Pre-heat the oven to Fan 40ºC

Place the casserole in the oven to warm through gently.

Make the bread mix in one bowl following the manufacturer’s instructions.

Divide the dough into 8 even pieces. Roll each piece out to a 20cm x 10cm rectangle and place 1 teaspoon of caramelised onion down the middle of each. Top with a piece of mozzarella and a sprinkle of Parmesan, then fold over the long edges together and roll into a long sausage shape. Tie the shaped dough into a knot- you may need to stretch out the roll of dough a little before knotting together. Repeat for all the pieces.

Remove the casserole from the oven and switch it off. Lightly grease the casserole with rapeseed or coconut oil.

Place the knots in the casserole, replace the lid and leave until they have doubled in size (approximately 1 – 1 ½ hours). The residual heat from the casserole acts as a proofing oven, ensuring an even and well risen dough.

Pre-heat the oven to 210°C/ Fan 190°C/ Gas Mark 7.

Once risen, brush the knots of bread with the milk to glaze and place into the oven to bake for 30 minutes until golden brown and with a lovely crust.

Cook's Notes

This wonderful shaped casserole is ideal for bread baking, giving the most wonderful all round crust.

Perfect for using to prove doughs, you can use the recipe to make one whole pizza in the shallow casserole if preferred.

No need to line just brush with some rapeseed or coconut oil, the bread can easily be removed from the casserole once baked thanks to the easy-release properties of the enamel.