Irini’s easy summer bread

Mastered basic loaves? Try a new recipe with this simple focaccia-style olive bread from Irini Tzortzoglou

Olive & rosemary bread

Similar to the Italian focaccia, this is the perfect bread to accompany soups, or dishes that require their delicious sauce to be mopped up. It’s very easy to make, requires few ingredients and goes a long way. When working with yeast, the water used to dissolve it should not be too hot, as this will kill the bacteria in the yeast. The pinch of sugar is not needed for flavour, but as a ‘feeding’ agent for the yeast.

SERVES 8!10 PREP 25 mins plus at least 1 hr 45 mins proving COOK 40 mins EASY V 2 tsp fast-action dried yeast pinch of caster sugar

500g strong white bread "lour,

plus extra for dusting (optional) 100ml extra virgin olive oil, plus

extra for proving and drizzling 30g Kalamata olives, pitted a few rosemary sprigs, chopped

into short pieces pinch of sea salt "lakes

1 Mix the yeast and sugar with 300ml warm water in a large bowl. Cover and leave in a warm place for about 15 mins, or until you see bubbles on the surface. Put the flour, olive oil and a pinch of salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, then tip in the yeast mixture. Knead the dough using the dough hook for 5 mins at a medium speed. If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can knead the dough by hand on a floured surface for about 10 mins until shiny and elastic. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and leave in a warm place for about 1 hr until doubled in size.

2 Gently knead again, then shape into a 25 x 20cm flat shape that’s about 2cm deep. Transfer to a baking tray lined with baking parchment or a silicone baking mat. Gently push the olives and rosemary pieces into the dough, then cover with a slightly damp tea towel. Leave for 30 mins1 hr until almost doubled in size.

3 Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/ gas 6. Sprinkle the dough with the sea salt and drizzle with some more olive oil. Splash the surface of the dough with 1 tbsp water, then bake for 30-35 mins, or until golden and hollow-sounding when you tap the bottom.

GOODTOKNOW vegan

PER SERVING (10) 283 kcals • fat 11g • saturates 2g • carbs 38g • sugars none • "ibre 2g • protein 7g • salt 0.4g

Recipe adapted from Under the Olive Tree: Recipes from My Greek Kitchen by Irini Tzortzoglou (£25, Headline). Irini is the 2019 winner of Masterchef on BBC One. Under the Olive Tree is her irst cookbook.