Simple homemade focaccia

Name: Simple homemade focaccia
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: Type 0 flour 3 ¾ cups; Brewer's yeast 1 tsp; Sugar; Water; Whole milk ½ cup; Extra virgin olive oil 3 tbsp; Fine salt 2 ½ tsp; Rosemary to taste; Extra virgin olive oil 2.8 tbsp; Salt to taste

Vegetarian

Difficulty: Easy
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 35 min
Serving: 4 persone
Cost: Very low
Note + 3 hours of rising

PRESENTATION

Simple homemade focaccia is perfect for making an easy and genuine focaccia with few ingredients and a drizzle of oil and rosemary to season it! There are many ways to prepare this versatile leavened bread: the soft focaccia, the traditional Genoese focaccia or a very fluffy potato focaccia! In this recipe, we present one of the simplest and most basic methods, which can be done with the help of a stand mixer but also by hand. Adding a bit of milk to the dough will help its natural softness and will be perfect to offer as a snack or appetizer, served in squares, or in a stuffed version to take to the office or a picnic! Accompany it with cured meats, vegetables, or cheeses, or use it to enrich the bread basket! It is well known: one can try to resist everything, but it is really difficult with focaccia in front of you!

If you love our focaccia recipe, try these tasty variations too:

Bari-style focaccia
Cheese focaccia
Pizzicata stuffed focaccia
Focaccia with cherry tomatoes and oregano
5-grain focaccia with cooked ham and pea cream

INGREDIENTS

Type 0 flour 3 ¾ cups (470 g)

Brewer's yeast 1 tsp (5 g)

Sugar (16 g)

Water (230 g)

Whole milk ½ cup (115 g)

Extra virgin olive oil 3 tbsp (45 g)

Fine salt 2 ½ tsp (12 g)

for seasoning: Rosemary to taste; Extra virgin olive oil 2.8 tbsp (40 g); Salt to taste

Preparation

How to prepare Simple homemade focaccia

To prepare simple homemade focaccia, start by mixing the yeast with the sugar in a small bowl 1 and then pour it, along with the flour, into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment 2. Turn on the mixer and gradually add the milk and water, which you have mixed together 3.

Next, add the oil, also gradually 4. Continue kneading until the dough starts to come together, then replace the paddle attachment 5 with the dough hook 6.

Add the salt 7 and continue kneading for about 15 minutes 8 until the dough is well-kneaded: the dough is very hydrated so help yourself with a bench scraper to detach it from the hook 9.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface, again using the bench scraper 10, and using the scraper give a couple of folds, i.e., lift one edge 11 and bring it to the center 12. Then lift the other end and bring it to the middle and repeat once more.

Transfer the dough into a bowl 13 and cover it with plastic wrap. Place the bowl in the oven turned off with the light on and let it rise for 2 hours or until it has doubled in size 14. Grease a baking pan (we used a rectangular pan 14x11 inches), brushing the entire surface and along the edges carefully 15,

pour the dough into it and grease your hands to prevent the dough from sticking 16. Start stretching it with your fingertips 17 to distribute it until it covers the entire surface and the sides 18. Because this is a very hydrated dough, if you can't immediately fill the entire pan, let it rest for a few more minutes before continuing to stretch the dough.

Once done, cover with plastic wrap 19 and let it rise for another hour in the oven turned off with the light on 20. After the time has passed, create dimples in the dough with your oil-greased fingertips 21.

Sprinkle with oil 22, some rosemary leaves, and some salt flakes 23. Your focaccia is ready to be baked in a static oven at 350°F for about 35-40 minutes, in the lower part of the oven (check the baking occasionally without opening the oven). Once baked 24, just take it out of the oven and enjoy it plain or stuffed!

Storage

To ensure you enjoy the focaccia at its best, it is recommended to eat it immediately. However, it can be stored for up to 2 days in a sealed bag; in this case, it is recommended to warm the focaccia in the oven for a few moments.
You can also freeze the baked focaccia; once thawed, warm it before consuming.

Advice

Don’t have time for the rising? No problem! Let the dough rest in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap for up to 12 hours, the next day let the dough acclimate and then proceed as per the recipe.
If you prefer a crunchier focaccia, once the dough is spread in the pan, go ahead with the baking;
if you want a tall and soft focaccia, once you reach the final rise, do not create dimples but bake the focaccia immediately by simply greasing it and sprinkling it with salt and rosemary. And if you can't find salt flakes, coarse salt will do just fine!

For the translation of some texts, artificial intelligence tools may have been used.