Sage Focaccia

Hi, this recipe is from The View From A Great Island Blog by Sue Moran. Also, I added olive oil to the dough and gave it an extra proof due to some of the comments on the original blog post and my past experience with focaccia loaves. This gave the bread a much softer, more airy texture and will keep it more moist for longer too.

This bread was 'outstanding' according to my Dad: a soft, spongy texture with air bubbles like you see on the TV. In short, I think can say that the second proof and addition of olive oil into the dough is well worth it. In terms of taste, the sage is an interesting addition to the loaf, and it adds an almost minty flavour according to my Mum, but definitely not a bad one, and was a great way to use up our leftover fresh herbs.

Also, the good thing about focaccia, is that you can add practically anything to the dough, so if sage isn't your favourite thing, why not try adding extras to it, to try to make it more exciting for you? As this is a savoury bread (but could be made sweet if you omit the sage and swap salt for sugar), you could have a sage and feta focaccia or a sage and onion or a sage and black olive etc... All would be good combinations to try!

And lastly, if you find that you really enjoy making focaccia why not try some others like: this rosemary one or make a meal out of if with this traybake.

Enjoy!

Hazel :)

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Dietary Info:

-Vegan

-Vegetarian

-No Nuts

-Dairy Free

-Contains Gluten

{Due to the nature of this dish being mainly gluten, I would suggest following a gluten-free focaccia recipe and then adding the sage on top of that. Make sure to read my notes too though as I ended up double proofing mine.}

-Snack

-Side Dish

Prep Time: 10 mins {Also, at least one hour proofing.}

Cook Time: 25 mins

Total Time: 35 mins

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients:

-1/4 ounce / 7g package active dry yeast 

-2 cups / 475ml warm water (110-115°F / 45°C)

-2 tsp salt {This is just normal table salt.}

-4 cups / 500g all purpose flour

-1/4 cup / 60ml or 6tbsp olive oil {I used extra virgin olive oil.}

-fresh sage leaves, for topping {You need about 5-10g (including stalk weight).}

Method:

1: In a large mixing bowl, combine the yeast, salt, and warm water. {Make sure it is large, as this recipe makes more dough than you would expect.}

2: Mix in the flour, starting with 2 cups, and then adding the rest, until a sticky, shaggy dough forms. {I sieved in the flour: hold a sieve above the bowl with one hand and pour the flour through with the other. Also, I added probably 1/2 - 1 cup of extra flour to the dough, I then added enough olive oil to make the dough 'sticky' and 'shaggy' again. This makes it more moist and focaccia-like, rather than flat-bread-style.}

3:Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, {I forgot to oil the bowl as I was just reusing the one from step one. It didn't matter too much, but the dough did stick to the bowl a bit, but not enough to be a problem.} cover, {I used a tea towel, but cling film will work too.} and allow to rise for about 1 hour, until at least doubled in size and very bubbly. {Put it in a warm place, I use our airing cupboard. I left mine for about 2hrs.} Preheat oven to 400°F / 200°C / 180°C fan / gas 6 while it is rising. {If you are going to do a second proof, don't preheat your oven yet, as you will be wasting electricity.}

4: Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Turn the focaccia dough onto the lined baking sheet and gently spread it out with your fingers into a large rectangle or oval.

5: Dipping your fingers in the olive oil, make dimples over the top of the bread, and top with a bit more flaky salt. Note: don't be shy with the olive oil, it gives the bread great flavor and creates a crunchy crust.

6: Gently press the fresh sage leaves on top of the bread. {At this point, I loosely covered the focaccia in cling film: you don't want it to be tight as the dough will rise up, and popped it back into a warm place for another hour.}

7: Bake for about 25 minutes until puffed and starting to turn golden. {When you tap the bottom of the loaf, it should sound hollow.}

While you're here...

I have a Pinterest for all my recipes, where you can save them to boards for the future and categorise them into different types of recipe e.g Sunday Dinners, picnic ideas etc. My account is @hazellikestocook, or find the link below. Also, I have a whole blog post explaining this in more detail here and https://hazelscookingandbakingblog.blogspot.com/2021/02/pinterest.html. 

https://pin.it/5xDvARk - my profile

This recipe:

https://pin.it/6VVJPer