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!

Closer to Home - Greek Olive Bread

The latest diet craze - the Mediterranean diet - strikes me as very strange. Not the diet itself, but rather the whole idea of a 'diet' based on the most popular components of the foods eaten in this area. The reason it is strange to me, of course, is because this is the kind of food I eat all the time. Let's think about it for a minute. What is this 'diet'? Well, it all starts with what Rachel Ray calls, EVOO, in other words Extra Virgin Olive Oil. From there, it really depends on where you are in the Mediterranean Basin. For instance, think of Italian food, and you think of tomato sauce and pasta. Think of French food from Provence, then you must include, sharp cheeses, red wine and lots of herbs. Actually, when you think of it, Italian food, Spanish food and all North African food, also includes herbs, olive oil and spices (often very spicy!). Lately I've been baking all kinds of dishes (quiches, pies and breads) from this area. This is all in preparation for some workshops I will be teaching this summer on Crete, the largest of the Greek Islands.

This bread is fairly typical of breads from the entire region. It includes olive oil, and even feta cheese, in some versions. It takes a long time to rise in the winter but in the summer will rise quickly. Unlike many breads from the Eastern Mediterranean, it has yeast to help it rise. Many breads from this area are flatbreads, like the famous pita bread found all over the Mediterranean and Middle East in one form or another. This recipe makes one fairly large loaf and keeps really well for several days. The addition of olives and feta give it a distinctly Middle eastern flavor. Needless to say, it makes great sandwiches especially with a sharp cheese, or with some kind of smoked meat. And mustard, good strong dijon mustard.

Here's What You'll Need:

1 onion thinly sliced
1Tbs. olive oil
1 cup pitted and chopped green or black olives
400g (3 cups) bread flour
3/4tsp salt
about 150g (5oz) drained and crumbled feta cheese
2tsp instant yeast
1Tbs chopped oregano, coriander, parsley and/or mint
1 cup hot (45C/120F) water

Here's What You'll Need to Do:

1. Fry the onion in the olive oil until lightly browned. Roughly chop the olives.

2. Put the flour, salt, yeast and herbs in a large bowl with the olives and fried onions and feta cheese, and pour in 1 cup hot water (not boiling - about 45C or 120F).

3. Mix the dough until it comes together. Then place on a lightly-floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes, until smooth and just barely sticky. Add flour or water as necessary to get the correct feel.

4. Put in a lightly-oiled bowl and cover. Leave it to rise until doubled, about 2 hours (the onions and olive will weigh it down).

5. Preheat the oven to 220C (425F). Lightly grease a baking sheet, then shape the dough into a tight boule. Leave it lightly covered to rise again until doubled.

6. Just before baking, slash the bread with a sharp knife, about 1/2 in (3mm) deep.

7. Bake for about 35-40 minutes until it is a deep rich brown. Serve with unsalted butter, or as part of a meze table. That's the small salads and dips that you find everywhere in this area. In Spain called tapas, in Greece, meze.