Venezuelan Pan de Jamón: Holiday Ham Bread
Savory meets sweet and Italian Stromboli meets cinnamon roll. This mostly savory but a little sweet, all-in-one bread shouts holiday time. This traditional Venezuelan Christmas ham bread is a nice addition to the holiday table. It’s great as an appetizer, a light holiday lunch served with a nice warm bowl of soup, or alongside your traditional Christmas meal. For all the sweet treats highlighted during the holiday season, why not add a savory one to the list?
Servings: 10 slices
Ingredients
Dough Ingredients:
- 1 cup (240 ml) warm whole milk 100˚F-110˚F (38˚C-43˚C)
- 2¼ tsp (1 pkg) active dry yeast
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar divided
- ¼ cup (4 tbsp / 2oz) butter, melted plus a little more to brush on top after baking
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 420-540 g (3½- 4½ cups) all-purpose flour
- ¾ tsp salt, if using unsalted butter use 1 tsp salt, if using unsalted butter
Filling Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp (1 oz) butter softened
- ½ lb sliced ham smoked, black forest, or honey baked
- ¾ cup (3 oz) raisins golden, regular, or mix
- ¾ cup (3 oz) pimiento stuffed green olives sliced
Topping Ingredients:
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp water
Instructions
Dough Directions:
- In a 2-cup measuring cup or small bowl, whisk milk, yeast and 1 tbsp from the ¼ cup sugar. Set aside for 10 minutes to activate or until it’s bubbly and frothy.TIP: If yeast does not become frothy and bubbly, it's likely too old and you need to start over.
- In another small bowl, melt ¼ cup (4 oz) butter (~20 seconds in the microwave) and stir any solids until melted. Once the butter is less than 115˚F (46˚C), add 1 beaten egg. Set aside.
- To the bowl of a stand mixer, add flour, remaining sugar, and salt and whisk well.TIP: If you don't have a stand mixer, you can stir the ingredients in a large bowl. Once the dough becomes too thick to stir, knead by hand on a floured surface.
- Add butter and egg mixture to the yeast mixture. Begin mixing 420 g (3½ cups) flour mixture using dough hook at low speed (level 1) and pour in the wet ingredients. Slowing increase the speed to low-medium (levels 2-3) and knead the dough for 10 minutes. The dough should be smooth, elastic, and tacky pulling away from the edges of the bowl. If the dough is sticky, add a tablespoon of flour at a time until the dough is no longer sticky. Conversely, if the dough is dry, add 1 tbsp of warm water and so forth until elastic consistency is reached.TIP: If kneading by hand, knead for 10 minutes adding flour as needed.
- After kneading, remove the dough hook. Use a spoon to scrape down the bowl sides and spoon the dough into a ball in the bowl. Cover the bowl of dough with plastic wrap or a towel. Place in a warm area to rise for 1-1½ hours or until doubled in size.TIP: If kneading by hand, place the dough back into the bowl where you mixed the ingredients.
- Prepare a large baking pan/cookie sheet. Cut parchment paper to the size of the pan or cookie sheet (at least 17x12).
- Deflate the dough and turn it out onto the parchment paper (the one used to line the cookie sheet but now resting on a work surface). Ensure the parchment paper has been lightly floured. Use a rolling pin and roll the dough out evenly into ¼-inch thickness (around 17x14 inches).
Filling Directions:
- Brush 2 tbsp of softened butter (warmed in the microwave ~20 seconds) over the dough from end to end and edge to edge. Add a single layer of overlapping ham slices on top of the butter leaving a ½-inch border all around the edges.
- Scatter the raisins and sliced olives evenly over the ham.
- Beginning at one short end, use the parchment paper to help roll the dough up like a cinnamon roll. Be sure to roll tightly especially the last roll. Seal both ends by pinching to create a seam.
- Center the loaf on the parchment paper. Lift the parchment paper and transfer it with the loaf, seam-side down, onto the cookie sheet.
- Cover the loaf loosely with plastic wrap or a towel. Allow it to rise in a warm area for 1 hour or until puffy.
- During the final 30 minutes of the rise, preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC).
Topping & Baking Directions:
- Make the egg wash by beating the other egg with 1 tbsp water. Brush the top and sides of the loaf with the egg wash and then pierce the dough all around with a fork.
Video
Notes
Serving Options:
-Add a slice of Swiss, Gruyère, Havarti, or Provolone cheese to the top of each slice
-Serve with soup or salad
Storing:
-Store bread in the fridge for up to 3 days. For longer storage, wrap the bread well and store in the freezer for up to a couple of months. Keep in mind that bread dries out in the refrigerator, so slicing and storing in the freezer is a better option.
Notes:
-Instead of using a stand mixer, you can mix the dough ingredients in a large bowl using a spoon. Knead for 10 minutes by hand on a work surface adding flour, as needed. The dough should be elastic-like and see through like a window when stretched or when pressed with a finger the indention in the dough should bounce back.
Optional Flavor Combinations:
-Add 4-5 slices of bacon or crumbled bacon over the ham.
-Add a layer of preferred cheese (~½ lb) over the ham.
-Add 3 tbsp of drained capers over the ham.
-Scatter ¼ cup of chopped almonds with the raisins and olives.
-Sub green olives with your choice of Kalamata or black olives.
-Sub raisins with dried cranberries or add a mix of dried fruit.
-Sub turkey for ham.
-Try a fancier ham like Prosciutto or Serrano.
-Use puff pastry in place of homemade bread dough.