slice the bread and freeze the slices for future rushed mornings. Pop the frozen slice in a toaster and it will be ready to eat in minutes!

What is your Favorite way to Enjoy Sourdough Cheddar and Chive Bread?

Let us know in the comments down below what you make with your cheddar and chive bread!

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