I’m not a big fan of focaccia. I’ve had too many restaurant versions that were dry little squares, almost cakelike, saved only by a seasoned olive oil for dipping. But this focaccia, made from a recipe in Baking With Julia, was just fine with me. Like a cross between a very good bread and a very good pizza, it was crispy, chewy, and full of texture.
I want to include a few comments on the process. While straightforward and simple, it does require a 24-hour rest in the refrigerator after a second rise, so if you’re planning to make it, it’s best to plan ahead. The recipe makes three 10-inch square focaccia (what’s the plural?). I baked two after the 24 hours of chilling, and I baked the third the following day, so that one had a 48-hour rest. The first two baked up beautifully, with lots of irregular hole structure. The one that had the longer rest didn’t rise as much and was a little denser, but still very good. I used chopped fresh rosemary and flaked salt to top the first two.
The recipe uses two Tablespoons of yeast for the three focaccia. That seems like a lot. It seems like cheating. And with the 24-hour rest, I would think that a smaller amount of yeast would have time to create plenty of air bubbles.
On the third day, I was making a Middle Eastern inspired dish for dinner (roasted butternut squash & red onion with tahini & za’atar) from the wonderful cookbook Jerusalem. I decided to top the focaccia with thyme, sesame seeds, and flaked salt to complement the Middle Eastern flavors.
As a final note, the word focaccia comes from the Latin focus which means hearth. If you want to try this recipe you can find it on pages 143-145 of Baking With Julia, or on Sharmina’s blog Wandering Through…
I thought the 2 T of yeast was a lot too and my dough rose so fast, a lot faster than described in the book. I thought I made a mistake! Glad to hear 24 hours was just about right.
Beautiful focaccia! And it sounds absolutely delicious with the Middle Eastern flavors. Nice job!
That is one great looking focaccia – your middle eastern dinner sounds delicious!
Thanks for baking along this week!
Your focaccia got so nice and browned. Wish mine had. Love all the pics in your post….they really look good. Great job!
Beautiful! I thought it was too much yeast as well.
Great pictures. Don’t you love Jerusalem ?
Great looking focaccia, and I like the detailed notes on the process, I also thought there was a lot of yeast but the result was pretty tasty!
Looks good and the butternut squash dish sound delicious! I’ll have to look into the book Jerusalem – last thing I need is another book..
Your focaccia looks great! Jerusalem is an awesome cookbook and I love za’atar. It’s amazing on pita bread brushed with olive oil and baked/fried.
Did not know that about the meaning of focaccia. Your focaccia, topped with thyme and sesame seeds, sounds like the perfect compliment to the delicious looking butternut squash dish. Will definitely have to check out the book Jerusalem and try it. Thanks for sharing.
Lovely – and the Jerusalem inspired meal sounds lovely (Love that book)