Olive Bread

Olive bread with rosemary is a truly incredible bread that’s loaded with flavor.  Its texture and taste make it an excellent choice for sandwiches, but it’s equally good with a little olive oil for dipping.  Our step-by-step instructions take the guesswork out of making this bread enabling you to recreate this bakery-worthy bread in your own home!

There’s nothing quite like a homemade loaf of bread, but for many, it can be intimidating.

It’s our goal to remove the guesswork from making this homemade olive bread so you can feel empowered to do this at home.

The process does require you to start a day ahead of the actual breadmaking, but one bite and you’ll feel it’s worth it.

This olive oil and rosemary bread is just perfect for sandwiches, but we also love it with olive oil or butter.

We also enjoy a chunk of this bread (and other bread, like focaccia) with soup, like pasta fazool or minestrone, and it is truly an impressive loaf to bring to a friend or family member’s home.

How to make it

Each number corresponds to the numbered written steps below.

1. The night before baking the bread, make the poolish. In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/4 cups (160g) of bread flour, 3/4 cup (160g) water heated to 80f, and 1/8 teaspoon (.35g) of instant yeast.  Cover the bowl and allow it to sit overnight in a room at 70f.  Note: We recommend using an instant-read thermometer to check the water temperature.
2. The poolish will be ready the next morning when it has risen and is covered with tiny bubbles.  It takes about 10-12 hours to get to this point, but can take less or more time depending on the room temperature.  The poolish needs to be used before it collapses.  If you plan to make your bread later in the day, refrigerate it to prevent collapsing. 

3. Drain, dry, and chop 1 1/2 cups of pitted olives and set aside. Chop 1 tablespoon worth of fresh rosemary leaves. In a large bowl or square container, mix together 3 1/4 cups (380g) of bread flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons (4.5g) of instant dry yeast, 2 teaspoons of diastatic malt powder, and 2 teaspoons of fine sea salt.  Note: Diastatic malt powder is optional, however, it does aid in browning.
4. Add 1 cup (245g) of water warmed to 80f, the poolish, the olives, rosemary, and 2 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil.
5. Using your hands, mix and combine the ingredients, stretching the dough to thoroughly mix.  This will take about 5 minutes, so take your time. 
6. Cover and allow the dough to sit for 60 minutes.

7. After 60 minutes move the dough to the floured work surface and lay it out.  Dust a bench scraper with flour and use it to lift the dough. 
8. Pull the dough, then stretch and fold it over itself.  
9. Rotate the dough 90 degrees, then stretch and fold the dough 3 more times, rotating after each stretch and fold. 
10. Use the scraper to gently move the dough back into the container.  Cover it and allow it to sit for another 30 minutes.  Note: If you’d like you can stretch and fold the dough in the container with just your hands.  Simply dip your hands into a bowl of water before each stretch and fold to prevent sticking.

11. After 30 minutes, do another 4 stretches and folds.  
12. Taking care to not degas the dough, shape it into a round loaf.  Place the dough ball seam side down into a bowl lined with a piece of parchment paper.  Cover with a towel or plastic and let it rise for 90 minutes or until it doubles in size.  45 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 450f and set the rack toward the middle level leaving enough space to hold a Dutch oven with its lid.  Place a 5-6 quart covered Dutch oven onto the rack and close the oven.
13. Right before the 45 minutes have elapsed, score the dough with a 1/4″ deep slit running the length of the loaf at a shallow angle.  
14. Remove the Dutch oven from the oven being careful to avoid burning yourself.  Remove the lid, and grab each side of the parchment paper, gently lowering the dough into the Dutch oven.  

15. Quickly cover with the lid and place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
16. After 30 minutes remove the lid and allow the bread to bake for another 25-35 minutes.  The loaf is done when it feels hollow when knocked on.  If it doesn’t feel hollow, simply place the loaf straight onto the oven rack and bake for another 5 minutes, then check again.  Once finished baking, place the olive bread onto a wire rack to cool and wait at least 90 minutes before slicing.  Enjoy!

Top tips

• The poolish.  Depending on the temperature of your room, the poolish should be ready in 10-12 hours.  It should either be used to make the bread, or it should be moved to the refrigerator.  Refrigeration will prevent overfermentation and collapsing.  The poolish can be held in the fridge for a max of up to 3 days.
• Stretch and fold. We use a stretch-and-fold method for the olive bread dough.  This helps the dough develop large gluten strands, and it introduces oxygen when folding which is necessary for gluten formation.  This method also stimulates fermentation by helping the yeast produce more gas which also helps to develop the gluten.  All of this helps to make the dough easier to shape and for a higher rise and better structure. 
• Olives. We used kalamata olives but you can use any pitted olives you like, such as oil-cured black olives, or Castelvetrano. 
• Knock on the bread. Be sure to knock on the bread to check for doneness.  If the bread sounds hollow, you’re good.  If not, place it back in the oven (it can go directly on the oven rack at this point) for another 5 minutes, then give it another knock. 

More ways to enjoy olive bread

Here are a few of our favorite recipes to serve with olive bread.  We hope you enjoy!

• Tuscan white bean soup – the flavor from the roasted garlic and cannellini beans pair perfectly with olive bread.
• Peperonata – bell peppers, onions, and tomatoes stewed together make the perfect topping for bread!
• Ciambotta – this summer vegetable soup complements this bread in every way!

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