How to Bake Olive Fougasse

Yields: 2 loaves

Preparation time: over 10 hours

Cooking time: 20 mins

Ingredients needed to make Olive Fougasse:

• 13 oz strong white flour, plus more for dusting
• Semolina flour, for dusting
• 3 ½ oz whole green olives, pitted
• 3 ½ oz whole black olives, pitted
• 9 oz sourdough starter
• 4-6 fl oz tepid water
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 7 gm salt
• Olive oil, for kneading

Cooking instructions for Olive Fougasse:

• Place the flour in a large bowl and stir in the sourdough starter and a dash of salt until well combined.
• Pour in water in a thin yet steady stream, while beating it into the mixture, until all of it is incorporated into the mixture.
• Work the mixture together with your hands, until it forms a soft dough.
• Grease your working counter with few drops of oil and transfer the dough onto it.
• Knead it for about 10 minutes, until it softens further to become smooth and pliable.
• Place the dough onto a lightly-greased bowl and wrap the surface with a cling film.
• Set aside in a warm place for over 6 hours to let it rise to twice its original size.
• Mix equal amount of extra all purpose flour plus semolina flour together and sprinkle the blend onto a clean working surface.
• Place the dough onto it and punch it down to deflate it.
• Knead in the oregano and olives until they are distributed evenly throughout the dough and split it into two equal portions.
• Place one portion onto a greased baking sheet and flatten it out, using rolling pin, into a rectangle.
• Make 3-4 diagonal slashes, using sharp knife, onto the flattened dough and stretch them slightly to create holes.
• Wrap it up loosely in a lightly-greased cling film and let it rest for another 4 hours to allow it to rise; process the other dough half in a similar fashion.
• Pour water into a roasting pan to fill half of it and position it onto the lower rack of the oven.
• Warm it up to 425 degrees F to build up a steam within it; get rid of the roasting pan.
• Place the loaves on a greased baking sheet and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until they turn crispy golden brown.
• Allow to cool on a wire rack and serve alongside soups, salads and stews.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons