Monday, November 24, 2014

Kalamata Olive & Oregano Loaf

Kalamata Olive & Oregano Loaf 3

Since becoming a member of Secret Recipe Club*, I've discovered some great, previously unknown to me blogs, and one blog which became a firm favourite right from the start was Karen's Kitchen Stories.

Karen lives in Southern California;  works in recruitment and teaches part time;  has two grown children and two grandchildren;  and has an obsession with baking bread - sourdough in particular - which is immediately obvious when you visit her blog.

Karen's recipe index (and hats off that she actually has one, which in itself elevates her blog to "favourite" status in my books) boasts no less than 182 recipes under the heading "Bread, Flatbread, Yeasted Crackers, and Rolls" - yes, I did actually count them, which may or may not speak volumes about my own obsessiveness.  Put together the recipes under the headings of "Cakes & Cheesecakes", "Cookies, Brownies & Bars",  and "Cupcakes & Muffins", and I'm pretty sure you would find another 180 recipes.  Clearly this woman is a baking Goliath.

Since I am most definitely not, as I have told you before many times, a proficient baker, when I was assigned to Karen's blog for this month's SRC reveal I was both thrilled (a challenge is always exciting) and terrified in equal measure.

Although I don't have a particularly deft touch for making bread, having a go at making sourdough is one of those things which has been on my cooking challenge bucket list for a long time.  There's no question that if making sourdough bread (or any kind of bread) is on your path, Karen's blog would be a fantastic place to start, and within a couple of hours of getting my assignment I'd bookmarked several recipes that I thought would make the shortlist:  No Knead Chocolate Cherry Pecan Bread, Golden Raisin and Fennel Sourdough Pocket Bread, San Francisco Sourdough Bread, and Sourdough Rosemary Bread with Olive Oil.

The only problem is that making sourdough bread requires a certain amount of planning, and with a whole lot of other life stuff getting in the way around our house at the moment, the requisite planning to produce these wonderful breads just hasn't been there.  And then salvation presented itself under the heading of "Quickbreads" - definitely a little better suited to my lifestyle at the moment, although I'm still promising myself that when life slows down a little I will be trying my hand at one of those sourdough loaves.

Kalamata Olive & Oregano Loaf 1

The recipe for Kalamata Olive & Oregano Mini Loaves just about leapt out of the screen at me.  I didn't have any of the cute little mini loaf tins that Karen does, but the recipe did provide for preparing one large loaf as an alternative.  I could do that.  I also happened to have all the ingredients required on hand - except for buttermilk, which can easily enough be made at home by mixing one cup of milk with a tablespoon of lemon juice and letting it stand for 10 minutes.

Karen's original recipe included an onion, lightly sauteed in olive oil before mixing into the batter, which I omitted as I'm just not a huge fan of onions and especially not in baked goods.  Other than that I pretty much followed the recipe exactly.

This loaf has a wonderfully light and moist texture, and the brininess of the olives really shines here.  This is definitely a loaf I would make again.  It is so bursting with flavour that it actually needs no accompaniment, but it would nevertheless be a great "bread" to include with an antipasto platter, or to serve alongside your favourite soup.  I would definitely make this again, and I think a sprinkling of Parmesan over the top might be a nice change-up too.

Kalamata Olive & Oregano Loaf 2

Kalamata Olive & Oregano Loaf Recipe
from Karen's Kitchen Stories

198g (7 oz) all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk
30g (1 oz) butter, melted
2x large eggs
1 cup pitted and chopped kalamata olives
large handful fresh oregano leaves, finely chopped plus extra for sprinkling on loaves

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C (350 degrees F).  Grease and flour a 22cm x 12cm (9 in x 5in) loaf tin.

Sift together flour and baking soda into a large bowl, and mix in the salt.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, melted butter and eggs.

Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients.  Pour the buttermilk mixture into the well and stir until only just combined.  Fold in the olives and oregano.

Pour the mixture into the prepared loaf tin and sprinkle the tops with more chopped oregano.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.  Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes in the tin before transferring to a cooling rack and serving.

*  So what's this Secret Recipe Club I've been talking about?  The club has over a hundred members, divided into four groups, and each month one member is assigned (in secret) to another member from their group.  That person then selects a recipe (or more) to make, photograph, and prepare a blog post - all in secret.  Then everyone in the group posts their recipe on the same day, and of course the secret is then out.  It's a always a thrill to find out who has posted something from your own blog, and to meet and discover some new blogs.   If you are a food blogger and interested in joining the Secret Recipe Club, be sure to check out the Join SRC page.

I hope you enjoy this dish as much as I did, and visit the links below to check out all the other great dishes my Secret Recipe Club friends made.





