Focaccia

A while ago I tried this Focaccia recipe that I saw on Meghan Markle's Netflix series called With Love, Meghan. I've never paid any attention to her but I like cooking shows and this recipe looked so simple that I decided to try it. The other focaccia recipes I usually make take longer and are much bigger recipes so I end up freezing half of it. This is a better size for my small family and comes together easily for a weeknight meal.

This recipe is super simple to make and doesn't take very long at all. I bake it in my 12" Le Creuset skillet. The first time I made this, I had a very tough time getting it out of the skillet, so now I line the skillet with parchment paper which makes it much easier. I top it with flaky sea salt and bake it for 20 minutes. It is really good and easy! If you've ever wanted to make homemade bread but were intimidated by it, this is a great first recipe to try.

Focaccia

Recipe from With Love, Meghan

2 cups bread flour or all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for drizzling/coating the pan as well as the focaccia
1 teaspoon instant yeast or 1¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
1 cup warm water (75 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit)
1-3 sprigs of rosemary leaves
Flaky sea salt, to taste

 

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the water, yeast, flour, and olive oil until a shaggy dough forms.

 

Add the salt and mix until the dough comes together. It will be sticky.

 

Coat the top of the dough with a thin layer of olive oil and cover with a tea towel.

 

Place dough in a warm place and let rise for 2 hours.

 

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

 

Once the dough has risen, turn it out into a well-oiled (or parchment paper lined and oiled) enameled cast-iron braiser, skillet or baking pan.

 

Gently stretch the dough to the edges of what you are baking it in. Be gentle and patient at this step. It may take a few tries to get the dough to that shape.

 

Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and put in a warm place to let rise in the pan for another 30 minutes.

 

Once dough is ready, coat your hands in olive oil and gently dimple the top of the dough to create small wells with your fingers.

 

Drizzle generously with more olive oil, rosemary, and flaky sea salt.

 

Place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until lightly golden.

 

Remove from the oven and carefully from the pan.

 

Slice, serve, and enjoy!

No Knead Italian Focaccia Bread

My father-in-law stayed with us for a few nights last week and I always try to make something special when he stays here. I made stuffed shells (which I know he loves) and salad and wanted to make an easy bread recipe. I saw this Focaccia recipe on Instagram and it looked easy enough so I gave it a try. It was so delicious!

I did not refrigerate the dough - I did the "short rise option" on the website and adapted the recipe below to reflect what I did so I'll remember next time. I mixed the dough, let it rise for 2 hours, put it in an oiled 9x13 glass baking dish (next time I will oil and flour it because it was a little hard to get out), let it rise another 30 minutes (uncovered), poked the dough, topped with some sea salt flakes and baked for 22 minutes.

My cousin Marina also made this recipe (she refrigerated the dough overnight) but she made the focaccia thin and used two quarter sheet pans (12.5"x9").

The recipe uses a lot of olive oil and you could probably cut back a little bit on that, but it is also probably what makes it so good. I did not put oil on top when I added the salt and I did not put oil on top when it came out of the oven.

I used 00 Flour for this recipe as I always do when I make bread or pizza.

Overall, this is a very good and easy recipe. Everyone at my house loved it! It also makes a lot, so I was able to have a few pieces leftover for the next night's dinner and freeze an entire half of it!

No Knead Italian Focaccia Bread

Recipe adapted from Cucina by Elena

 

EASY AND DELICIOUS ITALIAN FOCACCIA RECIPE! This recipe is shockingly easy. It is a NO KNEAD focaccia recipe that will get you the perfect crisp and bubbly top with a soft and tender interior. You will treasure this fragrant olive oil BREAD! It is a NO FAIL RECIPE YOU will make again and again. 

1¼-oz. envelope active dry yeast (about 2¼ teaspoons)

2½ cups (590 ml) lukewarm water (98 and 105 degrees Fahrenheit, 36.5 to 40.5 Celsius)

1 Tablespoon granulated sugar

5 cups (625 g) all-purpose flour or 00 flour

1 Tablespoon kosher salt

6 Tablespoons good quality extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for hands

Flake sea salt, such a Maldons

 

Place 2½ cups lukewarm water in a medium/large mixing bowl. Add the yeast and sugar. Stir slightly but do not mix. Let sit 5-10 minutes (it should foam or at least get creamy; if it doesn’t your yeast is dead and you should start again – check the expiration date!).

