Nothing beats the smell of freshly baked bread, especially when you’ve made the loaves yourself. This olive oil bread is wonderfully straightforward. Mix everything together, leave the dough to rise, shape it into two loaves and let the oven do the rest. The dough will be soft and sticky, so don’t worry if it looks a little different from the firm dough you may be used to handling. The olive oil gives the bread a soft texture and a subtle richness, while a hot oven helps create a golden crust. Placing a dish of hot water in the oven is a useful trick here, as the steam helps the crust develop while the inside stays soft. Recipe compliments of B-well.

Prep time: 10 minutes | Resting and cooking time: 3 hours 5 minutes | Makes: 2 loaves

Ingredients

• 750 ml lukewarm water
• 22.5 ml instant yeast
• 22.5 ml salt
• 15 ml sugar
• 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
• 6 cups all-purpose flour

Method

1. Place the lukewarm water, yeast, salt, sugar and olive oil in a large mixing bowl.
2. Add the flour and mix with a wooden spoon until everything is combined and a soft, sticky dough forms.
3. Cover the bowl and leave the dough to rise for 2 hours. The dough will rise and then collapse, and it will remain soft and sticky.
4. Preheat the oven to 230°C and dust a baking tray with flour.
5. Uncover the dough and dust the top with a little flour. Gently remove it from the bowl.
6. Divide the dough in half and shape each piece into an oval loaf. Place both on the prepared baking tray and leave to rest for 45 minutes.
7. Place a shallow dish of hot water on the bottom rack of the oven.
8. Dust the tops of the loaves with flour and use a sharp knife to make long, shallow slits across each loaf.
9. Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown, firm to the touch and hollow-sounding when tapped underneath.
10. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before slicing.