Wrinkled fingers and toes, sand in every nook and cranny, lunch sacks with empty oil-stained white baker’s paper, and serpentine hair that could pass as a sun-bleached mop head—all signs of a successful outing to the beach. Our daily trips to the Adriatic’s cool, blue waters were welcome escapes from the city heat during family visits to Southern Italy. Our little beach— perhaps with a bit of fantasy I like to think it was just ours—was a short drive away in a small stick-shift car packed to the brim with people. Family car after family car, we’d speedily caravan through the small towns toward our respite. The few, yet crucial, stops along the way had a single purpose: to fill our sacks with baked goods meant to sustain our time away. My favorite among these, by a long measure, was a simple sourdough focaccia.
With hardly a second thought, we’d buy several full sheet trays of the golden bread. The baker would cut the thick slabs into manageable pieces and wrap the entire thing in the white paper, sealed shut with a shiny sticker— conceivably an attempt to elevate the humble, yet utterly otherworldly, snack.
You see, focaccia is a rustic and simple affair: it’s a slab of naturally leavened dough topped with simple ingredients, any vegetable in season, olive oil, and salt. Some focaccia are soft, and some are crispy (my preference), sometimes thick and sometimes thin. There are as many variations across Italy as there are dialects. The beauty of this bread is that you can make it with little effort. First, mix the dough in the morning, then let it rise during the day, and finally bake it just before dinner. If you have a ripe sourdough starter, salt, and olive oil, you’re hours away from golden focaccia—and all the wonderful olfactory impressiveness therein—baking in your home oven.
Because sourdough focaccia has so few ingredients, the ones you use should be of the utmost quality. Use vegetables in season and the highest quality olive oil you can find. In this post, I worked with Jovial’s Olio Nuovo, a fresh-pressed olive oil from the Valpantena area of Northern Italy. It isn’t easy to source exclusively fresh-pressed olive oil. Usually, this oil is blended with aged oil, balancing the flavor profile to make it consistent with other offerings throughout the year. This fresh oil has a delicate flavor but a balanced, upfront fruitiness as well. If you’ve never had the chance to try an oil like this, you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Flour Selection
With this naturally leavened focaccia, I wanted little sourness in the result. While I typically include whole grains in most of my recipes, I wanted the flavor of this classic bread to be mild so the taste of the olive oil and fresh toppings pop. Removing all the whole grain flour from initial trials hit the spot.
For this formula, I blended 30% high protein flour (about 13% protein) with 70% all-purpose flour (11-12% protein). The high protein flour helps give this highly-hydrated dough strength and structure—and 30% is just enough.
Focaccia Toppings
This simple sourdough focaccia can be topped with just about anything you can imagine. My favorite is rosemary, chopped cherry tomatoes, pitted kalamata olives, coarse sea salt, and good quality olive oil. Traditionally, Ligurian focaccia (and as shown in the recent Salt Fat Acid Heat episode on Netflix) is topped with a salty brine. Instead, I love dusting the top with coarse sea salt: the chunky crystals bring unexpected pops of flavor.
Here are a few more ideas:
- Tomatoes, capers, oregano, garlic, olive oil
- Thinly sliced Yukon gold potatoes tossed with coarse salt. Let the potatoes drain over a colander for 15 minutes to help remove some water. Then top in addition to coarse sea salt, fresh thyme, and olive oil
- Sliced and olive oil-marinated red onions, brined olives, and fresh chopped tomatoes
- Grated hard cheeses of all kinds (parmesan, pecorino, etc.), rosemary, olive oil
A Simple Sourdough Focaccia Recipe
Special Equipment
For this sourdough focaccia, you will need a round or rectangular pan for baking. I like to use a deep pan (as opposed to a baking sheet) so the focaccia doesn’t dry out too fast in the oven. My preferred pans:
- 9″ x 13″ USA Pan Rectangular Cake Pan
- Two 10 x 2.25″ LloydPans Round Pans (use the same dough weight as in this recipe, just divide in half and place each half into one pan)
Both pans have a nonstick interior, and they conduct heat exceptionally well, imparting a beautiful crust on the naturally leavened focaccia.
