Homemade Focaccia
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Olives, tomatoes, roasted veggies, herbs, or fruits...the topping possibilities are endless with this base recipe for Homemade Focaccia. And no kneading required!
Ingredients
For the Dough:
  • 1½ cups warm water
  • ½ teaspoon sugar, maple syrup, or sweetener of choice
  • 1½ teaspoons yeast
  • 3 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 3½ cups flour
  • 1½ teaspoons sea salt
Topping:
  • ½ cup pitted, chopped olives
  • small handful each of rosemary and oregano
  • 1 generous Tablespoon olive oil
  • sprinkling of coarse salt
Instructions
  1. Using a bowl and a wooden spoon or strong spatula, mix together the warm water, sugar, yeast, and oil. Stir to dissolve the yeast. Add in the flour and salt and mix well to combine the ingredients into a cohesive, yet still tacky dough. Drizzle some extra olive oil onto the dough and throw it around the bowl to get the sides and bottom covered with oil (so it doesn't stick too much while rising). Cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm spot for 45-60 minutes. If your house is chilly, wrap the bowl in a blanket after covering it with the kitchen towel.
  2. After the dough has risen, dump it out onto a well-oiled baking sheet. Oil your hands and press the dough into the pan evenly. Drizzle on the generous Tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle on your toppings, except for the salt (that comes later). Now you want to poke the dough repeatedly using your fingertips. Don't be afraid to rip and twist the dough a little, making valleys where the toppings and oil can get trapped. (It doesn't have to be perfect, it always looks nice and rustic when baked!) Cover this tray of poked dough with the kitchen towel and place it in a warm place again for another 45-60 minutes.
  3. Preheat oven to 425°F. After the dough has risen a second time, remove the towel and sprinkle it with the coarse salt. Gently slide the tray onto a lower rack of your hot oven and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the focaccia has browned nicely. Remove from the oven, brush with a little more fresh olive oil if you'd like (I sure do! :) ) and cool on the counter for at least 15 minutes before slicing. For a traditional crisp-edged focaccia, cool on the counter as usual, but for a softer, chewier focaccia, drape a kitchen towel over the bread as it cools on the counter and let it cool under it.
Notes
-This recipe makes one baking sheet-sized focaccia.

-For the fig focaccia I made, I used the same recipe for the dough, but for the topping I used sliced figs, 1 Tablespoon of olive oil, and 1 Tablespoons of sugar. I like it lightly sweet so for those with a sweeter tooth, use 2 Tablespoons sugar.

-If you have access to double zero 00 flour, definitely use it here but if not, regular all purpose flour works great.

-Sometimes I add herbs into the dough! Fresh is good but dried are fine, too. Use about 3 Tablespoons of chopped fresh herbs or 2 Tablespoons of dried.
Recipe by Lands & Flavors at https://www.landsandflavors.com/homemade-focaccia/