Week 43 – Rosemary and Sea Salt Focaccia

As promised I continued the bread making this week by making a flavoured focaccia (definition: “a flat oven-baked Italian bread which may be topped with herbs or other ingredients” Thank you Wikipedia!).

During our lovely visit to the Isle of Skye we visited one of the most expensive restaurants I think I have ever been to, The Three Chimneys. It came highly recommended from lots of friends /work colleagues who had visited it and it didn’t disappoint, the food was really delicious! We really enjoyed it as a special treat but two things reminded us that it wasn’t our usual sort of place... Firstly a cup of tea cost £4.50!!!! Now I LOVE tea, anyone who knows me knows that I can’t get enough of the stuff but seriously it’s just hot water and a few leaves!! Secondly, and the real icing on the cake, was when six Russian diners arrived by helicopter for their meal, yes that’s right by helicopter. They landed on a makeshift grass helipad right outside the front door of the restaurant! We were so surprised that we asked the waiter if this happened often, his response “Oh yes sir, we have guests arrive by helicopter about once a month”.

Well we knew we were out of our league and wouldn’t be eating in places like that again anytime soon so we took full advantage of the three course menu and accompanying artisan bread, hand-churned butter and tablet with my tea. One thing we particularly enjoyed was the bread they offered us. We both loved their rosemary and sea salt rolls so I thought I would give something similar a go this week for my bake. I went for this recipe by Lorraine Pascale which comes from her Baking Made Easy series so I thought it would be a safe, easy choice for my second attempt at bread.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/rosemary_and_sea_salt_12392

Ingredients

• 500g/1lb 2oz strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 x 7g/⅛oz sachet fast-action dried yeast
• 80ml/3fl oz olive oil, plus extra for drizzling (I only had extra virgin olive oil in the house so just used it but I’m not sure if this might have affected the bake and change the consistency of the dough)
• 150-250ml/5-9fl oz warm water (I mixed a little bit of boiling water with cold for this, I think it might have been a bit more like hot rather than warm water which I think might have affected the yeast because the dough didn’t rise as much as I would have expected)
• vegetable oil or oil spray, for oiling
• 1 bunch fresh rosemary (freshly picked from our garden! This was super exciting for me because I think it’s the first time I have ever cooked/baked with something we had grown in our own garden)
• large pinch sea salt

Method

1. Dust a large flat baking tray with flour.
2. Put the flour into a large bowl, add the salt and yeast, then add the olive oil, plus enough warm water to make a soft but not sticky dough. The dough should feel quite loose and not tight and difficult to knead (my dough was a bit tough, I’m not sure if that was because of the oil or the hot water). If the whole amount is added it may appear that the dough is beyond repair, but gently kneading by way of scooping up the dough, scraping any sticky bits on the surface and slapping it back down again for a few minutes will see the dough begin to become ‘pillowy’ and more manageable. The more water that can be added (the full 250ml/9fl oz is great) then the lighter the bread will be. But it can take some perseverance. Also resist the temptation to add more flour as it will make the dough too heavy.
3. Knead the dough for about 10 minutes by hand on a lightly floured work surface (serious muscles required) or for five minutes if using an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. The dough will feel stretchy when pulled. To test if it is ready, make a ball with the dough then, using a well-floured finger, prod a shallow indent in the side (no more than ¾cm/¼in). If the indent disappears by way of the dough springing back then it is ready to shape. If the indent stays, knead for a few minutes longer.
4. Shape the dough into an oval and place it on the prepared baking tray. Flatten it out to about 30cm/12in long and 20cm/8in wide. Cover the dough loosely with oiled clingfilm, making sure it is airtight (I’m not sure I got the right balance between being airtight and loose??).
   
5. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
6. Leave the dough in a warm place for about an hour, or until it has almost doubled in size (my dough did rise but I’m not sure it quite doubled in size). With a floured index finger press holes in the dough at regular intervals, about 4cm/1½in apart in rows across the dough, pressing right down to the bottom. Cut 3cm/1¼in sprigs of the rosemary and push them into the holes. Sprinkle some sea salt over the dough and place in the top third of the oven. Bake for about 25–30 minutes, or until the bread is well risen, pale golden-brown and feels hollow when tapped underneath.
7. Remove from the oven, drizzle with the remaining olive oil and leave to cool on the baking tray.

The foccacia looked right and had a tasty flavour but I think it was a bit heavy for a foccacia (not that I have eaten that many of them but it seems like it should be lighter!). I think next time I should be a bit more careful with the temperature of the water and use exactly the right oil to see if that helps make it a little bit lighter and fluffier. Anyway, we will still be tucking into it tonight before dinner with a bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar to dip it in.

I'm glad I tried making another bread, it is fun to work with the dough and to make something savoury for a change. While I was away I bought the Hummingbird Bakery ‘Cake Days’ cookbook so I will probably be back to the sweet cake and buns next week.

Happy baking x Linds x

P.S I also made my third Free Cakes for Kids bake, a handbag cake for Caitlin. After I dropped it off with her mum I had a wee teary moment, it really is emotional delivering these cakes to children’s homes. It just reminded me how much of a difference such a simple thing as a cake is making to these children.