My First Attempt at Focaccia!
I made focaccia bread the other day for a 4th of July barbeque and while it wasn't perfect, the taste was undeniable.
I used a recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction, and it was one of the easiest recipes to follow. I brought it to my friend’s barbeque, and we ate it before the main course was even ready, oops!
Ingredients
Dough:
2 cups warm water - separate in to 1 cup + 1 cup
2 tsps granulated sugar
2 tsp instant yeast
1/4 cu extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp salt
5 cups flour
Toping:
5 tbsp oil
2 garlic cloves minced
3-4 tbsp fresh herbs
Sprinkle of salt and pepper
Recipe: (Taken straight from Sally's blog)
Whisk half of the water, 2 tsp sugar and 2 tsp yeast together in the bowl. Cover and allow to rest for 5 min.
Add the remaining water, olive oil, salt, and 1 cup (130g) flour. Beat on low speed for 20 seconds, then add 3 and 1/2 cups (440g) more flour. Beat on low speed for 2 minutes. If the dough is still sticking to the sides of the bowl, add the last 1/2 cup (60g) of flour.
Knead the dough for 5 min. Add flour if dough becomes too sticky - do not add too much otherwise it will dry out
Let dough rise:Lightly grease a large bowl with a teaspoon of oil or some nonstick spray—just use the same bowl you used for the dough. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise at room temperature for 2–3 hours or until double in size. (Tip: For the warm environment on a particularly cold day, heat your oven to 150°F (66°C). Turn the oven off, place the dough inside, and keep the door slightly ajar. This will be a warm environment for your dough to rise. After about 30 minutes, close the oven door to trap the air inside with the rising dough. When it’s doubled in size, remove from the oven.)
Prepare the pan: Generously grease a 12×17-inch baking pan (with at least 1-inch-tall sides) with 2 Tablespoons of olive oil. This is the base layer of the bread, so be generous with the oil. A pastry brush is helpful to spread it.
Flatten the dough: When the dough is ready, punch it down to release any air bubbles. Place on the oiled baking pan, then stretch and flatten the dough to fit the pan. Don’t tear the dough. If it’s shrinking (mine always does), cover it with a clean towel and let it rest for 5–10 minutes before continuing. This lets the gluten settle and it’s much easier to shape after that.
Let the dough rest: Cover the dough tightly and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour and up to 24 hours. The longer it rests, the better the flavor. I recommend at least 12 hours.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature as you preheat the oven and prepare the toppings. Keep it covered. It may rise a little during this time, but not much.
Preheat oven to 450°F (232°C). Allow it to heat for at least 10–15 minutes so every inch of the oven is very hot.
Prepare the toppings: Whisk the 3 remaining Tablespoons of olive oil with the minced garlic and herbs. Set aside.
Using your fingers, dimple the dough all over the surface. You can watch me do this in the video above. Drizzle on the olive oil topping and use your hands or a pastry brush to spread it all over the top. Add a little more olive oil if needed so the dough is completely covered. (This creates the crisp crust!) Sprinkle with a little coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Bake for 20–23 minutes or until lightly browned on top. If desired, broil on high for the last minute to really brown the top.
Cut and serve hot or let it come to room temperature before slicing and serving. Focaccia tastes wonderful warm or at room temperature. Cover leftover focaccia tightly and store at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for 1 week. You can also freeze the baked and cooled focaccia for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature. To reheat the slices, you can use the microwave or bake in a 300°F (149°C) oven for 5 minutes.
My Thoughts
As I mentioned, the recipe was pretty easy, but it was very sticky. I have a stand mixer but for whatever reason I decided to not use it and mixed everything by hand. Needless to say, I had a big mess to clean up. I would advise using the stand mixer if you have one or prepare for a mess. Which isn't the worst thing, just potentially avoidable.
I also let it sit overnight, as suggested in the original recipe. I've been on a bread kick recently, haven't gotten in to sourdough, but that is right around the corner. On this journey I've realized bread really isn't that difficult to make, and you physically aren't handling the bread for too long, but it is time consuming. As I mentioned the dough sat overnight so I had to plan for 2 days' worth of baking activities. Not a problem, just something to think of when starting your bread journey.
The rosemary and garlic combo were so flavorful, like I said we ate it right up. Baker's note, I didn't have the baking dish required in the recipe, so I used a 9x9 pan instead which resulted in a thicker bread. Which I'm sure is just as delicious. One day I would like to try the thinner option because I think it would make fabulous sandwich bread. This is definitely going to be a recipe I'll be using again and again.
