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Pizza Focaccia

The recipe might seem daunting, but the resulting focaccia is light, fluffy and will leave you reaching for more!

INGREDIENTS

TOPPING SUGGESTIONS

  • Sea Salt Flakes and Herb and Garlic Mix
  • Tomato Puree, Sliced Salami, Olives, Dried Oregano and Grated Cheese
  • Basil Pesto, Cherry Tomatoes and Bocconcini

METHOD

  1. Place 115ml of the water into the bowl of an electric mixer, then pour over yeast. Leave to bloom for about five minutes 
  2. Once the yeast is foaming, add the remaining water (about 565ml) flour and salt to the bowl. With the dough hook attachment, mix for about 1 minute, at the lowest speed, until the dough comes together, then turn up the speed to medium-high and mix for about 5 minutes. The dough should look smooth and cling to the dough hook. Drape a damp tea towel over the bowl and allow dough to rest for 10 minutes.
  3. Once rested, turn on the mixer to medium-high and continue to mix the dough for another 10-15 minutes. The dough should be elastic, pulling away from the sides of the bowl, and be very smooth. The dough will also be very sticky to touch, but that is what you want! Don’t be tempted to add more flour as the moisture gives softness to the focaccia!
  4. In a separate bowl, pour in half of the olive oil (about 80ml) and swirl it around so that  the inside of the bowl is covered in a layer of oil. Oil your hands liberally and tip your dough into the prepared bowl. Use your hands to coax it out. Ensure that the oil coats the whole ball of dough, even the top!
  5. Leave it to rise for about 1-1.5 hours, or until it has doubled in size. 
  6. Once dough has risen, pour the remaining oil onto 2 multi purpose baking trays (30cm x 20cm), ensuring they are oiled all over. 
  7. With oiled hands, loosen the dough from the sides of the bowl, slide your hands down underneath the dough, lifting it out of the bowl. Let the weight of the dough pull itself back into the bowel, returning the dough to the bowl. Repeat this step two more times into the bowl, quarter turning after each stretch. This stretching will give the focaccia more structure and allow it to rise higher when cooking.
  8. On the final stretch, drop half the dough into each tray. Stretch the dough in all directions to fill out the baking trays as much as possible. It will spring back on itself, but this is ok.
  9. Cover the trays with a dampened towel and let them rest for 15 minutes.
  10. Remove the towel and, using your well-oiled fingertips, stretch the dough all the way to the sides and corners of your trays. The dough should now stay in place as it has had time to relax. Cover again with towel for about 50- 60 minutes. **See overnight option below
  11. While the dough is having its final rise, preheat oven to 230°C. Remove the damp towel and with wide spread fingers and oiled hands, press your fingertips into the dough, touching down to the pan. This will make dimples and air bubbles across the surface of your dough for that amazing texture!
  12. Drizzle the final 80ml of olive oil over the whole surface. At this point you can top the focaccia. For a simple, plain focaccia, generously sprinkle with sea salt flakes and Herb and Garlic Mix. For the Pizza variations below, add toppings such as basil pesto, cherry tomatoes and bocconcini, or tomato puree, sliced salami, olives, dried oregano and finished with grated cheese.
  13. Bake the focaccias for about 20-25 minutes. You want the top to be golden and crisp and slightly pulling away from the sides.
  14. Allow to cool in the baking trays for 10 minutes, then slide the focaccia out of the trays onto cooling racks to cool completely.

 

** At this point, the dough can be placed in the fridge for up to 24 hours, where it will rise slowly until it has nearly doubled in size. When you are ready to cook, remove baking trays from the fridge and allow to come to room temperature while the oven preheats. Follows steps above to top the focaccia.