Garlic Focaccia

BREAD WEEK RECIPE 3

This is one of my children's all time favourite bread recipes, especially as they get to use their fingers to do the poking part!  It is also one of my favourite extras at Pampered Chef shows and is really quick and easy.  I make the dough at home and add the oil and seasonings once there.

The smell of this cooking is devine!  If you don't fancy it with garlic then try it with chopped fresh rosemary for a really fragrant bread.  Or how about some sundried tomatoes, soaked in oil first, and added to the dough?

Serve with some soup or antipasti for lunch - yummy!  The family particularly likes this with lentil soup or minestrone.

One of the stars of this recipe is the garlic press.  Slap the garlic into the well with the skin still on and squeeze!  Hey presto the skin is left behind and you have lovely crushed garlic.  The little tool supplied on the handle gives you a way to remove the skin from the well without touching it and then the hairbrush type end goes through the holes to clean out any left over pieces before you wash everything under the tap or chuck it in the dishwasher.  Fab! And no smells on your hands!

The fabulous garlic press!

Ingredients

1tsp easy bake dried yeast

1tsp sugar

½ tsp salt

350g white bread flour

1 tablespoon olive oil

210ml water

Topping

Olive oil – 3 tablespoons is about right

Rock salt – a good pinch

2 garlic cloves

mixed herbs – a shake!  You can use anything you like and chopped fresh herbs work well too.

Method

1. Using the adjustable measuring spoons to measure the ingredients, mix salt, sugar, yeast and flour together in a classic batter bowl, stir in the oil and then add the water to get a sticky dough. 

2. Knead for five to ten minutes on a floured surface till the dough is smooth and elastic. (Or bung it in a mixer/ bread maker on pizza dough setting for 10-15 mins)

3. Leave for around an hour in an oiled bowl covered with oiled clingfilm (or classic batter bowl with lid on) to double in size.  

4. Meanwhile measure out the olive oil with an adjustable measuring spoon and crush the garlic with the garlic press into a prep bowl adding the salt and mixed herbs to flavour it. 

5. Once the dough has risen, preheat the oven to 200°C.  Remove the dough from the bowl, shape into an oval or round on an oiled tray or stone and poke holes all over.  This is the bit the kids love! 

I bake this on my round stone (oil can be a bit dribbly) or it fits nicely in the medium bar pan right up to the edges like I did it here.

6. Add the flavoured oil or toppings, spreading them over the whole of the bread, and leave for ten minutes to rest. (Or chuck it in the oven now if you can't wait that long - it just won't rise quite so much but still tastes amazing - see my photo as I was being impatient!!)

7. Bake in oven for 20-25 minutes till golden.  My oven bakes a little unevenly so I rotate it at about 15 minutes. Once its a beautiful golden colour and the smell is driving you to distraction remove it from the oven and leave it on the stone to stay warm or remove to a cooling rack. 

 

I've been known to arrive at parties with this still in the stone to keep it warm.

Recipe by Kristina Robb, Independent Pampered Chef Consultant