Olive bread with onion jam filling

To make the jam filling, warm the olive oil over a low heat. Stir in the onion, salt, bay leaves and rosemary. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 10 minutes.

Add the sugar and vinegar and cook gently, stirring from time to time until thick and the sugar has melted, about 30 minutes. Add the olives and season. Set aside to cool.

For the bread, place the flour in a bowl and make a well in the centre. Place the salt on the raised flour ridges. Pour tepid water into the well and sprinkle with the yeast. Leave for 5 minutes to soften. Stir to dissolve. Draw in enough flour to create a soft paste. Cover with a cloth and leave to sponge until bubbly and slightly puffed up, about 20 minutes. Add the olive oil and draw in the rest of the flour to make a rough dough. This is a sticky dough so try to resist working in too much extra flour as you knead (remember the golden rule of making bread: “wetter is better”).

On a lightly floured working surface, knead the dough for about 10 minutes. Put it back into the bowl, cover with a cloth and leave to double in size, about 1 hour 30 minutes.

Knock back the dough by pressing it with the palm of your hand. Roll it into a rectangular shape of about 30cm x 20cm. Spread the onion jam filling over the dough and roll it like a Swiss roll. Place the rolled dough on a generously floured baking tray. Press the dough down gently to flatten the bread slightly. Dimple the dough all over with your fingertips, making dents of about 1cm deep. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave to rise for 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 200°C.

Sprinkle the dough evenly with rosemary and salt. Bake until golden, crusty and hollow sounding when tapped underneath, about 45 – 60 minutes.

Transfer to a wire wrack and drizzle with olive oil. Serve warm with citrus marmalade, crispy pancetta and roasted vine tomatoes.