Rosemary Focaccia

Where my carb lovers at?  Where my rosemary lovers at?  Are you here?  Okay great!  I don’t know about you but rosemary is one of the herbs that I rarely use, but when I do all I think about is “why don’t I use this more often?!”  Well I will tell you why.  Rosemary is a strong herb.  Like blue cheese strong.  The kind of strong where is kind of takes over the dish…. which could be great!  In this case…  it  definitely is great.  I had never made Focaccia before and I am a little terrified at how easy it was it make.  Usually I shy away from making breads because it is so much waiting around for things to rise.  This bread has to rise for 1 hour, 2 separate times, which isn’t too bad!  If you have a lazy Saturday or Sunday it is perfect for days like that.  Focaccia is so great because it has this almost crispy yes moist bottom crust.  How does this happen?  Oh you just pour a bunch of olive oil in the baking sheet before you lay the dough on it so it basically fries it!!  AMAZING!   Okay now to this gorgeous dough…

Rosemary Focaccia

Bake it until it is golden brown!

Rosemary Focaccia

I chopped mine into perfect little pieces of heaven.

Rosemary Focaccia

I am getting really sad that I already finished all of this bread…

Rosemary Focaccia

I forgot to post this with my last post, but this is my assistant.  She is very helpful!

Rosemary Focaccia

 

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Rosemary Focaccia


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 3/4 cups warm water
  • 1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) instant yeast
  • 5 sprigs fresh rosemary leaves, chopped and divided
  • 1 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 5 1/4 cups (23.63 or 670 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus coarse sea salt for sprinkling
  • 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided

Instructions

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the water, yeast, 2 teaspoons of the chopped rosemary, sugar, and half the flour. Stir to combine. Fit the mixer with the dough hook and on low speed add in the remaining flour, salt, and 1/2 cup olive oil. Once the dough comes together, increase the speed to medium and knead for 5 to 6 minutes, or until smooth and soft. If the dough is really sticky, add in another tablespoon or two of flour.
  2. Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, at least 1 hour. Make ahead: place the dough in a large plastic bag, or divide in half and place in two plastic bags, and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month. If frozen, thaw overnight in the fridge or for a few hours at room temperature. Proceed with the recipe.
  3. Coat a jelly roll pan with the remaining 1/2 cup olive oil. Put the dough onto the jelly roll pan (you can divide the dough in half and bake in 2 smaller 9 by 13-inch pans) and begin pressing it out with your fingertips to fit the size of the pan. Coax and stretch the dough to fit the entire pan, or just about. Spread your fingers to make little holes all the way through the dough.
  4. Cover the dough with plastic and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425°F.
  5. Brush the focaccia with the olive oil on the pan and sprinkle liberally with coarse sea salt and the remaining rosemary leaves. Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before cutting and serving.