This is a simple and hearty bread, but one that has surprising depth thanks to the hefty addition of large green olives and a melange of spice from the added herbes de Provence. Of course, snagging an olive as you eat is a delight all of its own (I believe there’s a place for an olive on every dinner table), but because the tangy, buttery olive flavor pervades the entire loaf, you taste their impact in each bite. Perhaps my favorite part of this green olive and herb sourdough bread, though, is the incredible crust.
When combined with piquant herbs, the small amount of olive juice in the dough transforms the crust into a brittle makeshift cracker deep with concentrated olive and herb flavor. There’s always a place for a thick, rustic crust in my baking, but this bread brings joy through a movement in the other direction. Finishing off the loaf with a thick layer of raw wheat germ after shaping echoes the tuft of wild herbs added to the dough, a sort of bread alliteration that leads to a lovely loaf, indeed.
Flour and ingredient selection
Flour
Any high-quality whole wheat flour will work well for the whole-grain portion of this loaf. I used Carolina Ground whole wheat for the entire 30%, which brought significant flavor all on its own.
Green olives
Be sure to rinse your olives under running water and let them dry before mixing them into your dough. While salty brine is welcome in many instances, adding too much to the dough could mean an overly salty loaf of bread. I like to leave the green olives whole in this recipe to show off their striking color and form when this bread is sliced. If you want more olive coverage throughout the loaf, feel free to chop the olives as fine as you’d like. I chopped about a quarter of the olives and left the rest whole.
I chose to use pitted Castelvetrano olives for this loaf, but Frescatrano or other green olive variety would work well with this dough recipe. Also, check out my Tartine olive sourdough bread if you’re looking at using your Kalamata or other black olives!
Herbes de Provence
I tested this bread with garden rosemary, thyme, oregano, and a mix of each, but in the end, my choice went with the classic herbes de Provence combination. And if you ask me, this blend nails it when it comes to pairing with olives.
I like the Frontier Herbes de Provence blend, which has savory, thyme, rosemary, basil, tarragon, and lavender. I like to use lavender often, but only in moderation—it’s an uncommon but absolutely delightful herb when used conservatively.
Wheat bran topper
To further amplify the crust with this bread—and something I’ve been doing with a lot of my other loaves lately—I coated the exterior with raw wheat bran. Oftentimes I have this lying around in my fridge after I mill fresh flour and then sift out the larger pieces, so it’s a convenient way to use this super-healthy part of the wheat kernel and bring an additional measure of crunch to the crust. If you don’t mill flour often, you can find small bags of wheat bran online that are great to have in the refrigerator for topping just about any bread (and to mix into sourdough muffins!).
Baking schedule
This green olive and herb sourdough bread is made over the course of two days. Cold proofing this dough brings additional flavor, but you can always do a same-day bake as well. Instead of placing the shaped dough into the refrigerator to proof overnight, leave it out, covered, to proof for 1-3 hours (depending on kitchen temperatures) until ready to bake.
Green olive and herb sourdough bread formula
Vitals
| Total Dough Weight | 1,800 grams |
| Hydration | 75% |
| Pre-fermented Flour | 6.40% |
| Levain in final dough | 17.09% |
| Yield | 2 x 900g loaves |
This recipe makes two loaves. If you’d like to make a single loaf of green olive and herb sourdough bread, divide all the ingredients in half. See my guide to using baker’s percentages for further help with scaling.
Total formula
Desired dough temperature: 78°F (25°C). See my post on the importance of dough temperature for more information on dough temperatures.
Green olive and herb sourdough bread method
1. Prepare the levain – 9:00 a.m.
This is a relatively fast levain, ripening in five hours. Mix the following ingredients in a container and leave them covered to ripen at a warm temperature, about 76-78°F (24-25°C) for 5 hours.
| Weight | Ingredient | Baker’s Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 28g | Medium-protein bread flour or all-purpose flour | 50.00% |
| 28g | Whole wheat flour | 50.00% |
| 57g | Water | 100.00% |
| 28g | Ripe sourdough starter | 50.00% |
2. Autolyse – 1:00 p.m.
This recipe uses the autolyse technique to increase the extensibility of the dough and make mixing by hand easier. Add the following to a mixing bowl and mix until incorporated. Let the mixture rest, covered, for 1-hour.
| Weight | Ingredient |
|---|---|
| 590g | Medium-protein bread flour or all-purpose flour |
| 237g | Whole wheat flour |
| 562g | Water 1 (this is the remaining water 1 after taking some for levain and soaker) |
3. Mix – 2:00 p.m.
Gather the following ingredients for mixing. The remaining water (water 2) should only be added through mixing if your dough feels like it can handle the addition. Next, use a splash to work in the levain and salt, adding the rest if the dough feels cohesive.
| Weight | Ingredient |
|---|---|
| 44g | Water 2 |
| 16g | Fine sea salt |
| 141g | Ripe levain (from step 1) |
Add the levain to the top of your dough already in the mixing bowl, and use a splash of the reserved water to moisten. Mix the levain thoroughly and slap and fold (or do folds in the bowl) for 5 minutes until the dough begins to smooth out and become elastic.