Vitals
| Total Dough Weight | 1,200 grams |
| Sourdough Starter | 19.00% |
| Hydration | 76.00% (78.00% with olive oil) |
| Yield | One 1200g focaccia |
Total Formula
This table shows the entire quantity and baker’s percentages for each ingredient. If you’d like to make two large focaccia (or four smaller ones), double everything in the table below.
There’s no specific levain build for this focaccia, just use some of your sourdough starter when it’s ripe (when you’d normally give it a refreshment). See my post on the differences between a levain and sourdough starter for more information on the two preferments.
Target final dough temperature (FDT) is 76°F (24°C).
| Weight | Ingredient | Baker’s Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 423g | All-purpose flour (King Arthur All-Purpose Flour) | 70.00% |
| 181g | High protein bread flour, malted (King Arthur Bread Flour) | 30.00% |
| 12g | Extra virgin olive oil (Jovial Olio Nuovo Organic Olive Oil) | 2.00% |
| 459g | Water | 76.00% |
| 11g | Salt | 1.80% |
| 115g | Sourdough starter (100% hydration) | 19.00% |
Method
Mix – 9:00 a.m.
This dough can be mixed by hand (I would use the slap and fold technique) or with a stand mixer like a KitchenAid or Famag spiral mixer.
To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add both the flours, water, salt, and ripe sourdough starter (hold back the olive oil until later in mixing).
Mix on speed 1 for 1 to 2 minutes until incorporated. Then, mix on speed 2 for 5 minutes until dough strengthens and clumps around the dough hook. Let the dough rest in the mixing bowl for 10 minutes.
Next, turn the mixer on to speed 1 and slowly drizzle the olive oil into the bowl while mixing. Once all of the olive oil is absorbed, turn the mixer up to speed 2 for 1 to 2 minutes until the dough comes back together.
Transfer your dough to a bulk fermentation container and cover.
This highly hydrated and enriched dough is wet and loose, it won’t strengthen to the same degree as a typical bread dough.
As you can see below on the left, the dough is still very wet and chunky immediately after mixing. However, it’s not falling apart or soupy. Please resist the temptation to add more flour at this point. As you can see below in the image at the right, by the middle of bulk fermentation, it’ll strengthen after several sets of stretch and folds (see my guide on how to stretch and fold sourdough for more information).
Transfer the dough to a covered container for bulk fermentation.
Bulk Fermentation – 9:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.
Give the dough 4 sets of stretches and folds (fold a side of the dough up and over to the other side, and then rotate the container to perform 4 folds per set), starting 30 minutes after mixing, and a set every 30 minutes after that.
Proof – 11:15 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.
Transfer the dough to a deep rectangular pan that’s been greased with olive oil. If you don’t have a pan with a silicone liner, make sure to heavily oil the pan’s interior so the focaccia doesn’t stick during baking.
At 76-78°F (24-25°C), the dough will proof for 4 hours. This time period is flexible and dependent on the temperature: if it’s cooler, let it proof longer, and conversely, if it’s warm, you might be able to bake sooner.
Every 30 minutes for the first hour, uncover the pan and gently stretch the dough with wet hands to the pan’s edges to encourage it to fill the pan. The dough will naturally spread out during this proofing period, so it’s unnecessary to spread the dough aggressively. Once the dough is mostly spread to the edges, cover the pan and proof for 4 hours.
OVERNIGHT OPTION: After two hours in proof, cover the rectangular pan with an airtight cover and transfer to the fridge. The next day, take out the dough and let it come to room temperature, and continue with the Top & Bake step below.
The rectangular pan I use fits perfectly inside my B&T Dough Proofer. I keep it inside the proofer, covered with reusable plastic, and set to 78°F (25°C) until ready to bake.
