Ingredients

Makes 1 loaf

• 300g all-purpose flour
• 4g (about 1¼ tsp) instant dry yeast or dry yeast (need to activate yeast in warm water)
• 20g (about 1½ tbsp) sugar
• 5g (1 tsp) salt
• 210ml warm water (~35°C)
• 20g (1½ tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
• Vegan butter to brush the top of the freshly baked loaf (I use Nuttelex Olive spread)

Steps

1. Activate yeast

• Prepare a large mixing bowl.
• Pour warm water into bowl and dissolve sugar.
• Add yeast to warm sugar water and mix.
• Cover bowl with cling wrap or plate and leave for ~10 minutes or till the yeast forms a creamy foam on the surface of the water.
  *If no foam is seen, your yeast has expired or the water was too hot.

2. Mix dough

• Add flour and salt to the same bowl and mix till all the flour is incorporated.
• At this point, the dough doesn’t need to look smooth.

3. Add the olive oil

• Pour in the olive oil and mix again until everything is combined.
• The dough will be slightly sticky—but that’s okay!

4. Rest the dough (20 mins)

• Cover bowl with cling wrap and let the dough rest for 20 minutes. Resting allows the gluten network to relax, making the dough more pliable. It also helps to fully hydrate the flour.

5. Knead dough till smooth

• After the 1st rest, the dough will be less sticky to the touch and is easier to work with now.
• Knead the dough till smooth. Shape it into a ball and place it in the bowl.
• Cover the bowl with cling wrap.

6. Let the dough rise (1 hour)

• Set it in a warm place and let it rise for about 1 hour, until doubled in size.

7. Shape the dough

• Lightly flour your hands and working surface to prevent dough from sticking to your hands.
• Gently deflate the dough and shape it into a ball.

8. Divide the dough & rest (15 mins)

• Use a dough cutter to divide dough into 3 equal parts.
• Shape into 3 balls.
• Cover with cling wrap or towel to prevent dough from drying out and leave it to rest for 15 minutes.

9. Shape the dough (part I)

• With a rolling pin, roll out each dough ball into an oval shape.
• Fold the oval dough in thirds lengthwise. It should look like a long rectangle now. Repeat with remaining dough balls.

10. Shape the dough into rolls (part II)

• Start with the first dough ball you folded into a rectangular shape. This dough would’ve rested the most while you were working on the remaining two oval dough.
• Roll the dough up, making sure the dough is taut and has surface tension as you roll. Pinch the edges to seal the roll.

11. Place the dough rolls into loaf pan & let it rise (1 to 1.5 hours)

• Place the dough rolls into a greased loaf pan (about 8×4 inches size).
• Leave a gap between each dough roll to allow for space to rise.
• Cover loaf pan with cling wrap or towel.

• When the dough rolls have risen, it should look like this:

12. Preheat the oven

• When the dough has almost finished rising, preheat your oven to 170°C.

13. Bake (25–30 minutes)

• Bake until the top is golden brown and the bread sounds hollow when tapped.

14. Optional: Butter the tops of the freshly baked loaf

• Brush with vegan butter on top if you like it soft and shiny.
• Finish off with Maldon sea salt flakes.

15. Cool and enjoy!

• Let it cool for 10–15 minutes before slicing.