Serves: 1 long cake cast Preparation time: 20m Cooking time: 50m Ready in: 70m
Ingredients
50ml of olive oil
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup of whole wheat flour
2 tsp. baking soda, briskly
1 tsp salt
½ tsp. Fresh dry oregano, crumbled
½ tsp. fresh dry thyme, grated
300ml of milk
a little additional flour on the surface to be kneaded
2 tablespoons of sesame seeds, for sprinkling
Process
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease a moderately elongated cake cast with 2 tablespoons of olive oil
Step 2
Add the two flours, baking soda, salt, oregano and thyme in a bowl and stir well.
Step 3
Make a hole in the middle and pour the milk and the remaining olive oil. Stir in circular motions with your hands until the ingredients come together and gradually form a dough. If the dough is too firm, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk or water. If it is wet and muddy, add a little more all-use flour.
Step 4
Knead the dough with your fists, for 5-6 minutes, until it softens up and becomes smooth and supple, sprinkling it with a little flour from time to time to prevent it sticking to your hands.
Step 5
Give the dough an oblong shape and transfer it into the cake cast. Make sure it’s firmly applied against the walls. Alternatively, cover the bottom of a round baking pan with wax paper of 24cm diameter, shape the dough like bread and place it in the pan, pulling on it gently to cover the bottom.
Step 6
With the tip of the knife, make three to four oblique, shallow cuts on the surface of the dough and sprinkle it with sesame seeds. Bake it for 45-50 minutes, until the bread rises and browns up nicely.
Step 7
Remove the cast from the oven, let the bread cool for 10 minutes and take it off the cast. Leave it on a grill to “breathe” from the bottom and keep it from dirtying up, until it cools off completely.