Need a small focaccia loaf to feed a couple people as a supper side dish? This is the recipe for you! A food scale is a must, as all ingredients are done by weight measurements for precise results.
Course: Bread
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: yeast bread
Servings: 2
Author: Beth Cato
Equipment
food scale
bench knife or spatula
towel or plastic wrap
loaf pan
Ingredients
120gramsall-purpose flour or bread flour
3gramskosher salt
5gramswhite sugar
90gramswarm water 90-110 degrees
3gramsactive yeast
10gramsextra virgin olive oil plus about 2 Tablespoons for pan
Italian seasoning or pizza seasoning
flaked sea salt
Instructions
In a medium bowl, stir together flour, salt, and sugar. Pour the warm water into the middle. Sprinkle yeast on top and wait a minute for it to begin to bloom. Add oil, then mix dough together.
Use a bench knife or spatula to begin folding the dough over, turning the bowl to knead from different angles. Dough will be very sticky. Work it until it can form a small ball.
Cover dough with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise for 15 minutes.
Using a damp hand or the bench knife, knead the bread, folding it over repeatedly until it begins to tighten.
Cover again to rest for 15 minutes.
Knead again using the same method. It may still be somewhat sticky, but the dough's texture should be smooth.
Add about 1 Tablespoon of olive oil to the loaf pan. Use fingertips to rub it across bottom and sides. Transfer the dough to the pan. Use already-oiled fingers to stretch it out toward the sides of the pan, but don't expect it to make contact.
Cover pan and let dough rise.
After about 30 minutes, oil fingers again and push and stretch dough with fingertips to reach the sides and corners of the pan. It's okay if fingertips touch the bottom or tear the dough; it'll rise again. Cover pan again to rise for another 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Right before putting the focaccia in the oven, drizzle more oil over the top. If desired, add a sprinkling of herb seasoning and a sprinkle of flaked salt.
Bake for about 20 minutes, until the top is a nice golden brown. Pull pan from oven. Carefully tip the bread out onto a cutting board and let cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing.
Enjoy right away. Leftovers, if there are any, can be stored in a sealed bag and reheated later.