About 30 minutes before you anticipate the sourdough focaccia dough being ready, preheat the oven to 450°F (232°C) with a rack placed in the bottom third (a baking stone is not necessary).
Top & Bake – 3:15 p.m.
First, dimple the unadorned dough with wet fingers. Make sure the dimples are evenly spaced and go all the way down to the bottom of the pan. Then, drizzle on 1-2 tablespoons of your extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with herbs and coarse sea salt. If using other toppings, add them now as well—I like to press them into the dough gently.
Bake the focaccia in the oven at 450°F (232°C) until deeply colored on top, about 30 minutes. Rotate the pan front-to-back halfway through this time. Keep an eye on it during the last 5 minutes and pull it out if it’s coloring too quickly, or leave it in longer if you’d like it a little darker.
Let the focaccia cool a few minutes in the pan, then transfer to a cooling rack. It’s fantastic warm from the oven, and best on the day of baking, but it’ll keep well for a couple of days loosely wrapped in foil (reheat under the broiler before serving).
Conclusion
When I topped the pillowy focaccia dough, the aroma of fruity olive oil and chopped rosemary was captivating. Once the pan was slid into the oven, my house gradually filled with the most intoxicating perfume as the dough rose high and the edges began to crisp. The melange of baking dough, toasted herbs, olive oil, and briny olives had me checking the oven frequently—as if checking on it would expedite things. Sit tight, wait for it to finish, I told myself as I gently slapped my hand from opening the door yet again.
Thanks to the copious addition of high-quality olive oil, both in the mix and on top of the dough, causes the dough to turn crispy and take on a beautiful golden hue. Biting through a slice first provides a faint resistance, then gives way to a soft and ultra-tender interior. A perfect mix of flavors and textures—an experience best savored, as if you’re at the beach without an agenda.
This simple and rustic sourdough focaccia, made with a naturally leavened dough and topped with just the right balance of ingredients, brings me right back to the blue waters of the Adriatic; the sun in my eyes and thick, crunchy slices of bread eaten with haste. The only things absent are the beautiful white wrapping paper and all those little bits of sand that seem to work their way into just about everything—yea, I can do without that.
If you’re looking for more focaccia-goodness, check out my sourdough focaccia Pugliese which has potato added into the dough, for even more chew, softness, and deliciousness.
Thanks so much to Jovial for supplying me with their wonderful olive oil and sponsoring this simple sourdough focaccia recipe! As usual, the content and opinions here are my own.
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A Simple Sourdough Focaccia
- Prep Time: 6 hours
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 6 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 1 focaccia
- Cuisine: Italian
Description
This easy to make and delicious focaccia comes together all in one day using your already ripe sourdough starter. Top with tomatoes, olives, rosemary, and coarse sea salt—or, really, anything you have in the kitchen that’s fresh and sounds delicious!
Ingredients
- 423g all-purpose flour
- 181g high-protein bread flour
- 12g extra virgin olive oil
- 459g water
- 11g salt
- 115g ripe sourdough starter
Instructions
- Mix (9:00 a.m.)
This dough can be mixed by hand or with a stand mixer (like a KitchenAid). To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, add both the flours, water, salt, and ripe sourdough starter (hold back the olive oil until later in mixing). Mix on speed 1 for 1 to 2 minutes until incorporated. Then, mix on speed 2 for 5 minutes until dough strengthens and clumps around the dough hook. Let the dough rest in the mixing bowl for 10 minutes.Next, turn the mixer on to speed 1 and slowly drizzle the olive oil into the bowl while mixing. Once all of the olive oil is absorbed, turn the mixer up to speed 2 for 1 to 2 minutes until the dough comes back together. Transfer your dough to a bulk fermentation container and cover. - Bulk fermentation (9:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.)
Give the dough 4 sets of stretch and folds at 30-minute intervals, where the first set starts 30 minutes after the start of bulk fermentation. - Proof (11:15 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.)
