Focaccia , No knead bread !

Focaccia is our favorite yeast bread to make at home as it is a no knead bake with no  fancy tools or equipments requisition. It has a crisp outside and soft inside, and is perfect to serve with dinner, soups, stews, or even sliced in half and used for sandwiches. Thanks to the ingredients, that turns this naturally vegan. This simple bake is ultra comforting and delicious, and kicked up a notch with the fresh and pickled toppings in addition to the seasonings.

Ingredients to make Focaccia :

• 5 cups:  All purpose flour / Maida
• 1 - 2/3 cup: Warm Water
• 2 tsp: fast action yeast
• 1 tsp: Sugar
• 1/4 cup + 3 tbsp: Olive oil
• 2 tsp: Salt
• 1 tbsp: crushed peppercorns
• 1 tbsp: mixed herbs
• 1 tsp: Dried / fresh Rosemary
• 1 medium:  Onion sliced
• 1 sliced Cherry wine Tomato
• Few pickled Olives sliced (optional)
• 4 to 5 Fresh basil leaves
• Sea salt to taste

Method :

•  To a mixing bowl add the flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Making sure that salt doesn't come in direct contact with the yeast.
  
•  Give the dry ingredients a good mix. Add in the lukewarm water and quarter cup of olive oil. Knead them to a soft sticky yet pliable dough.
  
•  Pat the dough onto greased baking pan of choice. I divided the dough into halves and baked two medium focaccia instead of one large.
  
•  Keep it covered in a warm place until its doubled in volume.
  
•  Add a generous amount of olive oil and create dents by poking with the tips of your fingers.
•  Add the toppings of choice. Here I used sliced cherry vine tomato, purple onion, pickled olives in addition to the dry herb seasoning, sea salt, crushed pepper and chilli flakes.
  
•  Bake this at 220 degree Celsius for 18 to 20 minutes until a light golden crust is formed.
•  Top it with fresh basil and leave this in hot turned off oven for couple of minutes.
  
•  Cool this golden baked on a wire rack for few miutes.
•  Slice and serve along soup of choice.
  
• Now this is what I was talking about ..

The crispy tops with soft and spongy centres make this stand out from the rest.

How temping does that look !

Perfect dish to feed the hungry crowds...

Points to Remember

•  Here i used rapid rise yeast so added it directly to the flour. In case of using any other yeast do proof it before adding to the flour mix.
• Yeast shouldn't come in direct contact with the salt as it can kill its action.
• This feeds around six adults.
• Toppings can be adjusted to preference and availability.
•  I added few squeezes of freshly made pesto for that additional punch. It is totally optional but this does multiply its taste.
  

"Give this simple recipe a try and do share your feedback" :)