Recipe Focaccia

Allright it is time to put the money where the mouth is, I told a lot of you that I was hoping to launch an internet website soon, and that when it was online this would be the very first recipe I would post. So here it is…

Ingredients

• 450 gram bread flour (I use locally milled flour)
• 50 gram (wholewheat) speltflour
• 125 gram mature sourdoughstarter
• 10 gram fine sugar
• 375 gram water
• 15 gram extra vergine olive-oil
• 13 gram salt

For topping you will need some extra olive oil and other toppings of your linking. I topped mine with some rosemary, sea salt and cherrytomatoes which is a great combination almost everybody will enjoy very much.

Method

Start by mixing the starter, sugar and 325 gram water together and gradually adding the flour till all the flour is incorporated in to a dough like substance.

Put it in a container and set this aside for about an hour in a nice and warm place. (I put my dough in a slightly warmed oven at around 29C). After this hour has past you will incorporate the salt, olive oil and the remaining water.

At this moment it is time to get to work. Mix the dough till it’s almost fully developed and put it in a slightly oiled container for bulk-fermentation. I give the dough 3 good sets of stretch and folds after 30 minutes, 1 hour and 1,5 hour to develop the dough even more.

Try to give your dough a nice rectangular shape when you’re done with the last set of stretch and folds and put it in a well oiled baking tray, leave it to proof in the slightly warmed oven (29-30C) for around 3-4 hours, or till your dough is nice and bubbly.

If you want to develop even more taste this is the moment to transfer your dough to the fridge overnight. Remember to cover it up so it won’t dry out and don’t forget to rub the dough slightly with some olive oil so it doesn’t stick to the covering material.

When you are giving it a go start and preheat your oven to 230C with a baking steel inside.

Prepare your toppings in order to work fast once you start working the dough. I coated my rosemary with a little oil too to prevent burning. Now its time to take your dough and drizzle it with some good olive oil, then you start dimpling your fingers in the dough and if its needed you can also spread it a little more to fit the baking tray. Be careful not to tear through.

Now its time to get creative and decorate the focaccia in a way you like it. the one i made this time was topped with rosemary, cherry tomatoes and sea-salt, but pesto and mozzarella or tomato tapenade, basil and tomatoes are also great options.

Bake it in the pre heated oven for about 15-18 minutes or until the top has a nice gold brown color. The focaccia should be nice and crispy on the outside and soft but a little chewy on the inside. I don’t think you can resist to wait till its cooled but it’s at it’s best eaten warm!

If this is not going to be the best ever you had I don’t know what will be, only thing I could imagine being better is to enjoy this on the patio of a nice house under the Tuscan sun sitting with a good glass of Chianti in my hand.