Focaccia bread

I remember the days when I didn't have a kitchen in college so I would buy a loaf of focaccia bread and salad from the market at least once a week. The great thing about focaccia bread is the variety of toppings it can have. Today we're exploring three of my top favorites: tomato basil, cheese, and olives. 

Focaccia Bread

Recipe from allrecipes.com

Cooking time (including proof time): 1 hour 30 minutes 

Yield: 1 loaf, 12 servings

Ingredients

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp white sugar

1 tbsp active dry yeast

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried thyme

1/2 tsp dried basil

1 pinch ground black pepper

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 cup water

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

1 cup mozzarella

Directions

1. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, sugar, yeast, garlic powder, oregano, thyme, basil, and black pepper. Mix in the vegetable oil and water.
2. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic. Lightly oil in a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth, and let rise in a warm place for 20 minutes. 
3. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Punch dough down; place on greased baking sheet. Pat into a 1/2 inch thick rectangle. Brush top with olive oil. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese. 
4. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm.

Nutritional Analysis:
per serving: 158.8 calories, 4.6g fat (1.6g saturated, 1.3g polyunsaturated, 1.4g monounsaturated), 23g carbohydrates, 1.0g fiber, 5.9g protein

**Helpful tips and common mistakes

Make sure to read these tips before baking! The directions above needed much revision. First off, if you are using active dry yeast, you must activate it before using. Mix together 1 cup warm water (105-110 degrees F) with the yeast and the sugar. Let it sit for about 10 minutes; you will see the yeast bubbling up. You can now combine the yeast mixture with the garlic powder, oregano, thyme, basil, black pepper, and salt. I used 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning in replace of all the dried herbs. Add the flour 1 cup at a time and mix together. 

Now add the oil and water. You may have to add more flour, since you are now adding 2 cups of water instead of the 1 the recipe calls for. I added about 1/2 cup more flour to the dough. Knead for 5 minutes. Although the recipe says the dough is smooth and elastic, mine was quite sticky. I tried this recipe 3 times and experimented with 3 more batches today in how much flour and water to add. The amount of water for the three batches ranged from 1 1/2 - 2 and the flour ranged from 2 1/4 cups - 3 1/4 cups; there was only a slight difference between the three dough. The amount of liquid I would suggest is a total of 2 cups, including the 1 already used for the yeast, and a total of about 3 cups flour. You can also choose to use milk instead, which will yield a moister bread; use the same amount as you would for water.

Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let rise for 40 minutes, instead of the 20 said in the recipe.

Now it's time to prepare your toppings! You can follow the above recipe and go with the cheese or be creative. I sliced tomatoes and chopped basil for one and had chopped olives for the other. 

For the tomato basil, make indentations with your index finger sporadically in the dough. Spread a generous amount of tomatoes and basil. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle coarse salt. For the olives, make the indentations, spread a generous amount of olives and drizzle olive oil. For the cheese, leave it be. Let the dough rise again for another 30 minutes, regardless of the topping chosen. 

Now for the cheese, you can brush olive oil and sprinkle the cheese on top. For the tomato basil and olive, drizzle olive oil once again. Bake the bread in the oven until golden brown. You will know the bread is done when it sounds hollow inside. 

This focaccia bread is simply great! The inside is moist and soft; not dense at all. The kosher salt for the tomato basil really added the extra saltiness it needed while the cheese made it almost like a cheesy pizza. All these breads can be used for a sandwich as well. The only thing I would do differently is probably add more olives, tomatoes, and basil. Dip in a balsamic, olive oil dip and have with a salad and you have yourself a delicious lunch!