Let the dough rest in the mixing bowl, covered, for 10 minutes.
Sprinkle the salt over the dough, then dissolve with the remaining reserved mixing water. Mix thoroughly. If the dough still feels very slack, continue to strengthen the dough in the bowl by stretching and folding (or do slap/fold on the counter) for a few minutes until it begins to tighten and come together.
Transfer the dough to a container for bulk fermentation and cover.
4. Bulk fermentation – 2:15 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. (3 hours and 45 minutes)
At a warm room temperature, around 74-76°F (23-24°C), bulk fermentation should take about 3 hours and 45 minutes to 4-hours. If your kitchen is cooler, place your bulk container in a small home dough proofer, or extend the bulk fermentation time to give the dough more time to ferment. This dough needs around three sets of stretch and folds during this time.
Before you give your dough its first set of stretches and folds, spread about 1/4 of the olives and herbes over the top of the dough. Then, grab one side of the dough and stretch it up and over it to the other side. Next, spread on another 1/4 of the inclusions to the new top. Rotate the bowl 180° and perform another stretch and fold. Spread on another 1/4 of the inclusions, rotate the bowl 90° and do another stretch and fold. Finally, spread on the last of the olives and herbs, turn the bowl 180° and do one last stretch and fold.
And the end of each set, try to have the dough neatly folded up in the bowl with all inclusions tucked inside, save for a scattered olive or two peeking out.
The remaining two sets of stretch and folds should be more gentle. After the third set, let the dough rest, covered, for the remainder of bulk fermentation.
5. Divide and preshape – 6:00 p.m.
Fill a bowl with some water and place it on your work surface. Scrape out your dough from the bulk container onto your dry counter. Divide the mass in half using a bench knife. Using a wet hand and the knife in the other, gently preshape each half into a taut round.
Let the dough rest, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
6. Shape – 6:40 p.m.
I like to roll this dough in raw wheat germ for a crunchy—and nutritious—topper. Using a quarter baking sheet or clean kitchen towel, spread out a thin layer of wheat germ. After you shape your dough, flip it onto the thin layer and rotate it around to coat. Then, place the dough in a proofing basket, seam-side-up.
For me, this dough was a little slack during preshaping, so I shaped the dough a little extra tight to ensure it keeps its form all the way through proofing. I went with a batard shape and tucked the dough in a few extra times—see my guide to shaping a batard.
After each dough piece is shaped and optionally topped with wheat germ, place it seam side up in a 10-inch long proofing basket lined with canvas or a clean kitchen towel.
7. Proof – 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. (overnight)
Cover the baskets with a large, reusable plastic bag and seal it shut. Then, place the baskets into your refrigerator to proof overnight.
8. Bake – 9:00 a.m. (next day)
Preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C). I baked these loaves in my Challenger bread pan, but you could also follow my guide to steaming an oven for baking bread.
Score each piece of dough. Check out my video of how I like to score a bâtard, here:
After you score the dough, slide it into the oven and bake for 20 minutes with steam. Then, remove the steaming pans from inside the oven (or remove the lid to your baking pan) and bake for an additional 30 minutes, or until the crust is deeply colored and the interior temperature registers around 204°F (95°C).
Once fully baked, cool your loaves on a cooling rack for 1-2 hours. See my post on the best way to store bread to keep it fresh for a week or longer.
Despite the rogue olive pushing to the surface, you might not know this green olive and herb sourdough bread has anything different going on—that is until you slice into it and discover large green olives at every turn. This loaf is a strong candidate for any dinner table, but it’s also nice when sliced, cubed, and then placed out on a charcuterie board or appetizer spread. The flavor of the bread is striking enough, but it goes extremely well with any aged cheese, aged meat, and, dare I say, more olives.
Buon appetito!
