I have a cookbook addiction. It’s bad. About every six months I have to weed through to see what’s a keeper and what I should donate to the library. I’m not a fan of clutter so I try to keep my bookshelf manageable. It’s backfired a few times and I have literally checked out my own former book from the library. But there are some books you just know you will never, ever give away. My Paris Kitchen by David Lebovitz is my new obsession. I got it as a birthday gift from one of my favorite friends and want to make everything in the book. One of the recipes is for salted olive crisps. I’ve made it a few times now, tweaking it a bit here and there to my liking. The original recipe calls for almonds in the crisps but I prefer walnuts. This week. It may change next week. But for now, let’s go with walnuts. The recipe is really in two parts. In the first part you bake the bread. The second part is after it cools, you slice it thinly and toast it to make little crisps. If you can’t wait, just stop at the first part. Warm olive walnut bread right from the oven is so good. I’ve decided the warm bread goes nicely with red wine and the crisps go nicely with white wine. Why? Because that’s how I ate them and loved them both times!!
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Use some non-stick spray on a loaf pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. (This makes it easy to slide the loaf out when it’s cooked.)
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, herbs, salt, baking soda, and black pepper. Roughly chop the walnuts and olives.
Make a little well in the center and then pour in the buttermilk. Stir to combine and then gently fold in the walnuts and olives.
Pour the batter into the greased loaf pan.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Use a toothpick to check the center. It’s ready when the toothpick comes out clean.
Let the bread cool for about 10 minutes, and then gently pry it out. Let it cool on a wire rack for about 20 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees.
Slice the bread to about 1/4″ thickness.
Lay the bread slices onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a Silpat mat. Bake slices for 15 minutes and then turn them, bake 15 minutes more. Keep an eye on them. You want them to be crispy but not burned.
Olive and Walnut Bread
Ingredients
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon herbs de Provence
½ teaspoon Kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
½ cup roughly chopped walnuts
1/3 cup roughly chopped Kalamata olives
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Spray a loaf pan with non-stick spray and line the bottom with parchment paper.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, herbs, salt, pepper, and baking soda.
Make a small well in the center and pour in the buttermilk.
Stir until combined and then fold in walnuts and olives.
Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 30 minutes.
Check the bread with a toothpick. It’s ready when the toothpick comes out clean.
Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
Gently release the bread from the pan and cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes.
Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees.
Slice the bread in ¼” pieces and lay flat on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a Silpat mat.
Bake at 325 degrees for 15 minutes and turn the slices over.
Bake another 15 minutes, keeping an eye on it.
- You want the crisps to be golden brown but not burned.