Pull-apart wild garlic bread is soft and full of flavor, making the most of seasonal produce. It's a buttery, rich loaf, perfect for sharing!
Two of the things I love most are bread and wild garlic. Add butter generously, and you have the perfect loaf: a rich, savory wild garlic bread to celebrate the short season. And if youโve just picked more of this wonderful plant, have a look at the Wild Garlic Pesto or the Wild Garlic Soup.
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Other reasons to love this bread?
- Itโs pull-apart, which means fun. There is also no need to slice anything. Just tear a piece from the loaf and enjoy!
- It is incredibly full of flavor. Wild garlic is a superpower in terms of flavor, there is hardly any other herb that could keep up with it in this matter.
- It's so rich! It has butter, cheese, and pine nuts. The loaf is not for someone on a diet, but those ingredients make it incredibly delicious and comforting. And you will share itโthatโs the point of this kind of bread!
- It is perfect for a grill or potluck party, a picnic, or serving with a light spring/summer soup.
- If you like pull-apart bakes, try the Plum Bread, the Yeast Cake, or the Apple Bread.
What is wild garlic?
A perennial plant, also known as ramsons, buckrams, bear's garlic, bear leek, or wood garlic. It is made up of a bulb, with rather long stems, long leaves, and white flowers, it has an incredibly pungent smell and it tastes like garlic, but more delicate.
Although native to Europe and Asia, it grows throughout North America, in the Eastern half of the United States, and on the West coast. Depending on your area, its season is from April to June. You can pick it up in shady woods, hedgerows, marshlands, and fields.
When foraging for it, it is of vital importance that you can identify it correctly. Mistaking it for other plants, such as the Lilly of the Valley, might end in disaster. If you are not sure, just leave it and try to buy it in the supermarket or at the farmerโs market.
Read What to Do with Garlic for more information on picking and cleaning the plant.
As always, when foraging, be 100% sure that you are picking the right plant and that what you pick is safe to eat.
Recipe ingredients
Dough ingredients:
Dough: I used instant yeast, but active dry or, even better, fresh yeast is great as well. If using active or fresh yeast, you will have to proof it. See the instructions for more details. Dried parsley, but finely chopped fresh or frozen, is also fine.
Filling ingredients:
Mixed fresh or frozen herbs: whatever you like or happen to have. I had a frozen mix this time, but parsley and/or chives/dill are also fine.
Butter: salted or unsalted; just adjust the amount of needed salt accordingly. If the butter is salted, use a bit less salt for the filling.
Can I replace the wild garlic?
Of course. You can bake the loaf even if you donโt have access to ramsons or when they are out of season. Replace with the same quantity of fresh herbs, preferably a mixture. You can even add a bit of finely chopped spinach to bulk up the mixture.
How to make wild garlic bread?
How to make the yeast dough?
- If using active dry or fresh yeast, sprinkle or crumble it into a bowl. Add the lukewarm water and the sugar. Mix to dissolve the yeast, cover, and let stand for about 5 minutes or until foamy.
- I used instant yeast. In this case, mix flour and yeast in a large bowl or the bowl of the food processor.
- Add sugar, lukewarm water, eggs, salt, olive oil, dried parsley, and garlic powder.
- Knead in a stand mixer until the dough is smooth and doesnโt stick to the walls of the bowl anymore. Or knead for about 5-7 minutes with the hands until the dough is smooth and no longer very sticky. You might add 1-2 tablespoons extra flour when kneading, but donโt overdo it, the dough should remain soft.
- Turn the dough onto the working surface and form a ball.
- Grease a bowl with olive oil, and turn the dough ball into it to coat it all over. (1)
- Cover the bowl and let the dough rise in a warm place for about 1 hour until doubled in volume (2). If you used fresh yeast, the dough would probably rise quicker; keep an eye on it. The rising time also depends on the temperature in your kitchen.
How to make the herb filling?
- Make sure that the butter is soft at room temperature.
- Roast the pine nuts in a large pan without adding any fat. Stand by and shake the pan often; the nuts will burn quickly if unattended. Immediately transfer the nuts to a large plate and let them cool. (1,2)
- Rinse and dry the bearโs garlic leaves very thoroughly. Chop them finely. Chop the other herbs very finely as well. Set aside.
- Beat the butter with a hand mixer until creamy, about 1 minute. (1)
- Add wild garlic and herbs.
- Add salt, pepper, and grated garlic cloves. Mix well. (2)
How to form the bread?
- Butter a loaf tin of about 30 cm/ 12 inches. Set aside.
- Roll the dough onto a lightly floured surface. You should have a rectangle of about 45x32 cm/18x13 inches.
- Reserve about 1 tablespoon of the herb butter.
- Grate the mozzarella and the Parmesan. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the grated Parmesan. Set aside.
- Spread the remaining butter on the rolled dough. Place small heaps all over and use a tablespoon or your hands to spread it evenly. Using your hands is messy, but the warmth of your hands will help to spread the butter properly. (1)
- Sprinkle the dough with pine nuts and both cheese sorts. (2)
- Cut the dough into 3 even slices lengthwise. (1)
- Cut across into 5 slices, each slice should be about 9 cm/3.5-inch wide providing you rolled the dough as large as instructed above. You will now have 15 squares. (2)
- Form 3-4 piles by stacking the pieces over each other. Keep one last piece to close the loaf once itโs in the pan.
- Carefully lift the piles and arrange them in the prepared tin. Place the last piece at the end with the filling facing inside, so that you close the loaf.
- The pan will look very crowded now with the pieces all crowded on one side. Very gently arrange the pieces so that they snuggly fit into the loaf tin and fill it completely. (1)
- Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes. (2)
- In the meantime, preheat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius/ 430 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Turn the heat down to 170 degrees Celsius/ 340 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for another 10 minutes.
