This is a basic, simple, and therefore wonderful recipe for Focaccia, Italian Flat Bread. I made it up and then remade it, measuring all the ingredients -- I put myself in the position of an Italian mother who needed a bread for a meal, went to my cupboard and took down ingredients, went to my garden and got rosemary, and then just threw it together. I always have garlic and yeast on hand. Here it is:

Serving Size: 8
Preparation Time: 3:00

For the Focaccia

3 1/4 cups flour

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 package dry yeast proofed

2 teaspoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon dry rosemary, 2 teaspoons if fresh (this is preferable)

5 cloves garlic roasted and mashed

1 1/2 cups water, divided & warmed

TOPPINGS for variety if rolls are made

2 tablespoons chopped black olives

1 huge clove garlic, thinly sliced lengthwise

10 strips of roasted red sweet peppers

Slices of marinated artichoke hearts

Basil leaves

Flour (a dusting)

Kosher salt

Roast the garlic in its paper skin in the toaster oven by just resting the cloves on the rack exposed to the hot coils and run them thru a dark toast cycle twice. Allow the cloves to cool slightly and remove the paper and mash the cloves with a fork in a little dish.

Heat 1/2 cup water to 110 degrees, add a pinch of sugar & stir, pour on top of the warmed water the package of yeast and put it in a nest of a kitchen towel so that the heat will stay somewhat longer in the liquid. It should start to proof in 5-10 minutes, then stir it well to dissolve the entire mass of yeast, and then let it proof another 5 minutes. This will wake up the yeast.

Place the flour, sugar, salt, olive oil, rosemary and mashed-up roasted garlic in the bowl of a Kitchen Aid with the dough hook and blend. Pour in the yeast and then with the motor running add the remainder of the warmed water. Allow to knead for couple minutes, testing the texture and adding more flour if too wet and more water if too dry. After kneading, remove and knead a few times by hand and turn into an oiled bowl, turning the dough once to coat it with the oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise to double in a minimally warmed oven; this will take 1/2-3/4 hours. Then remove and knead a few times and flatten it out to about 1/2 inch thick and place it on a corn mealed double bottom cookie sheet. Poke deep dents into it and rub with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt and sprinkle chopped olives in and around the dents. Let it rise a second time in a warm oven which will take about 1/2 - 3/4 hours. Then bake the focaccia on the cookie sheet in a 375 degree oven for 30 minutes, remove the bread from the cookie sheet, place it onto the oven rack directly, and let it finish off for 10 minutes or until the bottom taps hollow. If the top is not golden or browned the way you like, then finish the top off with the broiler, putting a nice brown crust on it.

Remove and place bread on rack to cool slightly and set. Then tear and eat with infused olive oil or butter or caponada.

An alternative to a single focaccia is to cut small lime or lemon-sized pieces of dough after the first rise, make them into balls, flatten them with your hand, place them on a corn mealed baking sheet, and let them rise. When risen cut the tops with a sharp knife or razor blade and decorate the tops with a variety of toppings. Bake them off at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or until golden brown and hollow to tapping the bottoms. They are beautiful and tasty. Enjoy!!!!

Enjoy. Dr. Stu.
Recipe courtesy of and © Stuart Borken.

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