Paul’s Aunt Soulla showed me how to make this bread Learning to cook from our aunts and mothers can sometimes be a challenge as they have no set measurements and constantly say things like ‘oso sigosi’ which means ‘as much as it will take’ or ‘sto mati’ which roughly translated means ‘use your eyes to see if it looks ok’! Sometimes this can be exasperating, but it is always worth the effort as you will see from these breads.
Ingredients. Makes 8-10 large rolls
- 1 glass (150g) of pitted black olives, halved
- 2 large onions, finely diced a handful of dried mint leaves
- 5 glasses (1 kg) of plain flour, or unbleached village flour or wholemeal
- 1 glass (200ml) of olive oil
- a pinch of salt
- 4 heaped tsp of dried yeast
- olive oil for drizzling
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas 4. In a small bowl mix together the olives, onion and crumble in the mint, as much as you like. Drizzle on a little olive oil.
- Tip the flour into a large bowl together with the salt. Make a well in the centre and sprinkle in the yeast with just enough warm water to blend it into a paste. Then add the olive oil and enough warm water, around 2 glasses or 400ml, to work together, kneading until the dough is pliable. Now add the olive mix and knead in gently to distribute evenly.
- Shape into individual rolls each about the size of your palm and space out onto baking sheets so they have room to double in size. Leave in a warm place for about 45 minutes until risen then cook in the oven for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown and sound hollow when tapped on their base.
