I always find a reason to add olives to every dish. So when  I had to decide on a bread for the letter O, it had to be olive bread. I found this amazing loaf which not only had olive oil in the dough but also olives stuffed inside. Truly, my calling.

Olives are grown in the Mediterranean region and this bread also is from there, mainly in France, Spain, Greece, etc.

Country – Mediterranean countries (France / Greece/ Spain)

Makes one 12″ loaf

Recipe adapted from ‘The New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day’

WHAT WE NEED

Lukewarm water               1 cup + 6 tbsp

Instant yeast                        1 1/2 tsp

Salt                                         2 tsp

Sugar                                     1 1/2 tsp

Olive oil                                 2 tbsp

All purpose flour                 3 1/4 cup

Olives, pitted and diced      1/4 cup

Cornstarch wash (See notes)

WHAT TO DO

• Mix all the ingredients except olives in a large bowl
• Use a wooden spoon or mixer to mix since it will be a very wet dough. No need to knead
• Cover and let the dough rest till it rises and collapses or flattens on top, around 2 hours
• Though the dough can be used immediately, it is easier to handle if refrigerated for around 3 hours 
• Flatten the dough with a rolling pin to 1/2 inch thickness
• Add the olives on top and roll it up 
• Pinch the two ends of the roll to seal and then bring them to the middle to form an oval loaf
• Transfer the loaf to a loaf pan and let it rest for 90 minutes
• Preheat the oven to 230C
• Brush the top of the loaf with cornstarch wash and slash the top 2-3 times with a serrated knife
• Bake for around 30 minutes or till the top is nicely brown
• Allow to cool for 10 minutes before unmoulding 
• Cut into slices after the loaf has fully cooled down
• Enjoy!

NOTES

1. To make cornstarch wash, mix 1 tsp cornstarch with 1/2 cup water and microwave for 2 minutes
2. Black olives are usually used for making this loaf but I used green olives

 This is my post for the Mega Marathon under the letter O.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM# 75