 

Add flour and kosher salt and mix with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until a shaggy dough forms and no dry streaks remain. It will seem a little wet. That is normal. 

 

Pour 4 Tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil into a big bowl. Transfer dough to bowl and turn to coat in oil. Turn over a few times, but do NOT mix in the oil with the dough. 

 

Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until dough is doubled in size, about 2 hours (it should look very bubbly and alive).

 

Grease and flour your desired baking pan or baking sheet depending on preference (classic 9x13 glass baking dish or 9x13 cookie sheet). Add 1 Tablespoon olive oil to the baking pan and coat the bottom. Move dough to the prepared pan.

 

Pour any oil left in the bowl over the dough and turn dough to coat it in oil. Let rise, uncovered, in a dry, warm spot (like near a radiator or on top of the fridge or a preheating oven) until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.

 

Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 450°. Lightly oil your hands. If using a rimmed baking sheet, gently stretch out dough to fill (you won’t need to do this if using a baking pan).

 

Dimple focaccia all over with your fingers. Keep poking away until there are lots of poke marks in the dough. 

 

Drizzle the top of poked dough with remaining 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (optional) and sprinkle with flaky sea salt.

 

Bake focaccia until puffed and golden brown all over, 20–30 minutes.

 

Optional: brush lightly with olive oil right after taking it out of the oven.

 

Enjoy warm or cold!

 

Notes:

Makes great sandwich bread. Simply cut a slice in half lengthwise and use for a sandwich! 

 

Storing: The focaccia will keep at room temperature, covered with plastic wrap, for 2 days. Reheat in a 375-degree oven for 10 minutes. To freeze focaccia, cut it in pieces, wrap each piece in plastic wrap, place in resealable plastic freezer bag, and freeze for up to 1 month.

Macaroni Grill Focaccia Bread

If you've ever been to Macaroni Grill, you've probably started your meal with their focaccia bread. Any time I went there I looked forward to eating this bread. I came across a recipe online a few years ago and have made it several times since then. Everyone always loves it and it accompanies many meals well. I tried another focaccia bread recipe recently (also with rosemary and sea salt) and I still like this one more by far. Some focaccia bread recipes are very flat breads (like the other one that I tried), and this is not which is something that I like about it. Of course, you can always use a larger pan and make it flatter if you wish, or use a round pan. I use a 9"x9" CorningWare dish and that works very well for me. I think I will start to use this focaccia recipe as a base and play around with substituting the rosemary for other ingredients (olives, caramelized onions, roasted peppers, etc.). This recipe is also very simple to make. If you use a mixer with the dough attachment, you don't have to knead it by hand and that makes it even easier.

Macaroni Grill Focaccia Bread

Serve this as they do at Macaroni Grill. Pour some olive oil into a saucer.  Freshly grate black pepper on top.  Tear off pieces of the focaccia and dip in the oil.

9 Tablespoons olive oil (divided use)

3 cups unsifted all-purpose flour

¾ cup unsifted semolina flour

½ teaspoon salt (divided)

1½ Tablespoons quick-rising dry yeast

1½ cups hot (between 120 and 130°F) milk

1 Tablespoon fresh rosemary leaves or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary

Pour a scant tablespoon of the olive oil into a 9” square cake pan; spread evenly to cover bottom and sides. Place all-purpose flour, semolina flour, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, ¼ teaspoon of the salt and all of the yeast in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a dough hook. (The mixing can be done by hand as well). Blend ingredients on medium speed. Reduce speed to low and slowly add hot milk. Raise the speed to medium and continue mixing for 5 minutes (or knead about 8 to 10 minutes by hand).

Sprinkle bottom of cake pan with a little flour. Remove dough from bowl and spread out evenly in pan. Cover with a towel and let rest for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Remove towel. Brush dough with 1 to 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Sprinkle top with additional ¼ teaspoon salt and rosemary. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and drizzle with remaining 5-6 tablespoons of olive oil.

Makes 6 - 8 servings.

Bread dough spread in pan before rising

Bread dough after rising for 30 minutes

Dough with olive oil, rosemary and sea salt on top

Fresh out of the oven!

Half of the bread

Photos by JoJo

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