Malunggay Pandesal with Cheese
“Malunggay pandesal with cheese is a healthy variation of your well-loved pandesal. Crunchy on the outside, soft and creamy on the inside.”
Pandesal is undoubtedly the most known and loved bread in the Philippines. Usually sold in early hours at bakeries or being peddled by vendors in their bicycles with their horns, it is a staple in the Pinoy breakfast partnered with coffee or tea or hot chocolate.
The freshness and aroma of freshly baked pandesal are addictive. Great while warm, pandesal is amazing on its own and tastes even better with different kinds of filling or “palaman”. You can also dip it in your coffee, like what I used to do when I was a child, and it tastes really good!
Nowadays, pandesal is being made in different flavors and filling. There are variants like the ube pandesal, pandan pandesal, etc… And this malunggay pandesal is worth trying for as it has added nutrients. I also added cheddar cheese to contrast the lightly sweet bread, which serve as the filling so it would be an on the go bread. You can also skip the cheese and make it as plain malunggay pandesal and just spread your favorite filling while warm. It’s totally up to you.
What is malunggay pandesal
Pandesal or Pan de sal (in Spanish) which means salted bread is a common breakfast bread in the Philippines. It is made with all-purpose flour, yeast, milk, sugar, salt, butter, egg and in this case, cheddar cheese as filling. Then coated with breadcrumbs and baked until golden brown. It is crunchy in the outside and soft in the inside.
Malunggay or also known as Moringa in other countries is very nutritious and can be found in almost every backyard in the Philippines. It is one of the greens used for cooking variety of dishes such as tinola, ginisang munggo, suam na mais etc.. It is also being used on teas and even desserts. Malunggay leaves has many nutritional value such as lowering down blood pressure and cholesterol, source of anti-inflammatory agent, high in fiber, calcium and vitamins.
So basically, malunggay pandesal is preparing pandesal with malunggay flavor in it. It is a healthy option for pandesal lovers.
Fresh or powdered malunggay
Fresh is always the best option. As malunggay is always available in the Philippines, there is no problem making this bread. If you have fresh malunggay, you just have to blend or chopped them finely and add into the dough mixture.
Unfortunately, here in UAE, we have to buy malunggay leaves in the grocery store which is a bit pricey. When I grab these fresh leaves from the store, I tried to make the fresh variety. Left-over leaves soon wilt. So to preserve it and have an ample supply when I crave for this pandesal, I decided to make a malunggay powder or morninga powder. With this powdered form, I can easily store it for months. So when I want to bake a nutritious pandesal I can immediately grab this powder.
Dry Ingredients in making malunggay pandesal
All-purpose flour is the main ingredient of pandesal. You can also use bread flour and it will result in a chewier pandesal. However, you may have to adjust the quantity of milk. The higher the protein/gluten content, the more liquid it needs. You can also use wheat flour for gluten-free pandesal.
Due to convenience, I always use instant dry yeast in making bread as I don’t need to proof it and can easily combine with other ingredients. If you want to use active dry yeast, you need to proof it first with warm milk with a teaspoon of sugar. Stir to dissolve and let it sit for 5-10 minutes. If the yeast has created a foam on top of the liquid, it means it is active and is ready for use.
The sugar adds sweetness to the bread. The beauty of making your own bread at home is that you can adjust the sugar. The amount of sugar in this recipe is minimal, so you will have a slightly sweet bread.
Adding salt can make a difference in baked goods. It enhances and strengthens the dough and at the same time in assist in fermentation of the yeast.
For this recipe, I used malunggay powder or moringa powder. As mentioned above, you can use fresh malunggay. Just wash them properly and pat dry before chopping. If you will blend them, you can use 1-2 tablespoons of your milk to serve as liquid for easy blending.
Wet Ingredients in making malunggay pandesal
The liquid we will be using in this bread is milk. I used fresh milk but you can use evaporated milk. Make sure that the milk is warm when used as this will help in activating the yeast. Although instant dry yeast don’t need to be proofed but it is always a good idea not to use cold or room temperature milk.
I used butter in making this recipe. Butter makes the recipe fluffier and softer in texture. You may substitute canola oil or vegetable oil if that is what you have.
The addition of egg adds flavor and texture to the bread. Also putting a little vanilla extract/essence enhances the flavor and gives the bread an appetizing aroma.
Additional ingredients in making malunggay pandesal
Cheddar cheese serves as the filling of the malunggay pandesal. You can skip putting cheese if you want to have a plain malunggay pandesal, but I highly recommend it. Cheese adds creaminess to the bread plus you don’t need to fuss about putting “palaman” in your bread.
Breadcrumbs is a signature coating of pandesal that adds texture and taste to the bread. You can buy breadcrumbs or just make it yourself by placing your bread into a preheated oven for few minutes then let it stay there until oven temperature goes down. Then using a food processor, pulse until it becomes crumbs.
Tips in making malunggay pandesal
Combine first your dry ingredients before blending with the wet ingredients. This will ensure that all ingredients are well incorporated.
Grease your working table/ mat with oil before start kneading. This will avoid the dough from sticking as you knead.
Make sure that you knead your dough until it becomes elastic. It will take around 10-15 minutes. If your dough is too dry, you can simply add more water. If it is too sticky, you can lightly dust flour in the kneading mat to avoid it from sticking. Just be patient and the end result will be soft and fluffy pandesal.
I usually do the short cut in rising my dough. I also shared this tip on my monggo bread loaf recipe. To shorten waiting time for rising the dough, preheat the oven to 180 C (in this recipe) for 5 minutes then turn it off. Place the dough inside the oven until it doubled in size. The warmth of the oven will help shorten the time by half.
Don’t overcook or over baked your pandesal. It will be done around 18-20 minutes, not more than that. You want a golden brown outer and soft inside.
Give this recipe a try and comment in the comment box down below if you made it and liked it. Happy tummy!
Watch on YouTube: How to make Malunggay/ Moringa Pandesal with Cheese
Malunggay/ Moringa Pandesal with Cheese Recipe
Equipment
- Mixing Bowl
- Measuring spoons and cups
- Spatula
- Cling wrap or towel
- Parchment or baking paper
- Baking Tray
- Kneading mat (optional)
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon instant dry yeast
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons malunggay/ moringa powder or ¾ cup fresh malunggay, chopped
- 1 cup fresh milk or evaporated milk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or essence
- 1 large egg
- 100 grams butter, melted
- 160 grams cheddar cheese, cut into serving sizes
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Combine flour, yeast, sugar, salt and malunggay powder. Mix well to combine.
- Make a well in the middle and add the wet ingredients, fresh milk, vanilla extract, egg and butter. Mix to form a dough.
- Transfer to a kneading mat and put oil or dust with little flour. Knead for about 10-15 minutes or until elastic.
- Place in a greased bowl, cover with cling wrap or kitchen towel and rest for 30 minutes.
- Cut and divide dough into 15-16 equal serving sizes. Form each piece into balls. Flatten each balls and place cheese inside and seal. Coat each pieces with breadcrumbs.
- Arrange dough on a baking tray lined with parchment/ baking paper, leaving around 1 ½ inches room for rising.
- Preheat oven to 180 °C/ 350 °F then turn off.
- Place dough inside the preheated oven and let it rise for about 30 minutes to 1 hour or until double in size.
- Remove from the oven and preheat the oven again to 180 °C/ 350 °F.
- Bake for around 18-20 minutes or until top turns golden brown.
- Serve while warm with your favorite hot drinks like coffee, hot chocolate or tea.
- Share and enjoy!
Video
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