Every couple weeks or so, we send out a little roundup of new recipes, techniques, and tutorials that we’ve recently posted on the site. Occasionally we announce exclusive giveaways to newsletter subscribers as well. We won’t spam you with ads or share or sell your email address. Every email we send has a 1-click unsubscribe link if you decide it’s not for you.
Olive and Walnut Sourdough Spelt Bread
Green olives and toasted walnuts make a wonderful pairing especially against this backdrop of spelt whole grain flour, fresh thyme, and sourdough leavening. This bread is like a fancy hors d’oeuvre in a convenient package. Enjoy a slice or three on their own or take the experience even farther by toasting and buttering it, dipping it in olive oil, or topping it with cured meats like proscuitto.
[Jump to recipe]
Toasted walnuts, castelvetrano olives, thyme
Spelt is a ancient wheat that adds a soft sweetness and nuttiness to this bread. You can change the flours that this recipe calls for as long as you keep in mind the water amount of the recipe might need to change and the stretching of the dough for the lamination step will be easier with some flours versus others. You can learn more about the thirstiness, strength, and flavors of different wheat varieties and flour types in this article.
Tasty and colorful crumb
This video demonstrates how to incorporate the olives, walnuts, and thyme into the dough via lamination. Waiting until the second round of gluten development to do this improves the strength of the dough and thus the crumb texture. Using lamination, rather than more mixing, further strenthens the dough and also helps distribute the additions evenly. Finally, doing the third and fourth round of gluten development, also shown in the video 1:52 and 2:35, further evens out the additions and strengthens the dough.
Make sure you also check out the Photo Gallery after the recipe to see more process pictures.
Olive and Walnut Sourdough Spelt Bread
The aroma and beautiful colors of this bread make it ideal for serving fresh from the oven with olive oil or other toppings. Green olives and toasted walnuts complement each other in a salty-nutty way, but you can play with different olives, nuts, and herbs too.
Ingredients
Dough
Additions
Instructions
Prep the additions
Mix and Ferment
Shape and Final Proof
Bake
Photo Gallery
Shopping List
Spelt Berries
Spelt Whole Grain Flour
High Protein Bread Flour
Sourdough Starter (Dry)
Mockmill 100 Grain Mill
Danish Dough Whisk — Large
Skinny Spatula
Wood Bread Board
Dough and Storage Bucket w/Lid – 2 qt. Square
Bench Knife by Lamson — Walnut Handle
Breadtopia Banneton — Oval
Oval Proofing Basket Liner
Breadtopia Hearth Baker
Stainless Steel Mixing Bowls — Set of 3
$39.99Olive and Walnut Sourdough Spelt Bread