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Soup and stew season is almost here which means...bread baking time! Starting off strong with some no knead olive bread 👊🏻.
Truth: we've been gardening and landscaping out in the front yard and I'm bone tired. Like body aching, head hits the pillow and I'm out snoring tired. Totally zonked.
SO! I'm going to say a few quick things about this delicious no knead olive bread and then ima pass out.
First off, like its delectable predecessors, this bread requires NO kneading! All the artisan bread flavor and none of the effort. Solid win amiright?
Secondly, UM OLIVES! Have you ever known the wonder of a crusty outside, soft inside artisan bread with hunks of kalamata and castelvetrano olives? If you havn't, get. On. It. I added a pinch of garlic powder and some fresh oregano to really bring out the Greek olive flavors.
Thirdly...just trust. It's delicious, it's easy peezy, and I'm falling asleep while typing soooo I gotta bounce. No knead olive bread recipe coming right up!
No Knead Olive Bread
- Prep Time: 12 hours
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 12 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: 1 large, round loaf 1x
Description
A crusty, artisan, easy to make greek olive bread with garlic and fresh oregano. No kneading required!
Ingredients
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 ¾ teaspoon coarse salt
- ½ teaspoon active dry yeast
- ¼ teaspoon white sugar (for activing the yeast)
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- ½ cup 1pitted castelvetrano olives, roughly chopped
- ½ cup pitted kalamata olives, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, roughly chopped
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Activate the yeast: Pour warm water into a small bowl. Sprinkle yeast on top. Add sugar and give the mixture a small stir. Place the bowl in a warm place for about 10-15 minutes. Be patient! If yeast is activated, you will see foam on top of the mixture, and even a few small bubbles. Also, if you take sniff, it will smell very much like yeast.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, chopped olives, garlic, oregano, and salt. Add water and yeast mixture and mix until just combined into a sticky, shaggy dough. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit for 12-18 hours. After the dough has risen for at least 12 but preferably 18 hours, it should look loose and very moist with plenty of bubbles on the surface.
- When the dough is ready, preheat the oven to 450˚F. Place a 6 to 8qt dutch oven or cast iron pot in the oven to heat up for 30 minutes before baking.
- Place dough on a well floured surface and, using plenty of flour on your hands, gently pat it into a ball shape. Score the top of the dough as desired.
- Place it onto a piece of parchment paper, sprinkle the top of the dough with more flour, and cover with saran wrap while you wait for your pot to heat up.
- Remove the saran wrap and place both the parchment paper and the dough into the heated pot so that the parchment lines the bottom. Place on a middle rack and cook, covered, for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and cook another 10-15 minutes, until bread is golden. Cool on a wire rack.
Looks AMAZING!!!! Love baking bread.
Thank you!!! Only thing to do now during this lock-down period.
Happy baking and stay positive 🙏🏻
Yolande from South Africa
★★★★★
Thank you! I'm so with you, all the baking and positivity 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻.
Can I use instant yeast instead and would I add it directly to the flour or do I mix it with warm water?
I believe so! When substituting instant yeast for active dry, the general rule is to use 25% less and yes you would add it straight to the dry ingredients.
Your image shows slits in the top of the bread but the instructions don’t mention that. Should the top be scored?
Thank you for pointing this out, I'll update the recipe! Strictly speaking, you don't have to but it does give the air somewhere to escape, otherwise it'll just escape somewhere else as it bakes. Plus it's pretty 😁.
Is there a substitute for the parchment paper? I don’t have any *sigh*
Ugh I understand, my grocery store was completely out this week. You can try greased foil!
Bread looks delicious and easy to make! I don’t have a cast iron pot or Dutch oven - is there a substitute?
Thank you! You can try a baking dish or bread loaf pan still using parchment paper and topping with an oven safe lid or a foil tent.
Do you think you can knead this and let rest for an hour or two and therefore skip the 12-18 hour rise period?
I followed your recipe but it came doughy, like it's undercooked. What am I doing wrong?
This happened to me too! It was insanely doughy, had to add almost 2 more cups of flour for it to even resemble dough. Seems like too much water... you’re sure it’s 1-1/2 cups?
Can you change up the olives and used stuffed green with the kalamata together? I'm trying it now and wondering as the rough seems a little more salty than I expected.
I’ve made bread several times this year and none of the recipes call for so much water. I tried twice with fresh yeast and sugar and water, as indicated, and it would not proof. No foam! I looked at yeast jar and the proportions are far different. Normal yeast proofing is about 1/2 C water to 2.5 teaspoons yeast and 1/4 tsp sugar. Are you sure you have the amount of water correct, as I’m ready to give up on this recipe. It’s not working.
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