Green olive and herb sourdough bread
- Prep Time: 24 hours
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 25 hours
- Yield: 2 loaves
- Category: Bread, Sourdough
- Cuisine: American
Description
A hearty loaf of sourdough bread with salty, buttery green olives and herbes de Provence.
Ingredients
Levain
- 28g medium-protein bread flour or all-purpose flour
- 28g whole wheat flour
- 57g water
- 28g ripe sourdough starter
Main Dough
- 590g medium-protein bread flour or all-purpose flour
- 237g whole wheat flour
- 203g Castelvetrano olives, pitted
- 7g herbes de Provence
- 606g water (water 1 + water 2)
- 16g salt
- 141g levain
Optional Topper
- Use raw wheat bran as an optional topper to coat the dough after shaping
Instructions
- Levain (9:00 a.m.)
In a small bowl, mix and knead the Levain ingredients. Transfer to a small container, cover, and keep it at a warm temperature for 5 hours. - Autolyse (1:00 p.m)
In a medium mixing bowl, add the 590g medium-protein bread flour, 237g whole wheat flour, and 562g water 1 and mix until no dry bits remain. Cover the bowl and let rest for 1-hour. - Mix (2:00 p.m.)
Add the levain to the top of your dough already in the mixing bowl, and use a splash of the reserved water to moisten. Mix the levain thoroughly and slap and fold (or do folds in the bowl) for 5 minutes until the dough begins to smooth out and become elastic. Let the dough rest in the mixing bowl, covered, for 10 minutes. Sprinkle the salt over the dough, then dissolve with the remaining reserved mixing water. Mix thoroughly. If the dough still feels very slack, continue to strengthen the dough in the bowl by stretching and folding (or do slap/fold on the counter) for a few minutes until it begins to tighten and come together. Transfer the dough to a container for bulk fermentation and cover. Rinse the olives and optionally chop; set aside. - Bulk Fermentation (2:15 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.)
This dough will need 3 sets of stretches and folds during bulk fermentation where the first set starts after 30 minutes into bulk fermentation and the subsequent sets are at 30-minute intervals. During the first set of stretches and folds, add the olives and herbs as you perform each stretch and fold. After the third set of stretches and folds, let the dough rest, covered, for the remainder of bulk fermentation. - Divide and Preshape (6:00 p.m.)
Lightly flour your work surface and scrape out your dough. Using your bench knife, divide the dough in half. Lightly shape each half into a round shape. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes, uncovered. - Shape (6:40 p.m.)
Shape the dough into a round (boule) or oval (batard) and roll in the whole wheat bran to the top, if desired. Then, place the dough in proofing baskets. - Proof (7:00 p.m. to 9:00 a.m. the next day)
Cover proofing baskets with reusable plastic and seal shut. Then, place both baskets into the refrigerator and proof overnight. - Bake (The next day, bake at 9:00 a.m.)
Preheat your oven with a baking surface or combo cooker/Dutch oven inside to 450°F (230°C).When the oven is preheated, remove your dough from the fridge, score it, and transfer it to the preheated baking surface or combo cooker. Bake for 20 minutes with steam. After this time, vent the steam in the oven or remove the lid (you can keep it in the oven or remove it) and continue to bake for 30 minutes longer. When done, the internal temperature should be around 204°F (95°C).
Let the loaves cool for 2 hours on a wire rack before slicing.
Notes
- Instead of Castelvetrano olives, use Frescatrano or any other pitted green olive
Green Olive and Herb Sourdough Bread FAQs
I don’t have Castelvetrano olives; can I use another type of olive for this sourdough bread?
Yes! I like to stick to green olives for this loaf, and any green olive will work well mixed into the dough.
This green olive and herb sourdough bread was very slack, and the dough was hard to handle. What happened?
Try reducing the hydration of the dough a little next time. For example, instead of adding all of the reserved water, only add it in during mixing if the dough can handle the addition.
What’s Next?
For another herb-forward loaf, check out my apricot and thyme sourdough bread that’s 50% whole wheat!
Or, if you have more green olives after making this bread, use them in my sourdough green olive filoncini—kind of like (easy) Italian baguettes that are twisted!
58 Comments
Final proofing at room temperature for two and a half hours worked superbly well and sped up the process immeasurably.
Glad to hear that, Fred!
I’m currently making the Mediterranean rosemary olive. Can I add garlic to this loaf and how much and how would i prepare the garlic?
This is such a fantastic recipe! My wife and momma insist on kalamata olives, so I half the volume of Castelvetrano olives and everyone is happy. Love it!
