Cheese & Herb Bread

Hi there! I'm taking a little break to share with you this scrumptious 'bread' that I made for lunch with some girlfriends on the weekend. The recipe is from my beloved Belinda Jeffery Mix & Bake cookbook.

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups (335 g) plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/2 tsp dry mustard powder
60 g freshly grated parmesan
60 g chedder or good tasty cheese, grated
1/2 cup (75 g) stuffed olives, sliced
1/4 cup snipped chives
2 tsp thyme leaves or 1 tsp dried thyme
2 eggs
2 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/4 cups (310 ml) buttermilk
egg wash (optional), made from 1 egg yolk beaten with 2 tsp of water
extra thyme sprigs and sea salt, for topping

1. Preheat oven to 180 degree C. Butter a large loaf tin (about 23 x 13 x 6 cm) and dust it with flour, then set aside.

2. Put the flour, baking powder, bicarb, salt, pepper and mustard powder into a large bowl. Whisk together using a balloon whisk for 1 min. Add both of the cheeses, the olives, chives and thyme and stir them thoroughly together.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, then whisk in the oil and buttermilk until well combined. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and pour in the buttermilk mixture. Stir together until they form a thick, sticky batter. Scrape this into the prepared tin and smooth it out evenly. Optional: brush over the top with egg wash, then sprinkle some small thyme sprigs and sea salt onto the loaf.

4. Bake for 40-45 min or until a fine skewer inserted in the middle of the loaf comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 5 min then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool.

5. Best eaten slightly warm or at room temperature with soup. Any left over can be tighly wrapped and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.

It was quite tasty and the best part was I was able to use chives and thyme from my new herb garden. Here it is sitting happily on my window sill. Enjoy!