The Perfect Olive Bread

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      My Dad loves olives....any kind of olives. He loves to snack on them with  cheese and salami and add them to pizza and to his favorite sandwiches.  So, I decided to make him a nice loaf of  Olive Bread to have with his  favorite soup.  I experimented with different nuts  and seeds and olives  but I found the winning combination when I  combined Star Fine Foods  Queens Stuffed Pimento olives and their  Spanish Ripe pitted olives with  some pumpkin seeds and almonds.  He loved it!  He says he loves to toast  it lightly and then spread cream cheese on top. So today I surprised him  with more!  He is now the proud owner of 3 frozen loaves of  ready to  thaw and bake Olive Bread!  Perfect for this fall and winter to serve warm  out of the oven with his soups and stews! 

    The Perfect Olive Bread

         1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds

·        ½ cup almonds, finely chopped

·        3 cups whole wheat bread flour

·        3 cups white bread flour

·        2 teaspoons salt

·        1 teaspoon quick-rising (instant) dry yeast

·        2-1/2 cups lukewarm water

·        1/3 cup finely chopped StarFine Foods Spanish Ripe Med Pitted Olives

·        1/3 cup finely chopped Star Fine Foods Queens Stuffed Spanish olives

In large bowl, whisk together whole wheat flour, 2 cups of the white flour, almonds, salt and yeast. Stir in lukewarm water until well combined. Cover with plastic wrap; let rise in warm draft-free place until bubbly and doubled in bulk, about 12 hours.

Sprinkle work surface with 1/3 cup of the remaining flour. Scrape dough onto work surface; sprinkle 1/4 cup of the remaining flour over top. Cover with tea towel; let stand for 15 minutes.

Using floured hands, gently press out dough into 1/2-inch thick rectangle, sprinkling with up to 1/4 cup of the remaining flour if dough is too sticky. 

Sprinkle rectangle with olives and knead until well combined, adding up to 1/4 cup more white bread flour if dough is too sticky. Reshape into rectangle.

Cut in half crosswise. Roll each half into scant 8- x 4-inch cylinder; place, seam side down, in greased nonstick 8- x 4-inch loaf pan. Sprinkle loaves with pumpkin seeds. Cover loosely with lightly greased plastic wrap; let rise in warm draft-free place until almost doubled in bulk, about 1-1/2 hours. 

Bake in 425 degree oven for 10 minutes. Decrease heat to 375 degrees and bake until light golden and loaves sound hollow when tapped, about 30 minutes.  Transfer to racks; serve warm or let cool.

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The STAR Farmer’s Market Olive pouches are available at Ralphs, King Soopers, Smiths, Albertsons (Southern California), Safeway (Northern California) and Savemart stores and online at http://bit.ly/STAROlivePouches.







STAR Queen olives are available at select grocery stores nationwide and online at http://bit.ly/STARQueenOlives.






Star Fine Foods now has a promo code for all Welcome Home fans that will give you a 10% discount on anything you order online. Just enter WELCOMEHOME10 at checkout!

Disclaimer: I have an ongoing relationship with STAR Fine Foods for my recipes and photography using their wonderful products. This post is sponsored by STAR. I am compensated for my time and work and I am sent products as I request them. However, all opinions of the product stated in this post are 100% my own. I truly love their products!