Herbs Focaccia

Do you know what PhD students do when they are waiting for IRB (Human subject approval)? They bake. There is nothing more irritating for a PhD student than waiting for IRB because there is nothing we can do to advance our study. We are stuck. I hate it.

So baking is the solution. It’s one of those thing that you really never had the chance to conquer. I decided to try to make focaccia- an italian flat bread so yummy in your tummy. I have made it few times, but only one time turned out excellent. It is all about yeast quantity, air, humidity, and heat. It’s very easy to screw it up.

I made two batches slightly different in methods. For one recipe I did not dissolve the yeast in warm water. For the other one I dissolved the yeast in warm water and let it sit for 10 minutes. For this latter recipe I used wheat flour; for the former unbleached organic regular flour. They both turned out good, but the unbleached one was super yummy.

Focaccia with herbs

1/2 small package of dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water

1/2 cup cold water

2/1/2 or 3 cups flour

2 tables spoons of olive oil (extra virgin)

one spoon of sea salt

one tablespoon of Italian herbs (rosemary, oregano, thyme, etc)

2 cloves of garlic not peeled

So as I said before you can use unbleached or wheat flour. The 1/2 cup of warm water is to dissolve the yeast. Mix all dry ingredients in a mixer and mix together. Add slowly the yeast with warm water. Now you don’t want it to be hot because the yeast will not let the bread rise. It needs to be just tepid. Add the cold water slowly and the oil. Mix very well until you get a nice soft down. Place it on the counter top and knead. Knead as long as you can (10-20 minutes). The more the better focaccia you will get. Set aside in warm place wrapped in a kitchen towel. Let rise for 2 or 3 hours or until you see a difference in size.

Preheat oven at 425. Take a baking sheet or a glass pyrex (I used the pyrex) and sprinkle the bottom with olive oil. When the dough has risen, knead some more and then give it the shape of a flat bread, not as flat as a pizza, but not at chunky as a loaf of bread. It really depends how you like your focaccia. You can have a crunchy thin focaccia or soft one. I did something in between. Place the flatten dough in the pyrex and sprinkle with olive oil, herbs, garlic and salt. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until gold on top. Let it cool. Add some more salt or olive oil before serving. Yum Yum.

The picture is not that great. I was too eager to eat it that I almost forgot to take the picture. It was so good. Now, why is this healthy? I know it’s carbs, but it’s not processed food. If you go to the grocery store most breads have preservatives or additives to keep it fresh for more than one week. This includes corn derivates like corn syrup. These derivates are hard for our system to digest causing us to gain weight if not eaten with moderation. So, I ll rather have my own bread than something I don’t know where it came from.