Pain aux Herbes de Provence (French herb bread) (vegan)

We use the Herbes de Provence blend in almost anything. It matches Mediterranean things like tomato sauce, mozzarella etc perfectly. But the same could be said about any thyme-basil mix. What makes the Herbes de Provence really special though is the lavender. It adds a subtle perfume and flavor that inject poetry into what you're consuming. 
This is classic French bread that makes a perfect frame for the herbs. Enjoy :)

P.S: The bread is so short of height not because it doesn't rise properly, but because we used a 1 kg loaf tin for only a 500 g bread. Don't worry about the rising, not only does it do it properly but you'll see it's puffy and delicious. :)

Last year: No cooking due to another kind of bun in the oven.



Ingredients (for a 500 g loaf):

• 470 g white flour 
• 210 ml lukewarm water
• 60 ml olive oil
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons Herbes de Provence
• 1 satchel dried yeast (7 g) (or 20 g - half a cube - of fresh yeast)

In a large bowl, put the olive oil and the Herbes de Provence:

Dissolve the sugar and yeast in the water. Let it sit for 15 minutes. Add them to the herb oil and mix:

Mix the flour with the salt and pour it over the liquids. Mix well until a even dough ball is formed (about 4-5 minutes).

Brush it with a few drops of extra oil. Let it rise at room temperature for one hour. When the time is up, punch the dough down (that means work it for another minute) and transfer it to a baking paper lined loaf tin:

Let it rise in the tin for another hour. When you're ready to bake it, preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Put it in and bake it for 40 minutes.
Take out, allow to cool a bit, slice and dig in! :)