As promised!

There are several things about this recipe that I love.

1. It's not that hard!
2. It makes quite an impact
3. It uses a big cast iron pan, and that's just fun
4. It's highly adaptable to other ingreediments
5. You can eat the dough. Not too much or you'll be ill.

But there are a lot of people out there with a fear of yeasty dough. To them I say Get Over It. Quicker than two shakes of a lamb's tail you'll be whipping up cinnamon buns and brioche and hot cross buns - just try it! I'll add a simple no-knead dough soon, my friend Erin passed it on to me and it's really good. But for now, give this a try and wing it for the fillings - it's all good!

Thomas Keller’s Vegetable Spoonbread in Brioche Crust

Time: 4 hours advance prep
Serves: 6 – 8

Brioche dough
3 sticks cold unsalted butter (3/4 pound) cut into tablespoons
¼ oz envelope of active dry yeast
½ cup whole milk, warmed
4 whole eggs plus 2 egg yolks, room temperature
4 cups all purpose flour, sifted
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt

Vegetable filling
3 tbsp olive oil
1 fennel bulb, cored and thinly sliced
1 small Savoy cabbage, cored and thinly sliced
2 zucchini, cut into ¼ inch rounds
3 carrots, peeled and finely diced
1 medium onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1 stalk celery, peeled and finely diced
1 leek, sliced into ¼ inch rounds, soaked in water and thoroughly rinsed
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2 red peppers, seeded and finely diced
1 cup chicken stock
½ cup dry white wine
1 bouquet garni (1 bay leaf, 4 sprigs parsley, 2 sprigs thyme tied in a cheesecloth)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 cups assorted mushrooms, cleaned and finely chopped

Topping
½ cup grated ricotta salata cheese
¼ cup finely chopped fresh herbs (sage, rosemary, oregano & thyme)

Make the Brioche dough
1. Place the butter in between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and gently tap with a rolling pin to make pliable. Reserve at room temperature
2. Stir the yeast into the warm milk until thoroughly dissolved. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and the yolks and then mix into the yeast mixture
3. Using an electric mixer, combine the flour, sugar and salt. Add the egg mix to the dry ingredients and combine thoroughly on low speed. Add the butter 2 tablespoons at a time mixing well after each addition until all the butter is incorporated. The dough should be fairly stiff with no crumbs present – if there are any, add a few drops of milk to absorb them. Do not over beat
4. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface. Knead a few times by hand to make sure the butter is thoroughly incorporated. Put the dough in a large buttered bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside in a warm spot for 3 hours or until doubled in bulk. Punch down the dough and refrigerate until ready for use

Make the Vegetable filling
1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the fennel, cabbage, celery, zucchini, carrots, onion, leek and garlic and cook over medium-high heat until soft – about 5 minutes. Add the red peppers, stock and wine and bring to a simmer. Add the bouquet garni, salt and pepper and simmer until the vegetables are soft and the liquid has almost evaporated, 15 – 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool
2. In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and a little salt and cooked until nicely browned. Add the mushrooms to the other vegetables and mix – season with a little salt and pepper

Assemble the Spoonbread
1. Preheat the oven to 325. Remove the dough from the fridge and punch down. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the brioche dough into a 13 inch round using as little flour as possible. Refrigerate the round for ½ hour
2. Coat a 9 inch skillet with vegetable oil or cooking spray. Remove the dough from the fridge and press it firmly into the bottom and sides of the pan. Add the filling. The dough should peek over the top of the filling. Fold the edges of dough over the vegetables
3. Place the spoonbread into the preheated oven and bake until golden brown, 30 – 35 minutes. Sprinkle the ricotta evenly over the surface and then layer with the fresh herbs and serve