Focaccia is my go-to bread. It’s simple, doesn’t take a lot of time, and is OH SO satisfying with it’s pillowy inside and crunchy salty outside. Once you master it, you’ll be making it ALL of the time!
I know I said that all of the baking recipes are by weight, but this is my exception.
You’ll need:
2 tsp active dry yeast (1 packet if you’re using the little tear away squares)
1 c rye
1/2 c warm water (not steamy hot or you’ll kill your yeast)
MIX all of that together in a large mixing bowl or stand mixer fitted with a dough hook
ADD (with the dough hook running on medium low):
2 1/2 c All Purpose Flour (preferably organic and unbleached)
1 pig pinch salt (about 1 tsp)
3/4 c warm water
Continue to knead until the dough ball forms and gets smooth. If no ball forms, add a little bit of flour (like 1 tsp at a time) until it comes together. If it’s a particularly humid or dry day, you might to make these kinds of adjustments.
Once it’s formed and you can press your finger into the ball and the indentation springs back, then you can put the ball in a bowl at least 4x its size, cover it was a damp cloth or wax paper or another bowl upside down (just so it’s air tight) and let is rise to twice its size.
Once it’s doubled in size, you can either punch it down and put it in the fridge to continue to rise overnight (if you want to make it tomorrow), OR, you can preheat your oven to 425 and scrape it out onto a very well oiled (with olive oil) quarter sheet pan (about 12 inches x 8 inches) or a cast iron skillet, or a casserole pan. Gently press the dough up to the edges and then let it sit out for about 10 minutes while the oven preheats. This will give it a chance to rise. a little more before baking. Then, drizzle with some olive oil, fennel seeds, and sea salt and put her into the oven for about 15-20 minutes. You should start to smell that enticing “baking bread perfume” in the kitchen as it’s getting done. You’ll know for sure that it’s done when the sides and bottom are a deep golden brown and the top is slightly golden brown. Also, when you press gently on a part of it, it will spring back up without sticking to itself. If it sticks at all, it still needs a little more time.
When it’s, use a long spatula to make sure that it’s released from the bottom of the pan and slide it onto a cooling rack for at least 5-ish minutes before serving.
This bread can be made several hours before you eat and if you must cover it, do so with a clean kitchen towel (not terry cloth because of the fuzzies). Any air-tight covering will mess up the crunchy texture and dissolve the salt on top.
For dinner, I like to serve this bread torn or cut into squares and placed in a bowl or basket lined with a linen napkin.
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