- Take out of the oven and dot the wild garlic bread with the reserved butter and sprinkle with the reserved Parmesan. (1)
- Bake for about 17-20 minutes more until cooked through and deeply golden. (2)
How to remove from the tin?
- Leave it for about 5 minutes.
- Run a small knife around the edges of the tin, releasing the bread from it. The bread will rise in the oven over the edges of the tin, and it might stick there.
- Transfer onto a wire rack and let cool slightly.
How to serve?
You can serve the bread warm from the oven, it is a dream!!! Or you can let it cool and serve it at room temperature, it tastes amazing as well.
The pull-apart herb bread is perfect for serving guests or for taking to a potluck party. I often make it when we grill in the garden and we have some other people coming over. It is so good, that many people will forget about the meat and sausages and just keep munching on the breadโฆ
Occasionally, I make it to serve with a simple soup like this or this.
How to store?
The pull-apart loaf is best on the day youโve baked it; it will be unbelievably soft and fluffy. However, it keeps well in a container or wrapped in a towel for another two days or so. It will be slightly set and a bit chewier, but you will still love it.
Iโve never tried freezing the leftovers (we never had any), but it should not be a problem to freeze them for up to 2 months. Wrap the loaf or the leftover slices in plastic foil and place them into freezer bags or containers.
Wild Garlic Bread
Ingredients
- Dough:
- 1 sachet of instant yeast 7 g/ 0.24 oz (Note 2)
- 500 g/ 1.1 lb./ 4 cups + tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 200 ml/ 6.7 fl.oz/ 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons lukewarm water
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 50 ml/ 1.7 fl.oz/ scant ยผ cup olive oil
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Filling:
- 120 g/ 4.2 oz/ ยฝ cup butter at room temperature (Note 3)
- 30 g/ 1 oz/ ยผ cup pine nuts
- 30 g/ 1 oz/ bunch wild garlic
- 4 tablespoons finely chopped mixed herbs Note 4
- 4 garlic cloves
- ยฝ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ยผ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 125 g/ 4.4 oz/ 1 ball mozzarella
- 50 g/ 1.8 oz/ ยฝ cup Parmesan
Instructions
Dough:
- Mix flour and yeast in a large bowl or the bowl of the food processor. (If using active dry or fresh yeast, see notes).
- Add sugar, lukewarm water, eggs, salt, olive oil, dried parsley, and garlic powder.
- Knead in a stand mixer until the dough is smooth and doesnโt stick to the walls of the bowl anymore.
- Or knead for about 5-7 minutes with the hands until the dough is smooth and no longer very sticky. You might add 1-2 tablespoons extra flour when kneading, but donโt overdo it, the dough should remain soft.
- Turn the dough onto the working surface and form a ball. Grease a bowl with olive oil, turn the dough ball into it to coat it all over. Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour until doubled in volume (Note 5).
Filling:
- Make sure that the butter is soft, at room temperature.
- Heat a large pan and roast the pine nuts. Shake the pan often, the nuts will burn quickly if unattended. Immediately transfer to a large plate and let cool.
- Rinse and dry the wild garlic very thoroughly. Chop finely. Chop the other herbs very finely as well. Grate the garlic cloves. Set aside.
- Beat the butter with a hand mixer until creamy, about 1 minute. Add wild garlic and herbs. Add salt, pepper, and grated garlic. Mix well.
Form:
- Butter a loaf tin of about 30 cm/ 12 inches, butter the edges as well, the dough will rise and it tends to stick there. Set aside.
- Roll the dough onto a lightly floured surface to a rectangle of about 45x32 cm/18x13 inches.
- Grate the mozzarella and the Parmesan. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the grated Parmesan. Reserve about 1 heaped tablespoons of the herb butter as well. Set aside.
- Spread the remaining butter on the rolled dough. Place small heaps all over and use a tablespoon or your hands to spread it evenly, the warmth of your hands will help to spread the butter properly.
- Sprinkle the dough with pine nuts and grated cheese.
- Cut the dough into 3 even slices lengthwise. Cut across into 5 slices, each slice should be about 9 cm/3.5-inch wide providing you rolled the dough as instructed above. You will now have 15 squares.
- Form 3-4 piles by stacking the pieces over each other. Keep one last piece to close the loaf once itโs in the loaf tin.
- Carefully, lift the piles and arrange them in the prepared tin. Place the last piece at the end with the filling facing inside, so that you close the loaf. The pan will look very crowded now with the pieces all crowded on one side. Very gently arrange the pieces so that they snuggly fit into the loaf tin and they fill it completely.
- Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes.
Bake:
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes.
- Turn the heat down to 170 degrees Celsius/ 340 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for another 10 minutes.
- Take out of the oven and dot the bread with the reserved butter. Sprinkle with the reserved Parmesan.
- Bake for about 17-20 minutes more until cooked through and deeply golden.
- Leave to rest for 5 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack. If the edges of the loaf stick to the tin, release them gently with a small knife.
Notes
- ALWAYS use a digital kitchen scale when baking, it guarantees for best results.
- OR 1 sachet active dry yeast (it weighs the same as instant) OR ยฝ cube/20 g/ 0.7 oz fresh yeast. If using active or fresh yeast, you will have to proof it. Sprinkle or crumble it in a bowl, add the teaspoon of sugar and the lukewarm water needed to make the dough. Cover and leave for about 5 minutes until foamy. Add the rest of the ingredients and knead the dough.
- Salted or unsalted. If using salted, add a bit less salt to the filling.
- Either fresh mixed herbs or a frozen mixture.
- If you used fresh yeast, the dough would probably rise quicker, keep an eye on it. The rising time also depends on the temperature in your kitchen.
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