WILD GARLIC PESTO BREAD

So far we have had Scones, Butter and Pesto all made with gorgeous foraged Wild Garlic but I promise this is the last of the wild garlic recipes.  The trouble was that I had all this lush pesto that I could not resist using some of it for bread.  I just love making bread and even though it takes a couple of hours, you're only really working for about 20 minutes, the rest of the time it does all the work itself.

I always make double the quantity because I think if you're going to go to the effort of making it, why not make lots.  I would say freeze it if it's too much but it never is and gets eaten pretty much before it's completely cooled.

When I made this batch, I doubled it and made a loaf and some rolls which I then split and spread with Wild Garlic Butter and topped with Pecorino before grilling for garlic bread.

500g Strong White Bread Flour

15g Yeast

320g Warm Water

2 tbsp Wild Garlic Pesto

Mix the flour, yeast and salt. Combine the water with the pesto and mix into the flour with a knife  to form a dough.  Knead it on a lightly oiled surface for 10 minutes till smooth. Now return the dough to the bowl and cover with a shower cap or cling film.  Rest for 1 hour till doubled in size.

Remove the dough from the bowl and 'knock back' to original size.  Form into your loaf shape or divide it into 12 pieces, they should weigh about 80g each.  Shape each one and leave to rest on a baking sheet or stone and cover with a tea towel.  Rest for a further hour to double again. Before baking, slash the tops with a sharp knife. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 200C