Recipe: Easy Fluffy Pull-Apart Garlic Bread

I love it when I find a recipe that is relatively straightforward to follow and just works. No fuss, no odd taste - just pure family goodness. That is exactly what happened when I tried this recipe - my kids devoured it within minutes, and I forwarded it to my close girlfriends with sheer excitement of finding an easy bread recipe, because there is something about homemade bread that feels so wholesome, and yet the concept of making homemade bread also feels somewhat daunting. So when you find a recipe as good as this, it's worth sharing.

For the dough you will need:

• 600g of All-Purpose Flour
• 14g of dry yeast (if you have fresh yeast use 42g)
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• 50ml olive oil (or any oil of choice)
• 350ml lukewarm water

For the filling you will need:

• 5 garlic cloves
• 30g fresh herbs (thyme, oregano, parsley, basil and rosemary)
• 125g soft butter
• salt & pepper

Method:

1. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, and salt. In a jug, combine lukewarm water and crumbled fresh yeast, stirring until fully dissolved.
2. Pour the yeast mixture and olive oil into the dry ingredients and stir until a sticky dough forms. Cover with a damp towel or cling film and let rest for 10 minutes.
3. With wet hands, stretch and fold one edge of the dough into the center. Repeat on the remaining three sides. Cover and rest for another 10 minutes.
4. Repeat the fold-on-four-sides process once more, then cover and let the dough rise for 1 hour.
5. While the dough rises, finely chop the herbs and garlic. Mix them with softened butter, salt, and pepper to create a spreadable paste. Set aside at room temperature.
6. Prepare your baking pan by greasing it or lining it with parchment paper.
7. After 1 hour, do one final round of folding on the dough, cover, and let it rise for another hour.
8. Transfer the risen dough to a lightly floured surface and roll it into a rectangle about 1.5 cm (½ inch) thick. Spread the butter mixture evenly on top.
9. Cut the dough into 8 cm (3 inch) wide strips, fold each strip like an accordion, and place upright in the baking pan, buttered side up, snugly fitting them together.
10. Preheat the oven to 200°C (392°F) and bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown. Serve warm or let cool before enjoying.