Rainbow Sandwich Loaf

Directions

1. 1Unwrap the bread dough, and cut each into three equal lengths. You'll have 12 lengths total, 2 for each rainbow color (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple).
2. 2Spray a plate lightly with cooking spray and set aside.
3. 3Take two lengths of dough and add about 1/2 teaspoon of gel food coloring. It works best to smear it on the top of one length, place the other on top, and knead it in. Knead about 30 times, pushing the dough with the heel of one hand, and pulling it back, until the coloring is blended in. Note: the color won't be perfectly uniform ... there will be little flecks of white -- that is absolutely okay.
4. 4Place the colored dough on the sprayed plate and set aside.
5. 5Wash your hands thoroughly, and wipe the counter (to avoid dye transfer to the next color). Repeat with the remaining colors.
6. 6Sprinkle the countertop lightly with flour. Starting with the red dough, sprinkle a tiny bit of flour over the top, and roll out to a long rectangle, about 6 inches wide, 18 inches long and 3/4 of an inch thick. Set aside. Repeat with orange, and set on top of the red dough. Continue moving through the rainbow, with the yellow, green, blue and purple dough, until they are all stacked.
7. 7Pat the stack out a little, to bind the layers. Roll it up so it will fit nicely in your Pullman pan (or cut in half if you're using 2 regular loaf pans).
8. 8Spray a Pullman loaf pan lightly with cooking spray (or spray 2 standard loaf pans). Set the dough in the Pullman pan, and close the cover so its just a tiny bit open -- so you can barely see inside. If you're using regular loaf pans, wrap them with plastic wrap and a towel and set aside.
9. 9Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
10. 10Allow the dough to sit for about 30 minutes -- it won't really do a full rise, but will just get a tiny bit puffed, and we want to give it a tiny head start after all that kneading.
11. 11Bake the loaf for an hour to an hour and 15 minutes, until the top makes a tiny "thump" when tapped, the loaf is the tiniest bit brown, and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. If you're using two regular loaf pans, my best guess is to start checking at 30 to 40 minutes.
12. 12Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack to allow to cool fully before cutting.
13. 13Cut off all the crusts, until you have a square loaf. Then cut into thin dainty pieces, layer with your favorite sandwich toppings and have a rainbow-y good day!