Description
Delightful olive bread swirls with a flavorful olive and basil paste, perfect as an appetizer or snack. These swirls feature a soft white dough rolled with a savory mix of black olives, green olives, garlic, basil, and anchovies, baked to a golden crisp.
Ingredients
Scale
Dough
- 500g strong white flour, plus extra for rolling
- 1 tsp salt
- 7g sachet easy-blend dried yeast
- 6 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus a little for brushing
- 300ml warm water
Filling
- Small bunch of basil (tender stalks only)
- 170g pitted black olives (about 200g unpitted weight)
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 4 tinned anchovies (optional)
- 50g pitted green olives
Instructions
- Make the Dough: In a large bowl, combine the flour, salt, yeast, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, and warm water to form a soft dough. Knead the dough by hand for 10 minutes, or knead with a food processor or mixer dough hook for 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place the dough back into the cleaned mixing bowl, cover with oiled cling film, and leave it to rise in a warm place for 1 hour until doubled in size.
- Prepare the Filling: Remove any tough basil stalks, keeping the tender ones. In a mini food processor or using a hand blender beaker, blend the basil, black olives, 4 tablespoons of olive oil, crushed garlic, and anchovies (if using) until you get a rough paste.
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Tray: Heat the oven to 220C (200C fan, gas mark 7). Line a shallow baking tin approximately 30 x 20 cm with non-stick baking paper.
- Shape the Bread: On a floured surface, roll the dough into a rectangle roughly 30 x 40 cm. Spread the olive paste evenly over the dough. Arrange the whole green olives in a line along one of the short edges. Carefully roll the dough up from the olive-encrusted edge to form a ‘sausage’ shape.
- Cut and Arrange Swirls: Slice the rolled dough into 12 equal pieces. Lift each slice and arrange them in the baking tin in 4 rows of 3 swirls each. Lightly brush all over with the remaining olive oil.
- Second Rise: Loosely cover the baking tin with cling film and allow the dough swirls to rise for about 20 minutes or until slightly puffed and filling the tin.
- Bake the Bread Swirls: Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the swirls are golden brown and cooked through. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin before serving.
Notes
- You can make the bread swirls up to 24 hours in advance and store at room temperature.
- For longer storage, freeze the baked swirls in a plastic freezer bag for up to two months. Defrost before serving.
- To reheat, warm the swirls in a 200C (180C fan, gas 6) oven for 10 minutes.
- Transport the swirls in their tin, covered with cling film to keep fresh.
- Anchovies are optional; omit for a milder, vegetarian-friendly version if desired.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Keywords: olive bread swirls, savory bread, Mediterranean bread, olive paste bread, basil bread, homemade bread
