How to make homemade focaccia like in Italy?

A true institution for Italians, focaccia is enjoyed in all regions of Italy and on all occasions. From Liguria, where it originated, to Calabria, via Tuscany, it is the country’s iconic street food specialty.

Very similar to pizza dough, it differs however in the resting times and the brine, based on water, oil and salt, which covers it. The latter element allows to obtain a beautiful golden crust, and brings all its flavor to the Ligurian bread.

How to make successful Italian focaccia?

Ingredients

Ideally, the focaccia recipe calls for Italian type 00 wheat flour, like Big Mamma’s pizza dough. Rich in gluten, it gives elasticity to the preparation, and gives it enough strength to rise. In France, the equivalent is T 45 flour, which is why you can use either one.
Regarding yeast, however, you should use fresh yeast, which is more suitable for bread and pizza dough than dry yeast. Allow about 21 g of fresh yeast for 500 g of flour.
Finally, last but not least, the ingredient to pay attention to: olive oil. In cooking, good ingredients make good dishes, so it is better to choose them carefully. This is why it is advisable to use an extra virgin oil (or extra virgin depending on the name) to make your baked goods.

Rest

Focaccia likes to lead the “dolce vita”. In concrete terms, this means that it will have to rest several times between each step, in a warm room, or in an oven preheated to 40°C. Allow at least 1 hour of rest, after the first kneading, then 30 minutes after rolling it out. Finally, a final 30-minute nap will be necessary, before putting it in the oven.
Respecting the dough’s sleep cycle will allow you to obtain a focaccia that is as soft as you want.

The recipe for Italian focaccia

Preparation: 20 min
Resting time: 2 hours
Cooking: 20 min

For 4 people

• 200 g of T 00 flour
• 10 g fresh yeast
• 5 g sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil + a little oil for the salad bowl
• 12 cl of lukewarm water

For the brine

• 1 large pinch of fleur de sel
• 2 cl of water
• 2 cl of olive oil

In a large bowl, place the flour, fresh yeast, sugar, salt and oil. Mix roughly.
Add the water gradually. Knead with oiled hands until the dough is no longer sticky.
Remove the dough and oil the sides of the bowl. Put the dough back in and let it rise for 1 hour under a damp cloth.
Once the dough has doubled in size, spread it out thickly on a baking sheet or in a baking dish. Let it rise for another 30 minutes.
Make hollows on the surface of the focaccia, pressing lightly with your knuckles. Let it rest for another 30 minutes.
Mix the salt, water and oil vigorously for the brine, and brush it over the dough.
Bake for 20 min at 200°C.
Serve the focaccia while still warm, cut into pieces.

The focaccia filling

If we love the plain Genovese focaccia, we can’t help but suggest a few ideas for toppings. To innovate, garnish it with seasonal products, cheese, or cold cuts. In spring, for example, try the Foccacia with pesto, ricotta and radishes, while in summer, we hesitate between a focaccia with cherry tomatoes and rosemary and a focaccia with thyme, almonds and red onions. Finally, in some regions of Italy, such as Veneto, this bread is enjoyed in a sweet version, flavored with orange or lemon. We can therefore offer focaccias for dessert or as a snack, garnished with fruit or spread.

#gardenfocaccia

Born during the first lockdown, the #gardenfocaccia and #breadart trend was launched by Teri Culletto, a blogger passionate about decorating bread. As a tribute to Van Gogh’s paintings, she began to make floral focaccias filled with flowers, like paintings, the “Van Dough”. Her colorful and poetic creations quickly seduced and many Internet users began to imitate her.
The reason for this success? The possibility for everyone to express their creativity, and a spectacular effect when serving.

How to make a garden focaccia?

To create sumptuous paintings, you will need raw vegetables (onion slices, cherry tomatoes cut in half, radish slices, etc.), fresh herbs, seeds, and nuts, depending on the desired result. Imagine that red peppers cut into slices will make pretty flowers, while the strips of a yellow pepper can form a sunflower. The “stems” will be made with sprigs of chives or asparagus.

Then, you are free to arrange them as you wish, according to the inspiration of the moment. Press very lightly on each element, to push it into the dough. After cooking, all that remains is to admire the result.

In the meantime, here are 10 soft and generous focaccia recipes that you can draw inspiration from.