Second Home - Mediterranean Olive Bread

When you think of typical Mediterranean foods, certain images immediately come to mind. Salty white cheeses like the famous feta and its universal cousins. Olive oil and olives. Ripe, firm tomatoes. Fresh herbs like oregano, basil of course, thyme, rosemary.

And bread, two styles especially. There is the thick-crusted 'artisan'-style loaves. Basically a boule, baked at a high temperature until almost black. The interior remains soft and white while the crust is so crunchy you almost have to saw it open. Almost. Then there is the 'country' loaf. A softer crust with a white and fluffy interior. Almost heaven and made with only a few select ingredients. White bread flour, yeast, water and salt. To soften the crust just a little more add an egg. To brown the crust add some sugar. That's it.

This bread is from the second category. It has a robust crust but not at all crunchy or chewy. The interior is soft as soft can be. Fluffy. It is a variation on a bread found throughout the Mediterranean in one form or another. Another variant can be found in the wonderful baking book Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads. I have replaced the typical butter with olive oil to cut down on the saturated fats, and to add the flavor of the oil. Olive oil does not suit a lot of baked goods, but is perfect for Mediterranean bread. Also, just so you wouldn't mistake it's origins, I have added about 1 cup of roughly chopped green olives. The aroma in your kitchen will be unbelievable. And if you can manage to wait until it cools, you won't be disappointed.

Here's What You'll Need:
2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups bread flour (or AP flour)
1 Tbs. dry yeast
2 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 1/3 cups warm water
2 eggs
1/4 cup butter (or Olive oil)
1 cup green olives, roughly chopped (or half black)
1 egg, lightly beaten

Here's What You'll Need to Do:

1. In a large mixing bowl, add 2 cups of the flour and the other dry ingredients (yeast, sugar and salt). Mix thoroughly.

2. Make a well in the center, then add the water, while stirring, to form a thick-ish batter. Beat in the eggs, then the butter gradually. Or the olive oil if using it instead of the butter.

3. Stir vigorously until the batter is smooth and silky, then add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough 'cleans the bowl'. Continue to knead until the dough is smooth and shiny and only just barely sticky.

4. Place the dough in a lightly-oiled bowl, turn to coat, then cover and let it rise until doubled in volume, about 1 1/2 hours.

5. Deflate the dough. Push it out with your fingers until it forms a rough rectangle. Sprinkle the drained olives evenly over the surface of the dough, then roll it up, jelly-roll style from the long side to form a 'log'. Tuck the ends underneath the log, and place it on a parchment -lined baking sheet. Cover with a kitchen towel, to rise a second time, about 45 minutes.

6. About 20 minutes before baking time, pre-heat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Brush the loaf with the beaten egg, then bake for about 35 minutes until it is a deep brown. It will sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.

7. Cool on a rack.

Oh, and it makes amazing toast!

OK - This One Is Pane Siciliano

It had to happen. With everything going on I was preparing two posts for this blog at once. And wouldn't you know it, I mixed up the names!! The last post, now corrected to its proper name is for a sourdough whole wheat bread. This one is Pane Siciliano (literally Sicilian Bread) is also a sourdough made with fermented dough. However, the last post featured a soaker and a poolish allowed to ferment overnight in the refrigerator. This bread uses a technique I've used before called pate fermentee (literally fermented dough in French). The idea is the same, a 'dough' is mixed, allowed to ferment at room temperature for a few hours, then placed in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, the dough is revived, mixed with the remaining ingredients, then allowed to rise and is baked. The idea is to slow down the rising process of the yeast so that the natural complex flavors of the wheat flour can be maximized. Yum!!

This bread is usually baked as a loaf. I have chosen to make it as rolls, both because they bake faster and also because they are more easily stored (and eaten!). They have been liberally coated with sesame seeds in the Italian tradition. The result is a chewy, very stable roll, perfect for sandwiches and snacks. Whether you make it as a loaf or as rolls, you'll love this bread.

Here's What You'll Need for 3 loaves:

for the pate fermentee
1 1/8 cups AP flour
1 1/8 cups bread flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. instant yeast
about 3/4 cup water, at room temperature

for the dough
3 cups pate fermentee
1 3/4 cups bread flour
1 3/4 cups semolina flour
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/4 tsp. instant yeast
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 Tbs. honey
about 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water

Here's What You'll Need to Do:
1. About an hour before starting the bread assembly process, remove the pate fermentee from the refrigerator to bring it to room temperature. Cut it into about 10 or 12 pieces and place it in the mixing bowl, covered so it doesn't dry out.

2. Stir together the bread flour, the semolina, salt and yeast, add the pieces of pate fermentee, along with the oil, honey 1 1/4 cups of water.
3. Mix thoroughly with a mixer until the dough forms a smooth dough adding a little flour or water as needed.
4. Knead for about 10 minutes, then place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, turn to coat.
5. Leave the dough, covered, to rise until doubled for about 2 hours.
6. Divide the dough into 3 pieces (for loaves) or about 100g. (4oz.) for rolls. While working with one piece keep the others covered. Roll out each piece into a 'snake', then rolling from each end bring the ends to the center to form an 'S'.

7. Place the 'S' shapes on a prepared baking sheet covered and let the dough rise until doubled, about another hour.

8. Place an empty pan on the bottom of the oven and preheat the oven to 500F (250C) about 20 minutes before baking time.
9. Just before placing the dough in the oven, lightly coat it with egg white then sprinkle sesame seeds liberally all over.
10. Pour about 1 cup of boiling water into the pan in the oven, spray the walls with water and close the door quickly. After a few seconds, place the dough in the oven, lower the temperature to 425F (220C) and bake for 18 minutes or so (for rolls) or about 30 minutes for loaves.
11. Cool on a rack thoroughly before slicing.

This is so good, you've gotta love it!