39 comments:

  1. A delicious loaf. This would be a hit on the holiday table. Catherine xo

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    1. Thanks, Catherine - yes, it would be. It keeps really well, so you could even make it a couple of days in advance if you wanted to.

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  2. Karen is absolutely the Queen of Breads! I could spend a month with her site and bake something new and delicious everyday. I love olive bread - I buy it whenever I see it, and love buttermilk breads. Pinning to try this one!

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    1. Susan, you are absolutely right - Karen is definitely the Queen of Breads. I am just in awe of her. Hope you enjoy this loaf :-)

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  3. Sue, I can't believe you actually counted up my bread recipes. Clearly, I have a problem! Or maybe an obsession! I'm glad you liked this bread, and am amazed you had fresh oregano handy! I'm honored by your post. And your photos are beautiful.

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    1. Karen, it might actually be a little bit "sad" that I counted all the bread recipes - but that's a pretty impressive output on your part. Surely you have a book in the making :-)

      Only planted my oregano a couple of weeks ago, but it's really flourishing, and the flavour of the fresh stuff is wonderful

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  4. Oh I hear you about life stuff getting in the way! Looks like you found a pretty tasty solution though ;D I adore olives so this sounds just brilliant. Wonderful pick this month. (oh I'm amazed by Karen's bread recipe collection every time!)

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    1. Thanks, JJ - if you're an olive lover, you will really enjoy this bread. Karen's bread collection is staggering, isn't it?!

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  5. Looks heavenly! Reminds me of the bread my hubby and I had on our honeymoon! Lovely choice for the SRC! :D

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    1. Thanks, Kelly. I love the way food so often evokes such wonderful memories.

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  6. What a lovely loaf of bread. My husband is a olive lover and would devour this bread. Happy Reveal Day!

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    1. Thanks, Emily. This would definitely be a winner with any serious olive lover :-)

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  7. Olive bread is so good - this one looks excellent!

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    1. Thanks, Alicia. I've only ever had yeast based olive breads before - this is a great alternative. Would be delicious made into muffins as well.

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  8. That loaf sounds AMAZING!! Great pick this month!

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    1. Thanks, Rebekah. It was a tough choice, but this proved to be a winner in my house.

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  9. That's a beautiful loaf of bread. Happy reveal day!

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    1. Thanks Lauren, and thanks for taking the time to stop by.

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  10. Look at how gorgeous that bread is! I don't know how you ate it - it's so pretty! :) Great pick for reveal day!

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    1. Thanks, Sarah - it is pretty - I think it's the extra sprinkling of oregano on top that makes it.

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  11. I really love savory loafs over sweet ones. This version is so perfect, great choice!

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    1. A woman after my own heart, Kim - I prefer savoury over sweet too.

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  12. This quickbread looks beautiful! I definitely need to make quick breads more often. Great pick this month!

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    1. Thanks, Tara - I'm a bit like that too - I often forget just how quick and easy quick breads are to put together. Zucchini season looms here, so maybe a few zucchini breads coming up :-)

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  13. Kalamatas are my FAVE and I LOOOVE olive breads. But they usually require yeast, which I am scared of. I LOOOOVE this quickbread version!! Definitely trying this!!

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    1. Jess, I had only ever had yeast based olive breads before, too. This one is a breeze to make by comparison.

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  14. I would probably polish that whole loaf off myself in one sitting. It looks fantastic! Great pick this month :)

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    1. Thanks, Melissa - it certainly is very tempting to keeping cutting off "just one more slice", then another, and another :-)

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  15. I am a huge olive lover...this bread got my attention right away!!

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    1. Wendy, this bread would definitely be a huge hit with any olive lover :-)

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  16. ALL my favourite ingredients in a loaf of bread, yes, that's my kind of recipe! Karen

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    1. Olives, fresh herbs, bread - what's not to love :-) Thanks for stopping by.

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  17. I just love Karen's blog, do not recall seeing this quick bread on it though, will be making, looks delicious!

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    1. Thanks, Cheri. Karen's blog is lovely, isn't it?! I feel very lucky to have been assigned to here this month.

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  18. I love this kind of savory bread! Yum! Hubby doesn't care for black olives, but that's no problem b/c then there's more for me LOL! Great SRC selection.

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    1. Dena, I can totally relate - my partner doesn't like olives either = equals one whole loaf of olive bread all for me :-)

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  19. A fantastic quick bread, Sue. I love it's loaded with olives.

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  20. This is a very simple recipe, I really like it. The processes are easy and the ingredients are simple. I guess we can have varying flavors by just adding some other ingredients like raisin or berries. And this is perfect for breakfast or teatime. :)

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  21. Love, love LOVE Karen's blog, and you picked one of my favorite flavors to play with this month: black olives...

    I am quite late to say hi, but as they say, better late than never!

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