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Black Olive and Olive Oil Bread

DIRECTIONS

In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm milk and set aside until it begins to foam, 10 to 15 minutes.
Place the 3-3/4 cups flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Add the onion, mint, 1/3 cup olive oil, salt, olives, and yeast mixture to the well. Using your hands, mix together the ingredients until they form a ball.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface. Knead until smooth and somewhat spongy, 10 to 15 minutes. Gather the dough into a ball and place in a large oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and set aside in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
Punch down the dough and turn out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead lightly and divide in half. Knead and fold each half into a small, tapered oval loaf that is wide at the center. Using a sharp knife, make a lengthwise slit down the center of each loaf. Transfer the loaves onto an inverted baking sheet (so they will easily slide off when ready to bake), cover with a damp kitchen towel, and let rise in a warm spot for about 2 hours.
Place a pizza stone (or 2 stones if you have them) in the middle of an oven and preheat to 450 degrees F for 30 minutes. Sprinkle the stone(s) with cornmeal. Slide a risen loaf onto the hot stone (or 1 loaf onto each stone). Reduce the heat to 400 degrees F and bake until the crust is a rich brown and crisp, 30 to 35 minutes. The crust will be tender with a pleasant crunch, and the interior will be moist. Transfer to a wire rack to cool, and repeat with the second loaf if you only have 1 stone.