This vegan cheese bread is made with a no-knead dough that's incredibly simple to make and it rises overnight while you're sleeping! The savory loaf is flavored with vegan cheddar cheese, savory green onions, and garlic. It's a delicious combination that makes the perfect grilled cheese or garlic bread!
Combine all purpose flour, active dry yeast, salt, garlic powder, sliced green onions, and 1 ½ cups shredded vegan cheese in a large mixing bowl. Stir to mix all of the ingredients together.
Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and pour the water into it. Stir until you don't see any more white flour. If the dough is too dry, you can add up to ¼ cup of water. The dough should look shaggy and feel sticky (but not wet) once fully combined.
Cover with plastic wrap (or a towel) and put it in a warm place for 12-18 hours. (I usually put it in the oven with the door shut overnight so it's ready to bake in the morning when I get up.)
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
Preheat a cast iron pot with the lid on in the oven for 30 minutes.
While the pot is warming, uncover the dough in the bowl and punch it down. Fold the dough 3-4 times to get rid of any air bubbles. Cover it again and let rise for 30 more minutes.
Carefully, remove the hot pot from the oven. Take off the lid, line the pot with a piece of parchment paper, and sprinkle wheat bran into the bottom of the pot. Scrape the dough out of the bowl and into the hot pot. Sprinkle ¼ cup of shredded cheese on top of the dough.
Put the lid back on and put the pot into the oven. Bake for 45 minutes covered, remove the lid and bake for 5 more minutes or until the crust is a golden brown.
Let the pot sit for a few minutes or until you can handle it safely. Take the lid off and put the wire rack on top of the pot. Hold the rack and flip the pot so the bread is resting on the rack. Let it cool for 1 hour before slicing.
Notes
You can use a large 5 or 6-quart cast iron pot, but a bigger pot will result in a flatter loaf of vegan cheese bread because the dough will spread more. I prefer to use a smaller pot so the loaf has a smaller base and higher dome.
Make sure that the cast iron pot you use has an oven-safe handle on the lid up to 450 degrees. If it's not oven-safe, you can unscrew it and put it back on later.
Add a little bit of shredded vegan cheese on top of the bread before you bake it so it develops a crispy cheesy crust as it bakes. That's my favorite part!
Wait one hour for the bread to cool before you slice it. If you cut into it too early, the inside will get a little sticky and gummy.