Happy New Year! It's hard to believe that I've been doing this for just over a year now. So I decided to make something I've never ever made before. If you've been aroun
d the blog a bit, you'll know I'm no stranger to making bread. I love to do it. But this one just intimidated me. I don't know why, it wasn't exactly hard.
First, it all starts with the starter. That starter is just a little tiny bit of your ingredients that sit overnight to proof. This nice slow proof builds a lot of flavor. Be patient. It's worth it. If you decide after you started your starter, just pop it in the fridge, covered, for up to 3 days.
Second, this isn't a "kneady" dough. The kneading in this recipe is simply folding over with a rubber spatula. Easy-peasy.
Third, this has trace amounts of sodium in it. If you just can't fathom a focaccia without salt, no judgement here, add it just before the folding cycle starts or add some flakey salt just before baking. This will, of course add to the sodium total.
Ingredients
Starter 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 tsp yeast 1/3 cup warm water (100 degrees F)
Dough 1 1/4 cups warm water (100 degrees F) 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tsp instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 tsp powdered garlic
1/4 tsp powdered onion 1/4 cup olive oil - plus extra for baking 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
Directions
In a small bowl, combined the starter ingredients and mix until it's all incorporated. Cover and store on the counter for 8-24 hours. The longer the better the flavor.
For the dough: combine the starter, the remaining flour, water, yeast, powdered garlic, powdered onion, olive oil and rosemary and mix with a spoon or rubber spatula until all the dry ingredients have been incorporated. Cover and let rest for about 30 minutes.
Using a rubber spatula, gently fold over the sides of the dough into the center, making your way around the bowl twice. Don't over do it. Cover and let it rest 30 minutes. Repeat this process two more times. Preheat your oven to 450 F when you do the last fold and rise cycle so it's nice and hot when you put the bread in.
Liberally add some olive oil to two baking dishes. I didn't measure how much I used, but I used enough to coat the entire inside of the dish but not enough that it pooled. I used a 10 inch skillet and a medium sized (about 9x7) casserole dish.
On a very lightly floured surface, gently transfer the dough and lightly sprinkle the top with flour. Gently divide the dough and one half in each of the baking containers. Gently glide the dough around the surface, flip it over and repeat. You want the dough coated in olive oil. Let rest for about 5 minutes. You want the dough to be nice and relaxed.
Using your fingers, gently push the dough to the edge of the pan, creating the little dimples focaccia is famous for. Poke the dough with a fork a few times to pop any large air bubbles. Allow the dough to rest another 5 minutes. Bake for about 25-30 minutes until it's nice and golden brown, rotating half way through.
Cool on a wire rack for half an hour and serve.
