Rosemary Garlic Braid

I made this bread yesterday. It has been in my Try file for quite a while, I wish I would have made it earlier! It was soooooo good! The recipe makes 3 loaves, after slicing the first one I immediately wrapped and froze the other two to keep the family from eating it all! Don't be afraid of the 5 heads of garlic, after baking them they are so mellow and almost nutty tasting. I used fresh rosemary, but scraped it off the garlic after baking to keep it from going into the bread. The flavor was still there, without the hard stems. I didn't have Garlic Salt, so I substuted 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder and 1 teaspoon Onion Salt. There was some butter left over so I brushed it over the loaves again after they finished baking.

Rosemary Garlic Braid

5 Whole Garlic Bulbs

2 teaspoons Olive Oil
¼ Cup Minced Fresh Rosemary or 4 teaspoons Dried Rosemary, crushed
1 Tablespoon Chicken Broth

9 to 9 ½ Cups Bread Flour
½ Cup sugar

3 packages Quick Rise Yeast
3 teaspoons Salt

1 ½ Cups Milk
1 Cup Water

¾ Cup Butter, divided
1 Egg

1 ½ teaspoons Garlic Salt

Remove papery outer skin from garlic (do not peel or separate cloves). Cut top off garlic heads, leaving root end intact. Place cut side up in a small baking dish. Brush with oil; sprinkle with rosemary. Cover and bake at 425 for 30-35 minutes or until softened. Cool for 10 minutes. Squeeze softened garlic into a bowl, add broth and lightly mash. In a large mixing bowl, combine 3 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt. In a saucepan heat milk, water and ½ Cup butter to 120-130. Add to dry ingredients; beat just until moistened. Beat in egg and garlic paste until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough (dough will be sticky). Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface, divide into thirds. Divide each portion into three pieces. Shape each into an 18-inch rope. Place three ropes on a greased baking sheet and braid; pinch ends to seal and tuck under. Repeat with remaining dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Melt remaining butter; add garlic salt. Brush over bread. Bake 10-15 minutes longer or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.