No Fuss Focaccia.
No-Fuss Focaccia is a light modification of the recipe of the same name from King Arthur Flour. It’s perfect when you crave a savory flatbread but don’t have the time or patience to manage a long ferment. Makes one 10×13 focaccia, about a dozen servings.
Recipe:
420 g all purpose flour
320 g warm water
1 T (not a misprint) instant dry yeast
1 ½ t salt
3 T olive oil, plus additional for greasing pan and topping
1 T dried rosemary or 2 T fresh rosemary leaves, optional*
Zata’ar or other dried herb for topping, optional
Method: line a 10×13 inch baking pan with parchment paper**, including the sides. Mix flour, water, salt, yeast, optional herbs and 3 T oil in a bowl, first with a spoon then with your hands, until the dough forms a cohesive mass and no streaks of white flour remain. Cover and rest 1 hour or until doubled in bulk. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Lining the pan with parchment paper means no-fuss cleanup.
Pour 2 T or so additional olive oil in the bottom of the pan, on top of the parchment paper, and spread it to the edges with your hands. Pour in the very soft dough and let it rest for a few minutes, then push out the dough with your hands to completely fill the pan. Brush on a little olive oil if you like and add zata’ar or another topping if you like. Bake 35 minutes, checking after 25 minutes, until the top of the bread is lightly browned and the bottom is a nice golden brown. Flip out onto a rack and cool before slicing.
*Adding rosemary to the dough will approximate the famous herbal slab sold at Acme Bakery in San Francisco.
**This isn’t called for in the King Arthur recipe but if you truly want no-fuss focaccia you shouldn’t have to wash the pan, right?
