For our inaugural post, we chose a recipe that represents our cooking philosophy: simple, gourmet food made at home. The dough (which is actually a modified pizza dough recipe) gets better with age, so if you have the luxury of planning three days ahead your bread will be soft and chewy. However, if you let your dough rise for at least an hour, it will taste fine.
Olive Rosemary Focaccia
Dough:
- 1 1/2 cups warm water
- 2 packets (1 1/2 tablespoons) dry active yeast
- 4 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Toppings:
- Olive oil or olive juice
- Olives
- Feta Cheese
- Rosemary
- Tomatoes
- Any vegetable in season
Making the dough:
Dissolve the sugar in the water and add the yeast. Allow yeast to activate (you will see bubbles) for 1-2 minutes. Mix the flour and salt together. Add the yeast mixture and oil and stir until a ball forms. Sprinkle a flat surface with flour and knead the dough for about 8 minutes. Place in greased bowl, cover with a wet towel or greased plastic wrap and allow to rise one hour, or until doubled in size. Punch down the dough, cover, and place in fridge to rise at least overnight.
When the dough is ready:
Roll out the dough on a floured surface. Place on a greased baking sheet and poke some holes with a fork. Add whatever toppings you like (plain olive oil, salt and rosemary taste wonderful) and place in a 550° oven for 9-11 minutes- until cheese melts.
auberginepizza 