Homemade Focaccia with Herbs, Exotic Tomatoes and Bocconcini Mozzarella
Today is Human Right’s Day, and what’s a holiday without some homemade goodies. Today I made Focaccia, a well-known Italian yeasted flat bread which is said to belong to the northern shores of the Mediterranean and has its origin in classical antiquity. Focaccia has the toppings that are similar to those of the pizza, such as olive oil, rosemary, sage, garlic, cheeses, and onion. I topped mine with rosemary, thyme, tomatoes and cheese.Below is my own version of the recipe and I hope you will enjoy it.
Ingredients
- 225g g Unbleached Cake Flour
- 225 g Unbleached White Bread Flour
- 10 g Salt (sea or desert)
- 275 ml Lukewarm Water
- 20 g Fresh Yeast (see note 1)
- 1 Tablespoon Sugar
- 30 ml Olive Oil
TOPPINGS:
- Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
- Fresh Rosemary roughly chopped
- 3 to 5 Thyme Springs
- 4 to 6 Bocconcini Mozzarella
- Exotic Tomatoes
Instructions
- Sieve the flours into a large mixing bowl, then add salt and mix.
- Mix 1 tablespoon of sugar with fresh yeast and mix with a teaspoon until dissolved, or liquifies.
- Add dissolved yeast into the flour, then pour in the oil along with lukewarm water.
- Roughly mix everything with a spatula or wooden spoon, then start kneading with yours hands. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes or until the dough becomes smooth and elastic.
- Put the dough on a clean worksurface, then wash the bowl, dry it and slightly grease it with oil and put the dough inside it. Cover with a cling wrap and let rise for 2 hours or until it doubles in size.
- Transfer the dough on a lightly oiled surface and shape it into a rectangle and fold it 4 times (book fold), stretch it a bit and place the folded dough back into the bowl, cover and let it rise for 30 minutes.
- Slightly grease a 34x22cm roastingbaking pan with olive oil. Place the dough into the greased baking pan and stretch it with the palm of your hand and fingers to fit the entire pan, and let it rise again for 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 220℃.
- Meanwhile, roughly rosemary and thyme, cut mozzarella balls into halves, and big tomatoes into halves but leave whole if they are small. Insert the mozzarella, and tomatoes on the dough and sprinkle the herbs all over. Then let it rise again for another 15 minutes.Then use your fingers to create holes into the dough, drizzle olive oil and sprinkle sea salt and pepper.
- Bake for 25 to 30 minutes (see note 2) or until golden.
- Let it cool, cut and enjoy.
Notes
- If fresh yeast is not easily available to you, you may use 7g or Tablespoon of instant dry yeast.
- Understand your oven well, to determine baking time according to the guide given.
