Foccacia Bread

Focaccia is an amazing flat oven-baked Italian bread!!

For the Dough

• 450g organic "strong" flour
• 1 sachet fast acting yeast or 1oz fresh yeast
• 1 tablespoon castor sugar
• Teaspoon table salt
• 350ml warm water (between 28c - 37c ideally)

To flavour

• Small bunch of Thyme
• Drizzle of Olive oil
• Sprinkle of Sea salt Crystals (not Rock)

Place flour and salt into a bowl and mix well and make a well in the centre.

Add the yeast and sugar into the lukewarm water and mix until all dissolved if using fresh yeast it will take a little more effort to get it to dissolve.

Slowly incorporate the flour and yeast solution together until you have a rough dough. At this point I would never add my hands into the mixture, this will result in you ending up with 2 lbs of dough on each hand! I use a dough scrapper or a spatula. At this stage the flour has basically absorbed the water but we have not developed the gluten protein to make it a smooth firm dough. Lightly flour a work surface and tip the dough out of the bowl and begin to knead. I always say there is no right or wrong way to knead dough as long as you're working the dough around the surface stretching and pulling for 5-10 minutes you're doing the job that it requires, the more you work the dough the firmer and smoother it becomes. This is an indication the dough is ready. A good way to check it is to take you're index finger and gently press the dough if it springs back its ready, if the indentation stays work the dough longer.

When ready place back in bowl cover with either cling film or a damp cloth and allow to rest at room temperature until doubled in size (normally 35 -45 minutes).

Again tip out of bowl and knock the dough back just for a minute or two then mould into the shape of the tray you're going to bake your bread in.

Drizzle with olive oil and a good pinch of sea salt crystals and sprinkle of fresh thyme.

Cover with cling film again and prove the bread for 15-20 minutes or until the bread has again just under doubled in size. (Proving should be quicker this time as yeast has been activated in the resting stage.)

Bake in a pre heated oven 190c (fan assisted) for 18 minutes.

*You can flavour the Focaccia any way you want some suggestions maybe are cherry tomatoes, garlic, any hard herbs (rosemary, sage, parsley), roasted red onions or roasted peppers.