Emile Henry Italian Focaccia
Italian Focaccia Bread
Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users
Servings
6-10
Ingredients
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400 grams bread flour
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6 grams instant yeast
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1 teaspoon sugar
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1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
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200 grams water
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2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
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¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
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¼ cup water
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1 teaspoon kosher salt
For the dough:
For the brine:
Directions
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. With the mixer running, slowly pour in the water, follows by the olive oil.
Increase speed to medium high and knead for 2-3 minutes. Turn mixer off, let rest for 5 minutes, then knead again for another 2-3 minutes. At this stage, the dough should be very elastic but still soft and somewhat sticky.
Scoop the dough out of the bowl and form into a ball, coat with olive oil, return to the bowl, and let rest for 30 minutes. The dough does not need to double in size at this stage. You are looking for it to relax and for the flour to become fully hydrated by the water.
Preheat oven to 400ºF. Grease the focaccia baker or sheet pan with oil oil and gently transfer the dough into the baker. Using your fingers, stretch and push the dough out towards the edges, ensuring that it fits snugly against the sides of the baker. Let rest another 30 minutes. This is not your final proofing stage - the dough will go through one more rising stage before baking.
Meanwhile, prepare the brine by mixing together the olive oil, water and salt.
Use your fingertips to make small indentations all over the surface of the dough. Coat the dough with the brine mixture and leave to rise for 1 more hour. The dough should double in volume.
Bake for 20-30 minutes. The top should be a deep golden brown. If you’re unsure if your bread is down, use an instant read thermometer to check if the inside registers 200ºF. If not, return to the oven, rotating the pan 180º.
After removing from the oven, brush the surface with additional olive oil and sprinkle with flaky sea salt. Allow to cool for at least half an hour before serving. You can cut directly in your Emile Henry Focaccia Baker.