Got-tha Focaccia.

Focaccia 
Italian pronunciation: foˈkattʃa

This is one of my most favorite breads. I absolutely LOVE the variety of toppings that you can have on it and the lightness of the dough. The outside of the bread can range from bring soft to more of a thin crust. It all depends on where you buy it and who has made it!

Olives.
Simple salt and olive oil.
Smokey chilis.
Roasted red peppers.
Cured meats (proscuitto? YUM)

The toppings are endless!!

I am no bread baker. I definitely am a noob in that field, but after enjoying The American Baking Competition this summer on the Food Network (pretttttty much the only TV I watch haha) I was inspired to try diving into this world more....

I learned the some basics from reading one of my favorite books (I've mentioned it tons and will continue to endorse it): Ratios by Michael Ruhlmanns'. I also watched the occasional episode of Baking with Anna Olsen- so many good tips and tricks! I'd highly recommend her show to learn more about baking basics.

When it came to September I had made a few basic things, but wanted to finally bake my first loaf of bread- from scratch! Now, why not just use a bread maker? Personally, I feel like they're a form of cheating and in the end they don't really save me time or money. They tend to be limited to making basic "sandwich" breads, I find that they aren't quite as fluffy as scratch-made bread because of the lack of rising times, and they are expensive (or can be).


One of the primary reasons I didn't ever make my own bread before was because I told it was really time consuming...If you browse recipes for bread making the total time is usually >2 hours which, as a student, that is an impossible amount of time to dedicate to making a single loaf of bread. BUT, what is the majority of the time dedicated to? The proofing period. This is the time when the yeast within the bread, metabolize the sugars in the dough and produce carbon dioxide, the dough rises and should double in size as a result. During this time, why not read a book? Do some studying? Call a friend? Dance around and sing some songs? Do some cleaning (my apartment always somehow needs cleaning! haha)

Don't be intimidated! :) Just use your time in a way that is productive for you!

Rosemary Sea Salt Focaccia

2.25 tsp dry active yeast

1 tsp sugar

2 cups flour

pinch salt (fine)

1/2 cup water (may beed 1/2 to 1 cup water additionally)

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

2-3tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic

coarse sea salt (to taste)

Flour for surfaces

**Pre-cooking prep: turn on awesome tunes that are great and that you can either 1) sing along to because you think the words are great 2) sing along because you know the words and therefore can belt them out with a ton of passion or 3) 'sing along' to  but you don't actually know the words but pretending to sing, makes you feel like an opera singer and more Italian (therefore your bread is more Italian obviously).
Here is what I recommend (based on what I actually do haha):
for option 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vf2YJAG84_8
         for option 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1y6smkh6c-0
                 for option 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwhP4vZAh18

Now for the cooking:
1. Dissolve the yeast in 1/2 cup warm water with sugar until there is a lot of foam present. Set aside.



2. Add flour to mixer (with dough hook attachment) with a pinch of fine salt. Create a well in the center of the flour.




3. Add the frothy yeast mixture to the 'well' that you created in the flour. Turn the mixture on low speed and slowly add 1/2 cup water. Add additional water until the dough has become moist (but not wet) and has 'climbed' up the dough hook and been removed from the sides of the mixing bowl.

4. Place dough on floured surface and gently knead with your palms (push forward with palms, then pull the dough back with your fingers). Do this until the dough has some resistance and feels elastic. Do not overwork the dough! Make the dough into a round ball. 

5. Use olive oil to coat the inside of a large bowl. Place the dough into the bowl. Cover with a damp towel and place in a room temperature (or slightly warmer than room temperature), draft free space for 30-60 minutes (until double in size). This is your first study break!

I put mine in the sun on my balcony :) Perfect spot!

6. Roll the dough out on floured surface. Shape into what shape you want your final foccacia to look like! Place this dough on a non-stick baking sheet. Cover with towel and let proof for another 30 minutes. This is your second study break!

7. Preheat oven to 470F

8. Use your index finger to make indentations throughout the top of the foccacia bread



9. Mix fresh rosemary and olive oil in a small bowl. Spread this, and chopped garlic pieces  across the top of the bread. Finish with generous sprinkling of coarse sea salt.

10. Bake for 10 minutes (soft) or longer (15minutes) for a crust. I baked mine for 10 minutes to get a really light bread but bake for longer if you want more crust! :)

** if you want to have a really good crust on the bread the while baking, have a pan of water also in the oven. The steam from this water in the oven will help to crisp the outside of the bread!

ENJOY! :)