Pan de Jamon

Servings: Makes 3 loaves

Ingredients:

Dough:

¾ cup water, about 110-115 degrees

2 ½ teaspoons dry yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

4 ½ ounces unsalted butter

4 ¼ cups warm

3 pounds all purpose flour (about 12 cups)

½ teaspoon sea salt

Filling:

4 ½ ounces unsalted butter, softened

1 ½ pounds sliced black forest ham

½ pound smoked bacon

4 ounces olives, pitted

4 ounces raisins

1 egg, beaten lighly to glaze the top
Preparation:

Combine the water and the sugar in a small bowl, add the yeast and let stand for 15 minutes until foamy. Add the butter and the salt to the warm milk. Pour the milk onto the flour, mix, then add the yeast mixture and combine to form a dough. Knead until smooth, about 10-15 minutes by hand. Place in a large bowl, cover, and allow to rise about 1 hour at room temperature, or overnight in the refrigerator. Punch down the dough and divide into 3 pieces. Roll each piece of dough with a rolling pin into a rectangle about 1 inch thick. Spread each piece with softened butter and arrange the ham, bacon, olives and raisins on top, leaving a small strip bare at the top. Brush the strip with egg and roll up gently. Place each loaf on a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover, and allow to rise for about 15 minutes. Brush each loaf with egg and bake in a preheated 375º oven until well-browned and firm, about 45 minutes. Slice and serve warm.