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↓ Jump to Recipe ↓Every time I make this flatbread, people devour it and ask me to make it again. It’s even converted people who swore they didn’t like blue cheese!
I learned to bake bread by binge watching The Great British Bake Off. The first baking cookbook I ever bought myself was How to Bake by Paul Hollywood, and a version of this recipe is in it.
At a pie class once, the pastry chef asked why I didn’t buy Mary Berry’s book instead. My answer…I just love bread that much 🤷🏻♀️
This is my take on his recipe, with less blue cheese and a sandwich method that keeps everything neat. Salty blue cheese, sweet and tart green grapes, and a crispy pan-fried crust are SO good together. Think of it as a portable charcuterie board 😉
How to make it
1. Make the dough. Mix the flour, salt, yeast and water, then knead until the dough is very smooth (no ripples!) and passes the windowpane test. Add the softened butter and knead until it’s fully worked in.
This is a lean dough, so it kneads much faster than enriched doughs like pandesal or brioche. It should feel easy to handle, like Play-Doh, not too dry and not too sticky.
I like using a stand mixer because it’s easier and faster, but you can absolutely knead this by hand. Kneading time will vary depending on your mixer and how warm your ingredients are.
2. Let it rise. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a plate so the dough doesn’t dry out. Let it rise until doubled, which takes about 1 hour in a warm kitchen.
It can take as little as 30 minutes if your house is hot, or a couple of hours or more if it’s cold.
3. Divide and shape. Punch the dough down and divide it into 24 pieces, or divide it into 12 and cut each one in half. Use a scale if you want them even, but irregular pieces are totally fine too.
Shape each piece into a ball. By the time you finish, the first balls will have relaxed and will be much easier to roll out.
4. Fill and seal. Roll one ball flat into a circle, then cover it with blue cheese and a few thin grape slices. Roll a second ball into a circle about the same size, lay it on top, and pinch the edges shut.
Press it down with your hands or a rolling pin to flatten it some more, since it will puff up as it cooks. Repeat until you have 12 flatbreads.
5. Cook. Heat a pan over medium heat and cover the bottom with neutral oil, so the whole flatbread gets nice and crispy. I like a cast iron skillet because it heats evenly, but any pan works.
Cook until golden brown, about 3 to 5 minutes per side, then flip and brown the other side. Check the photos and video for how brown it should get.
If some cheese oozes out, that’s a GOOD thing. It crisps up and gets a little toasty, so I actually press down on the flatbread to help it along.
6. Cool and slice. Let the flatbreads cool on a wire rack so air can flow underneath and they don’t get soggy. Slice each one into fours with a big chef’s knife and serve hot.
Tips
- Keep it flat: flatten each flatbread well when you seal it. If it puffs up in the pan, just keep pressing it down.
- Use the sandwich method: I once got lazy and kneaded the cheese right into the dough, and it made a torn-up, messy dough. You can also wrap the filling inside a ball like siopao and roll it out, but sandwiching is the easiest and neatest.
- Stick to medium heat: you want the dough to cook all the way through without scorching, especially once the cheese starts to ooze.
More recipes to try
- Sa Tê chili and cheese focaccia, another savory cheesy bread
- Crab rangoon pull-apart bread, perfect for parties
- Pandesal, my most popular bread
- Ensaymada, if you love a sweet and salty combo
Recipe
Grape and Blue Cheese Flatbread
Ingredients
Method
- In a stand mixer, combine the flour, salt and yeast, keeping the salt from touching the yeast directly. Add the water and mix until all the flour is picked up.
- Knead until the dough is very smooth with no ripples and passes the windowpane test.
- Add the softened butter and knead until it's fully worked in.
- Cover with plastic wrap or a plate and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. It can take as little as 30 minutes in a hot kitchen or 2+ hours in a cold one.
- Punch the dough down and divide it into 24 equal pieces (or 12 pieces cut in half). Shape each piece into a ball.
- Starting with the first ball, roll it flat into a circle. Top with about 1/12 of the blue cheese and the slices from about 2 grapes.
- Roll a second ball into a circle about the same size, lay it on top, and pinch the edges to seal. Press or roll it flatter. Repeat to make 12 flatbreads.
- Heat a cast iron skillet or heavy pan over medium heat and cover the bottom with neutral oil. Cook the flatbreads until golden brown, about 3 to 5 minutes per side, pressing down if they puff up.
- Cool on a wire rack, slice each flatbread into fours, and serve hot.
Notes
- Blue cheese amount: Paul Hollywood’s version uses 250g. I find 113g is plenty, but add more if you love it.
- Flour: all-purpose flour works, but bread flour holds up better with a lot of filling.
- Reheating: air fryer at 350F for 3 to 5 minutes, or microwave for about 15 seconds.
Equipment
KitchenAid Stand Mixer
I absolutely LOVE my tilt head stand mixer. I can’t imagine baking without it.
Ozeri Food Scale
Especially with baking, a food scale is extremely helpful as it measures weight, not volume, which is more accurate. You should use weight measurements if a recipe provides them.
Adjustable-Height Rolling Pin
I love using adjustable-height rolling pins to ensure I’m getting an even roll. I’ve used the rubber accessories before but I didn’t like them so I went with this and haven’t looked back!
STAUB Cast Iron Skillet
I use a STAUB Cast Iron Skillet at home and it is a dream to cook with! Other cast iron brands such as Lodge and Le Creuset and others are just as good.
FAQ
Stilton or Roquefort are great if you can get them, and they’re what Paul Hollywood uses. They can get pricey though, so I’ve also used Gorgonzola, which is much cheaper and works great.
Paul’s recipe calls for 250g of blue cheese, but I find that’s a lot to stuff into this much dough. I use 113g, but feel free to add more if you really want to load up!
I’ve only ever used green grapes, and I love how their tartness and sweetness balance the sharp blue cheese. Red grapes should work too, they’ll just be a bit sweeter.
Yes, and it’ll turn out okay since there’s no second rise. Bread flour holds up better if you stuff it with a lot of cheese and grapes, so I recommend it.
Nope! Once the flatbreads are filled and sealed, they go straight into the pan.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days, since there’s cheese inside. Reheat in the air fryer at 350F for about 3 to 5 minutes until crisp again.
In a pinch, 15 seconds in the microwave works too. My guests have happily eaten it cold, but it’s best warm and crispy!