Overcoming my husband's strong, and my milder, dislike for olives – and trusting your recipe – I baked a loaf of Green Olive & Herb Sourdough today (using green snack olives from Trader Joe's). My baking time, in a Dutch oven, was 10 minutes shorter (20/20). The bread turned out very nice (and hole-y), and tasted great with rosemary ham. Now we know that even haters like olives baked into bread 🙂
This bread is so good Thanks @maurizioleo:disqus Even have good oven spring on this one. Left out second water & added 25 grams more flour during the mix & it worked! Used Castelvetrano olives & herbs provence as in the recipe & micro-planed CaraCara orange zest into that mixture for a little more brightness A keeper Also made those incredible SD starter biscuits this week–fantastic
Bruh. This was a banger. Wish I could submit a pic. All the love! Thanks for all your work!!! xox
So happy to hear that, Jaimie! I love this recipe, too 🙂
Is there a recipe for just one loaf or just cut the ingredients in half? Can I bulk fermentation for 48 hours?
Just divide all the ingredients in half! That's far too long of a bulk fermentation unless you're doing it in the fridge, it'll overproof!
Great recipe. My wife tasted the first loaf, squealed loudly, and demanded I marry her.😆 I added 22% spelt to the recipe and made two large batards.
Haha, you have a winner there, Glenn 🙂 Love the addition of spelt, one of my fav grains (if not my fav).
You state, in your sourdough-olive-bread article, that you rinse and dry the olives before using, but elsewhere imply that adding olive brine to the dough will intensify the olive flavor. Would you please elaborate? Thank you.
Thomas, you’re right, most of the brine is washed off! However, I find the flavor still permeates the olives, and then finally the bread. So while there’s not a massive addition of the brine, I still detect the flavor!
I’m making this recipe tomorrow. My go to is the sesame sunflower loaf, but I want try this one and then the chocolate cherry bread.
My question is: why do you add honey only to some recipes? Does it has any other function other than flavor?
And another question: I see you always give the option to use AP or Bread Flour, would like to know also what would be the difference?
Thank you for sharing your knowledge!
Awesome! Flavor/sweetness, but it’s also a boost to fermentation if used in small percentages. I typically like to use AP flour and only use Bread Flour when I need extra strength in a dough (like if it has many inclusions or enrichments). I find using too much BF can result in a loaf that’s too chewy and in some cases gummy.
I have made and remade several of your loaves and like all of them but so far this is my favorite. Thanks for the step by step guides they are extremely helpful, especially the folding technique.
So happy to hear you like this loaf! I’m a sucker for salty, briny olives in bread 🙂
I love this recipe.This time I included some cubed parmigiano reggiano, which gives another depth of richness!
Thanks for the recipe, @maurizioleo:disqus !
Hey, that’s a fantastic idea, Mathieu!
Thank you for your recipes. Like your blog. I learned to bake bread according to youe recipes and everything always worked out. You expleain everything in great detail that it is simply impossible not to learn how to bake. Sorry for my English.
Thank you, Anna! Happy to hear my site has helped 🙂 Sorry for the late reply.
My crumb looks a bit tighter than the one on your picture. After cold proofing, I noticed that the loaves collapsed a bit while I was scoring them. Is this an indication of over proofing? I am still trying to find the proper time to stop bulk fermentation.
Yes, I feel like it probably over proofed on you!
Hi Maurizio, and thank you for getting me hooked on the sourdough obsession, now over a year ago. Why are you using AP flour in this particular recipe?
Was going for more tenderness and a softer crumb instead of using a high percentage of high-protein flour, which can bring toughness and a bit of chew.
Am I reading this correctly: the dough doesn’t need to come to room temp before baking?
Thanks!
That’s correct Tracy, straight to oven from fridge.
Hi Maurizio,
I’ve been referencing TPL for techniques and basic info for a while now, and it’s an amazing resource! This recipe is the first one of yours that I’m actually doing start to finish just as written, and the first attempt last weekend came out amazing! Second attempt is in bulk fermentation right now… One thing isn’t clear to me: mixing in the salt and last bit of water AFTER the slap and folds feels weird. The dough is already really nice and cohesive, and it’s tough to “mix in” the salt and water. What’s your recommended technique? I used the scraper the first time, and my fingers this time, still seems wrong, like it’s tearing up and working the dough more than it should (though I got a good result last time). Would love to know how you do it. Thanks!!
