Content

• Ingredients
• Steps
• Tips
• Warnings
• What do you need

Focaccia is an easy-to-make bread that you can make at home. It will take you about 3 hours to cook the focaccia, however, it will take most of the time waiting for the dough to rise, so you can do other things during breaks. Freshly baked bread tastes like nothing, and making focaccia is one of the easiest bread recipes to bake entirely on your own.

This recipe can be easily supplemented. You can also double it for a lot of people. You can add any other seasonings you like, including various herbs, cheeses, garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, or tomato paste. The basic procedure remains the same, whatever seasonings you add.

Ingredients

• 1 packet of active, dry yeast, or 2.4 teaspoons of bulk yeast or other equivalent form (read the packet when purchasing bulk yeast)
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup warm water (55-60 °)
• 2.5-3 cups non-white flour or bread flour (see tips), portioned
• 2-3 tablespoons fresh rosemary or 1 tablespoon dry rosemary, finely chopped
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, portions
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Steps

1. 1 Prepare a clean surface for dough baking. This can be a wooden board or wooden table, but make sure the surface is clean and dry as it will be in direct contact with the dough.If you will be kneading dough on a counter that is normally used for other purposes, rinse thoroughly with detergent and wipe dry.
   • Ponytail your long hair and wash your hands.
2. 2 Pour some warm water into a ceramic bowl. Natural yeast is easy to deal with, but water is needed to keep the dough warm. The optimum water temperature is exactly the same as if you were taking a bath. Warm tap water will slightly heat the bowl. A ceramic bowl is ideal as it will keep warm.
3. 3 Finely chop the rosemary and any other herbs you want to add to the dough.
4. 4Pour warm water from a bowl and pat dry with a clean towel.
5. 5 Toss one cup of flour with the remaining dry ingredients, including yeast and rosemary, in a bowl, but use only half of the flour.
6. 6 Add 2 tablespoons olive oil followed by warm water.
7. 7 Move carefully with a wooden spoon. Stir until you get a soft, butter-like mass. If you are not satisfied with the consistency, you can use a mixer.
8. 8 Gradually add the rest of the flour while continuing to stir.
9. 9 When the mixture becomes too sticky and thick to continue using a spoon to stir, begin kneading the dough with your hands.
10. 10 When the mixture looks more like dough than butter, transfer it to a clean, floured surface.
11. 11 Knead the dough with your hands for 10 minutes until smooth.
    • If in doubt, mix a little longer than necessary. It is difficult to knead the dough by hand.
    • Sprinkle a little flour on top of the dough as needed to keep your fingers from sticking together.
12. 12 The finished dough should be springy and smooth. See if it comes into shape by poking it with your finger. Also try the earlobe test. Tear off a piece of dough the size of an earlobe and see if an earlobe hole appears.
13. 13 Form the kneaded dough into a round ball.
14. 14 Pour some olive oil into the bowl where you made the dough.
15. 15 Dip the dough into a bowl so that it is soaked in oil. Then flip the ball over to coat the other side with oil.
16. 16 Wrap the dough with plastic wrap (better) or a damp towel (traditional) to keep it moist while the dough is rising.
17. 17 Leave the dough to rise in a warm (but not hot) place for about 30 minutes or until it doubles in size.
    • The dough is ready if it returns to its original shape when pressed with one or two fingers.
18. 18 Place the dough on a floured surface.
19. 19 Hit the dough hard with your fist. Yes, it sounds a little strange, but that's the way it is. Hit right in the middle well. This will release all the air that has gathered there, like in a bursting balloon.
20. 20 Divide the dough into two equal portions.
21. 21 Roll each piece into a flat sheet that can fit on your baking tray. You should end up with something round or rectangular and don't have to cover the entire surface of your baking sheet. The sheet should be about 1-1.5 cm thick evenly along the entire length of the dough. Repeat the same for the second half of the test.
22. 22 Grease two baking dishes with oil and place the finished dough on top of them.
23. 23 Cover both pieces with plastic wrap. This will help raise the dough slightly for the next 20-30 minutes.
24. 24 Preheat oven (200C).).
25. 25 Remove the plastic wrap. Press down on the dough with your fingers to make small dents all over the surface.
26. 26 Pour olive oil over the surface of the dough. Use a special brush to spread it evenly over the entire surface.
27. 27 Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and whatever else you want.
28. 28 Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.
29. 29 Cut into 7-10 cm squares or strips. Use a pizza knife.
30. 30 Serve the bread warm or cool, but as fresh as possible. A bowl or basket with a clean towel or napkin at the bottom of the dish will give it a nice look.

Tips

• The purpose of kneading the dough is to get gluten. For yeast breads such as focaccia, this is desirable. For quick-to-make bread, such as banana bread, this, on the other hand, is not desirable at all.
• For focaccia, it is good to use bread flour, non-white flour, or all-purpose flour. Do not use flour for baking cookies or cakes, or self-rising flour.
• The amount of flour can be adjusted by touch if you know what the consistency should be. Make sure the dough is dry enough not to stick to the surface while you knead it. You can sprinkle a small amount of flour on the surface on which you knead the dough, and it will absorb the flour in the right amount.
• You can use the bread maker on the dough cycle for the first part of this recipe. Refer to your bread maker manual and change the proportions if necessary.
• You can substitute half of the flour you need for wheat flour in this recipe. This will change the character of the bread. Whole wheat flour may need to be kneaded more and it is more important to use the bread flour in a specific way. If you're new to bread baking, you probably shouldn't use whole wheat the first time.
• The plastic wrap helps prevent the dough from drying out during lifting.
• The name "Foccacia" comes from the Roman phrase "panis focacius", which means bread baked in the oven (Latin "focus").

Warnings

• Take appropriate precautions with oven and knives.
• Do not put plastic wrap or towels in the oven that you used to keep the moisture in while the dough grows.

What do you need

• Bowl (ideally ceramic)
• Wooden spoon
• Bread board, cutting board, or clean wooden table surface
• Baking dish (pizza)
• Plastic wrap or wet towel
• A warm place where you can leave the dough to grow: a windowsill with sunlight, an oven with a control light, or even inside a warm car in the sun
• Dough scraper or spatula (optional but handy)
• Pastry brushes (for olive oil)
• A pizza knife or just a big sharp knife
• Apron
• Sponge or dishcloth