Loaf of the Week - Pepperoni Bread

I decided to make this loaf to go with the beer & cheddar soup we are having for dinner. I admit that had the Food Lion had any loaves of sourdough in the bakery I would have bought that instead. But our Food Lion is pathetic, no organics, small selection in the deli & bakery. Its only redeeming feature is it sells Hornsby Crisp Apple Cider.

This is one of my favorite breads. It goes well with creamy soup, especially cheesy potato soup. It also makes a great grilled ham & cheese or toasted chicken salad sandwich.

This is adapted from the Best Little Bread Machine Cookbook, for a smaller and, non bread machine loaf.
1.5 teas yeast
2 c flour
2 tblsp wheat bran
1 tblsp sugar
1 teas salt
.25 teas pepper
1 egg
1 tbls oil
2/3 c water
1/2c Pecorino
1/4c diced pepperoni

Mix all together & knead with Kitchen Aid mixer for about 7 minutes. Let rise in a warmish place for an hour.Knead briefly, form into loaf and place in loaf pan, let rise for an hour. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.

My bread notebook specifically states "Don't mess about with the flour. Use white!" Previous experiments with portions of whole wheat, soy and multigrained flour have not turned out well. I hadn't tried flax meal though, so this time I replaced 2 tablespoons of flour with flax meal. The dough was stickier that it should have been, but the rise was ok.