Happy my site has helped, Even! You can add the salt with everything at the beginning if you’d prefer, it will make things easier. Adding salt later will make strengthening the dough take longer (salt is an antioxidant, which prevents the dough from strengthening as fast), but it’s totally fine. Either way, you’ll get the same end goal, it might just take a few more mins if you add salt earlier (the tradeoff is, as you’ve said, an easier time working in the salt).
Personally, I do it both ways, depending on the dough and how much time I have 🙂
Thanks, Maurizio! FYI, I’ve now made your Whole Wheat Sourdough Sandwich Bread a few times (also fantastic!) and you’re explicit there about how to mix in the salt later: “Pinch through a few times and fold the dough over itself to help incorporate.” This instruction really clicked for me and I’ve been doing it that way–works great! This morning working on your seeded whole wheat sourdough for the first time. 🙂 Thanks!
P.S. Been adding a mix of flax and sunflower seeds, lightly toasted, to that sandwich bread–awesome!
If I house a round banetton, do I also use a 10 inch?
Yes, I’d go with 10″ round.
How would to describe the end of bulk fermentation in per cent of rise – 20%, 25%, 50%? Thank you Maurizio.
My guess would be 30%-ish.
This is the best loaf I’ve ever made. The only change I made was to use kalamata olives instead of the green olives. It comes out perfect every time. Thank you for this recipe and the guidance.
Ah so glad to hear this, Denise! Kalamata will work very well, they’re something I swap in often as well.
Any thoughts about a whole wheat version, with higher whole wheat percentage? What changes would need to be made with regards to hydration, fermentation time etc? Thanks
Dear Maurizio, many thanks for this wonderful recipe! I made this loaf with 100% whole wheat, increased the hydration up to 82%, fermentation time was 4-5 hour due to 22 C. The bread is really delicious, has unusual flavour, but a little as hay because of too much bran and dry herbs of course. Next time I’ll try with 30% whole wheat and compare the result.
Right on, that sounds great!
Would work really well! You’l have to adjust the hydration, most likely up, to suit the whole grain flour. The fermentation schedule might be decreased as well, depending on how much you add.
I live in Santa Fe which is a little higher than Abq. Should I change the temp of my oven or cook for longer? I did read on the post you sent for high altitude that you could both just not at the same time. Thanks.
For you, I’d probably just increase the bake time as needed. You can do both, but it’s easier to just change one variable at a time, I find. Any of the recipes here at my site will work well for you, Martha!
Check out my guide to high altitude baking for more tips and happy baking!
I would like to keep this recipe as one larger loaf instead of splitting in two. Do you think there is a problem with that? Thanks!
Hey, Claire. That’ll work, just be sure when you’re baking you extend the bake time as necessary—a single, large loaf will take longer to bake than two smaller ones.
Thanks! It’s going into the oven in an hour! I didn’t have the full amount of green olives, so I put in about 80 grams of caperberries (the large ones). Fingers crossed!
Ahh the anticipation 🙂 Let me know how it turns out!
I turned out really great. I will send you a photo through instagram messages.
Awesome, Claire! Can’t wait to take a look.
Maurizio, baked the green olive, herb bread twice now, both times a 5 out of 5 star,
It was terrific plain and both with a 7 year white cheddar and a spreadable pecorino romano.
Specifically what cheeses and meats have you enjoyed with this bread?
So glad to hear that, Hall! Those cheeses sound wonderful. I’ve had this with grated parmesan (which, IMO, goes with just about everything) and I’ve also enjoyed it with Kerrygold Skellig, which is a very intense cheddar cheese. I also cubed this bread up and served it on a cheese board with a variety of hard meats like salami and thinly sliced prosciutto—was a huge hit!
I added 4 strips of bacon, chopped, to the dough. Didn’t have Herbes de Province, so I used Trader Joe’s 21 Seasonings Salute. It was delicious!
Bacon! Amazing. That sounds delicious 🙂
This sounds like a fabulous bread! We love olive bread and wondered if you’ve tried subbing some brine in place if water to enhance the olive flavor — and reducing some salt in the recipe? Thanks for all your great recipes, insights and help!
Thanks, Janet! I haven’t tried this, but it should work just fine. I’d start conservatively with the brine, see how it goes, then work it up. The only issue I’d see is the salt content of the brine is unknown, so, like you said, you’ll have to adjust the salt of the dough. It’ll be delicious!
I definitely am going to try this. It looks great. What would be the disadvantage of using higher protein bread flour since this is what I have?
Thanks, Mary! That should work just fine. You might be able to increase the hydration a bit, but definitely only do so if the dough feels like it can handle it—this dough is already a little on the wet side.