Green Olive & Rosemary Artisan Bread
Published July 24, 2022 | Updated: April 17, 2024.
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NOTE: This recipe has been updated to include an additional step in which the dough is cold proofed in the refrigerator prior to baking.
Made with peppery, citrusy rosemary and crisp, buttery green olives with just a hint of warmth, this Mediterranean-inspired Green Olive & Rosemary Artisan Bread is chock full of fresh, robust flavours!
This green olive & rosemary loaf may just be the best reason I can think of to turn on your oven during the summer months. It’s perfectly chewy, herby and ideal for lighter summer meals and snack boards!
My No-Knead Olive Artisan Bread recipe is a reader favourite, and I’ve been asked so often whether it can be made with green olives that I decided to take some time this summer to really experiment with different types of olives and seasonings.
To be clear, this was not a tough assignment. I love olives in all forms – shapes, sizes, colours and flavours. For this recipe, I’ve used large, juicy green olives that have been marinated in olive oil lightly seasoned with crushed chilis to produce a crave-worthy rustic loaf.
Made with Castelvetrano olives.
Like my other no-knead overnight artisan bread recipes, this green olive & rosemary bread is a super easy bake that requires just 20 minutes of hands-on prep time to make.
How to Make Green Olive & Rosemary Artisan Bread in 5 steps
Mix the dough.
Cover and let it rise until it has doubled in size.
Shape your dough and dust with flour.
Cover and proof the dough in the fridge for 1 hour or as long as 24 hours.
Turn dough out onto parchment, score and bake.
Baking Schedule
Making this green olive & rosemary artisan bread is a two-day process where the bread is mixed and prepared on day one, cold proofed in the fridge overnight, then baked on day two.
This is what it looks like:
Saturday morning: Mix dough, cover and let rise.
Saturday afternoon or evening: Shape dough, cover and put it in the fridge.
Sunday morning, afternoon or evening: Remove dough from the fridge, turn it out, score it and bake!
Made with a mix of green and black olives.
5 More Reader Favourite Artisan Bread Recipes
Rosemary & Roasted Garlic Artisan
No-Knead Jalapeño Cheddar Artisan Bread
No-Knead Rosemary Parmesan Artisan
Easy Small Batch Ciabatta Rolls
We love this green olive & rosemary artisan bread served warm with a generous amount of good quality olive oil, paired with charcuterie or served alongside a saucy Shakshuka for Sunday brunch!
Green Olive & Rosemary Artisan Bread
Makes 1 loaf; prep time 18 hours.
You can find additional notes on steps, baking tools and tips for beginners here.
Ingredients:
1½ cups water (360 grams), room temperature (at or near 70°F/21°C)
1 teaspoon (3 grams) active dry yeast
3¼ cups (422.5 grams) bread or all-purpose flour, plus for more dusting
1 teaspoon (3 grams) kosher or fine sea salt (optional, see note)
1½ tablespoons (5 grams) rosemary, finely chopped
1½ cups (180 grams) pitted green olives (marinated in chili oil optional), dried and roughly chopped
Optional: Ground flaxseed for dusting (~1-2 tablespoons or 7-10 grams)
Instructions:
Add the yeast to the water and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. While the yeast is activating, whisk together flour, salt and rosemary in a large mixing bowl.
Add yeast mixture and olives to the bowl and mix just until combined. The dough should look a little sticky and stringy and there should still be a little flour around the edges of the bowl.
Cover and let rise somewhere warm (see note below) until it has doubled in size, about 8-10 hours.
Once the dough has doubled in volume, use your hands (or a dough scraper if you have one) to pull the dough out onto a floured surface. With floured hands, gently fold the dough into itself several times until a soft, flour-covered ball is formed. Seam side up, lift and place it into a flour dusted proofing bowl like this one. Dust with flour, cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour or as long as 24 hours. You can even leave it for as long as 48 hours at this point if you’re not able to bake it right away.
When you're ready to bake your bread, preheat oven to 450ºF (232ºC) with a Dutch oven or covered baking vessel inside the oven.
Uncover then invert the bowl to turn the dough out onto parchment paper seam side down. If needed, gently turn it with your hands and nudge it into the shape of a loaf. If using ground flaxseed, sprinkle several teaspoons across the top and sides and use your hands to gently press it into the loaf. Score the top with a razor blade or the tip of a sharp knife with a design of your choosing. This will allow steam to escape while it’s baking.
Once the oven is preheated, remove the Dutch oven from the oven and transfer the dough, still on the parchment, into the Dutch oven. Cover and bake for 30 minutes, then remove the cover and bake for 15-20 minutes more. Your bread will be done once the top is browned, and it sounds hollow when you tap the top.
Using parchment edges, lift bread from Dutch oven and transfer it to a wire cooling rack to let cool for up to an hour before slicing.
Notes:
Olives: Any olives will work in this recipe as long as they’re not stuffed and have had their pits removed. Just be sure to dry to them before adding them to the dough so they don’t alter the hydration content. This is easily done by laying them out between two paper towels or wrapping them in a dry kitchen towel.
Salt: Salt may be added or omitted according to preference and the type of olives you’ve selected for your loaf. The best way to know is to taste them first. If they’ve been soaked in a salty brine, you may want to forego the additional salt.
Seasoning: If you don’t have rosemary, thyme, sage, oregano and savoury are all delicious substitutes. Dried herbs may also be used if fresh herbs are not available.
Rise time and temperature: An ambient rise temperature somewhere between ~70º-75º/20º-23ºC is ideal but even high 60's/18º-19ºC should work if the dough is kept away from drafts. Note that rise times can vary based on temperature, environment and ingredients used. You will know your loaf is ready to bake when it has doubled in size, and this can take a minimum of 8 hours or as long as a full day.
Storage: This bread will keep well on the counter for up to 3 days and in the refrigerator for up to a week. Sliced bread will freeze well for up to 3 months.
