Focaccia alla Genovese

I’m surprised I haven’t shared a Foccacia recipe before with you on this blog.  I don’t tend to make it all that frequently but when I do I love it and wish I made it more often.  I love that the texture is slightly chewy, that it is equally good munched on by itself, dipped in some olive oil and dukkah or used to make a delicious toasted sandwich.

In terms of making breads I think this is one of the easier recipes to make with yeast, although I will confess I found the method that Carol Field employs perhaps a bit intimidating when it doesn’t need to be.  I would also refer you to Glenda at The Passion Fruit Garden’s experience of Bread Baking using a recipe from The Italian baker and advise to temper your liquid and flour balance to suit the materials you’re using.  I say this because I found my dough overly tough and elastic which I don’t think it needed to be.  The resulting bread is still very tasty, but I think it could’ve used slightly less flour in my execution.  I may turn to this recipe again, but I think I would modify the method.

Focaccia alla Genovese

makes 2 decent loaves

• 2 1/2 tsp dried instant yeast
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 555-570ml water at room temperature
• 2 tbl sp olive oil
• 1 kg unbleached plain flour, or half bread flour, half plain flour
• 1 tbl sp sea salt

Combine the yeast and 1/2 cup of water and let it sit for approx 10 mins to get the yeast started.  Add in the remaining water and olive oil and combine.  Slowly add in the flour and salt and combine until it forms a smooth elastic dough.  Knead for approx 8-10 minutes.

First Rise – Place dough into an oiled bowl and cover with cling wrap.  Allow to prove and double in size.

Second Rise – Knock dough back and seperate into pieces either in individual portions or alternatively split in half and spread out over two baking sheets. Cover the dough with damp tea towels and allow to rise for approx 30 minutes.

Dimpling and Third Rise – Dimple the dough with your fingers all over the surface.  Cover again with a damp tea towel and allow to prove for at least 2 hours, or until double in size.

Select a topping for your foccacia or simple brush with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt before placeing into a 180c oven for approx 25 minutes.  The bread will go golden brown around the edges when it is ready.

Some topping options are:

• olives pitted and pressed into the surface
• rosemary leaves

Foccacia is best eaten fresh from the oven or on the day of baking but can be stored in the freezer for future use.

Shared With Love,

Leah