Rosemary Focaccia

As the new year starts, I begin the travail of kicking my nicotine addiction. As done prior, I’ll be doing a bit of baking. As such I’ll start with a basic rosemary focaccia..

From wikipeida:

Focaccia  is a flat oven-baked Italian bread product^[ similar in style and texture to pizza doughs. Focaccia can be used as a side to many meals or as sandwich bread. Focaccia al rosmarino (focaccia with rosemary) is a common focaccia style in Italian cuisine that may be served as an antipasto, appetizer, table bread, or snack.

I’ll set this recipe for a 1/2 sheet pan (18″x 13″) , pretty much the standard to fit a kitchen oven. It is also a good basic recipe for bread sticks or “cheesy bread”

Rosemary Focaccia

This focaccia has a moist but airy crumb sandwiched between thin but ultra-crunchy top and bottom crusts, thanks to a generous amount of olive oil in the pan and on top of the dough. Rosemary and Thyme are used to flavor the oil prior to cooking.

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Prep Time 1 hour hr

Cook Time 1 hour hr

Total Time 5 hours hrs

Servings: 8 Servings

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x?

Flavored Oil

• 2 tbsp Fresh Rosemary Washed, Picked, Chopped
• 2 tbsp Fresh Thyme Washed, Picked
• 1/2 Cup olive oil

Dough - Hydrate

• 450 gram Bread Flour
• 350 gram AP Flour
• 100 gram Whole Wheat Flour
• 40 gram Salt
• 625 ml Water Warm

Yeast - Bloom

• 10 gram sugar
• 40 gram Active Dry Yeast
• 125 ml Water Warm

Method

 

Flavored Oil

1. Wash and chop herbs Add oil Mash with fork Rest for 1 hour

Dough-Hydrate

1. In a stand mixer add Flours and water Mix to a shaggy dough Cover and Rest one hour

Yeast - Bloom

1. Mix warm water, sugar, and yeast Rest 1 hour

Assembly

1. Add Yeast-Bloom to Dough-Hydrate, add salt, and kneed to a silky smooth texture Cover and rest one hour, or until doubled in size
2. Add 2 tbsp of olive oil to bottom of 1/2 sheet pan and spread
3. Fold dough into pan and spread; let rest 10 minutes and then stretch to fit pan
4. Place sheet pan in oven and add a pan of hot water. Allow to rise for 1 hour

Baking

1. Remove pan, water pan and dough from oven and heat oven to 450
2. Drizzle with flavored oil; Oil hands again and press fingertips firmly into dough, pushing down all the way to bottom of pan to dimple all over. Sprinkle generously with sea salt
3. Bake until deep golden brown. (25-35 Minutes) Cool in pan 5-10 minutes

Notes

I've used a mix of flours for taste and texture, (one could just use all strong flour), Bread Flour for gluten development, ap flour for lightness, and whole wheat for a taste kick.

I'll also add roasted garlic to my flavored oil, and may chop some oil cured kalamata olives as a topping.

One may also dust heavily with ground Parmesan cheese prior to baking for that cheesy bread taste and texture.

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