Stuffed Naan with Spinach, Mushrooms and Cheese

I made this for work the other day. It’s a great vegetarian option, and you can really do any of your favorite combinations; sometimes I also stuff them with ground beef or lamb as well. Just make sure when you grill the naan the pan or grill is really hot so it makes those great smokey grill marks. They will last for a couple of days in the fridge, and are still good reheated, but best when right off the grill. Nothing better than a little charred bread stuffed with gooey cheese!

Naan Bread

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup warm milk (110 degrees F, any hotter and the milk could scald)
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• 1 package dry active yeast (2 1/2 tsp)
• 3 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 cup plain whole milk yogurt (I use greek)
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1 egg

Directions

In a small bowl, whisk together the warm milk, yeast, sugar and let it stand until the mixture starts to bubble and get foamy. About 5 minutes.

In separate stand mixer with the dough hook attachment, combine the flour, salt, baking powder; stir together to incorporate. Add the yeast mixture along with the yogurt, oil, and egg. Start mixer and let run until the dough starts to come together, and it’s a rough mass. Turn out onto a floured surface and start kneading for about 5-10 minutes just until the dough is smooth. Form the dough into a ball and place into a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for about an hour or it has doubled in size. At this time you can make the filling.

Spinach Mushroom and Cheese Filling

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 small shallot, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 11/2 cup wild mushrooms (I like criminis, oysters, portabellas but it’s up to you)
• 1/4 dry white wine
• 3 cups fresh baby spinach
• 2 tsp. fresh thyme
• 2 tbsp. butter
• 2 cups cheese, ( I used a mixture of feta, shredded mozzarella and parmesan)
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

In a large sauté pan, heat oil to medium high heat. Add the shallots, garlic and mushrooms. Cook down until the mushrooms are tender and golden. Deglaze the pan with a little white wine and add the spinach, thyme, butter. The spinach might seem like a lot but it will wilt down a lot! Cook until it all comes together, season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat, transfer mixture to a large bowl if necessary and add the cheese. Mix all together and set aside.

Once the dough has risen, punch it down and cut dough into 8 equal pieces. Roll each one into a ball and cover while working. One by one take a dough ball and gently roll it out about 3-4 inches in diameter, place in the palm of your hand and add about 1 tbsp. of the filling into the center. Pinch all the sides of the dough shut and then gently roll it out adding more flour if it starts sticking. try not to make a lot of big holes but some are ok. Roll to about 1/4 inch thick and about 5-6 inches in diameter. They will rise on the grill. Place onto a baking sheet while working through the others. Start getting the grill pan heated up to high heat. Brush each naan with melted butter and cook each one, in batches or a couple at a time depending how big the heat work surface is. Cook for about 1 or so minutes on each side. Just until there’s nice beautiful grill marks and the bread is cooked through. If it doesn’t seem the inside is getting all the way cooked through throw in the oven for a couple of minutes just to finish off. Brush again with some melted butter and sprinkle with salt. Enjoy immediately!!