Olive Rolls
There aren't many things in life that I love more than my mom, and there aren't many things in life that my mom loves more than olive rolls. Were you expecting me to end that sentence a different way? We could also end it with "me", but that doesn't do much for the intro paragraph, now does it?
For a late Mother's Day surprise, I decided to *try* to recreate the olive rolls from a bakery up in northeastern Pennsylvania, near my mom's hometown! (For anyone wondering, it's The Flour Shop – get it? – in Bethlehem PA.) I swear those rolls changed her life the first time she tried them. Ever since then, each time she takes a trip home, she tries to work in a little time to swing by The Flour Shop. It's a great tradition, but it's a shame she has to drive about 3-4 hours up the road for one of her favorite foods!
While I'm sure my olive rolls aren't quite as good, they're definitely made with more love, and besides – she's my mom! As a rule, she's a fan of everything I make. Just earlier this year, I was in the process talking her into throwing out most of my elementary school "art" she saved (side note: I am turning 28 this year). I think the rolls will go over just fine.
To get started, I used my go-to bread recipe with some tiny tweaks, and then I did a little bit of guessing for the olive filling. I decided to go with a mediterranean mix of olives – kalamata, manzanilla, and queen – and to keep it simple, I just included a couple other ingredients. I added a little red pepper for a kick I recall noticing in the olive rolls my mom loves, and a little garlic, because I'm Italian and everything is better with garlic.
If you're not a fan of olives, these rolls may not exactly be your cup of tea, and that's okay. They don't have the same mass-appeal as most of the other recipes I share! But I like sharing pieces of my family and our culture, and as Italians, olives are obviously a part of it.
OLIVE ROLLS
Prep Time: ~2½ hours, including time for dough to rise
Bake Time: 22 minutes
Makes 8-10 rolls
Ingredients
Bread:
2¼ cups warm water ¼ cup sugar
2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast 1 tablespoon salt 2½ tablespoons olive oil 5 - 5½ cups all-purpose flour
Olive mix:
½ cup, heaping, whole olives
1 small clove garlic OR ½ t minced garlic
⅛ - ¼ t red pepper flakes
1 t olive oil
Directions
Prepare a clean cutting-board or counter space with flour, and oil a medium size bowl. Prepare two cookie sheets with parchment paper or baking mats. Set aside.
If you haven't heated your water yet, heat it in a glass measuring cup for about 1 - 1½ minutes in the microwave. It needs to be very warm, but not too hot, in order for the yeast to work.
BREAD: Pour your warm water into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar until it's mostly dissolved – this will help the yeast bloom – then add your yeast, stirring as you go. Let the bowl sit for about 5 minutes, until the yeast is foamy. If it doesn't bloom, start over, as this may mean it won't work to leaven your bread.
Add the salt and oil to the mix, then add four cups of your flour and mix thoroughly. Add the rest of the flour a half cup at a time so that you don't end up with dry dough. The ideal consistency will be a very slightly sticky, rubbery dough that seems torn between whether to stick to the rest of the dough or to the walls of your bowl.
Transfer the dough to the floured space/board. Sprinkling flour over it as needed so that it doesn't stick too much to your hands, knead the dough for 5 minutes until it looks smooth. Roll it into a ball, place in the oiled bowl, and cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let it rise for about an hour, or until it's doubled in size.
OLIVE MIX: While you're waiting on the dough to rise, prepare the olive mix. Do a small-to-rough chop with your olives, removing the pits if they aren't already pitted. Place them in a small bowl. Mince your garlic if it hasn't already been minced, and add to the bowl. Finish the mix by adding in the red pepper flakes (to taste) and a small drizzle of olive oil. Set aside.
FINISHING: After the dough has risen, place it back on the floured space/board. Divide the dough into 8-10 equal parts, depending on how large you'd like each roll to be. Gently press each piece of dough out into a long oval, about 6 inches in length. Spread about 2 teaspoons of the olive mix on the dough, then roll it up. Place on the prepared cookie sheet and repeat with each piece of dough, leaving a few inches between rolls.
Cover the prepared rolls and let them rise for about 45 minutes, preferably in a warm area. Preheat your oven to 375F. After your rolls have risen, place them in the oven for about 20-22 minutes. When they're done, the tops may not look dark, but the bottoms will be, so be careful to not overbake them! (I let this first batch go a bit too long and adjusted the bake time in the recipe here – before you go over 22 minutes, check the bottoms!)
Happy Eating,
Natalie