Liberally oil the inside of a 9×13″ rectangular pan or two 10″ diameter circular baking pans. Gently scrape the dough out of the bulk fermentation directly into the rectangular pan (or onto a work surface, divide in two, and place each in a circular pan).The dough will proof in the pan for 4 hours. Every 30 minutes for the first hour, uncover the pan and gently stretch the dough with wet hands to the pan’s edges to encourage it to fill the pan. The dough will naturally spread out during this proofing period, so it’s unnecessary to spread the dough aggressively. Once the dough is mostly spread to the edges, cover the pan and let it proof for the remainder of the 4 hours. About 30 minutes before the end of the 4-hour proof period, preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C) with an empty rack in the bottom third. - Top & Bake (3:15 p.m.)
When your oven is preheated, dimple the top of the dough all over with wet fingers. Then, liberally drizzle on olive oil to cover the surface of the dough. Spread on chopped herbs and coarse sea salt. Bake until golden on the top and bottom, about 30 minutes. Let the focaccia cool in the pan, then transfer to a cooling rack. It’s wonderful straight from the oven, and best the day it’s baked.
Notes
Overnight proof option: mid-way through the 4-hour proof, place the covered pan with dough in the refrigerator to proof overnight. The next day, take the dough out, bring it up to room temp, finish proofing until well-risen and bubbly, and continue with the Top & Bake step.
If you use this recipe, tag @maurizio on Instagram so I can take a look!
724 Comments
These look so so beautiful!
Thank you 🙂
Followed recipe to a T, but my dough never got billowy. It remained a bit sticky, and when I tried to do dimples, they just smoothed back out into the dough. If this a symptom of overproofing or underproofing? Or perhaps overhydrating? 😳
Same thing seems to be happening with me! I am just about to start the 2hr rise so we’ll see what happens but I am skeptical. I am leaning towards overhydrating (should not have added the extra 50g of water) bc my dough looked great before but wasn’t “wet” so I added the water and it would not hold shape after that.
See my reply above, Brie!
Thanks! I am a novice baker so troubleshooting is really what I’m working on learning now. I’m happy that one of your suspicions is what I suspected. I’m going to cook mine anyways and see what happens 🤷♀️
Just want to report back that dialing down the hydration a bit worked beautifully for me! Second focaccia was a smashing success! 😍
My guess is over hydration and/or lack of dough strength. I’d say drop the water in the recipe 5% and you should notice a much stronger dough (with more rise, likely)!
Oh man, I’m at the same point with the same results. I wish I had read these comments first. I only have access to AP flour currently so it seems I likely over-hydrated. This is my first time making focaccia, so all of the pictures of the dough really helped, but I did think I still had the right mix by the time I started the stretch and folds. I also did add the olive oil at the beginning so perhaps that also affected the rise.
Same here. I’m pretty sure it was over-hydrated. I was doing 2 at once and wonder if I just botched the measurements. I’m waiting to see if it is edible at all and then I’ll try again another day!
I forgot to transfer the dough into the deep pan and stretch it again. I left it in the bowl for a few hours. I just moved it to the pan and stretched it once and set the timer for 30 minutes. will it be okay
Yes!
Hey Maurizio! Your bread baking has helped keep me sane during the quarantine, thank you! We are having trouble finding high protein bread flour at the store so we are relying heavily on whole wheat flour because it is more available. How would you adapt this recipe to use both AP and Whole Wheat flour?
Hey, Caroline! No worries, we’re all running into tight times right now. You could sub out the bread flour for whole wheat, or halve that whole wheat section for ww and all purpose flour.
Hi Maurizio- I have made this recipe a bunch of times and it is DELICIOUS! However, only 1x have I had it be really light and fluffy. Of course, I’m trying to figure out what I did right the time it worked so beautifully. I’m thinking it is one of 2 things- My starter is just different than yours and isn’t translating well, OR I am using the Kitchen Aid wrong- maybe over mixing the dough? I see below that someone thinks it would be helpful to have more detailed instructions on the setting and time you mix the dough on the KA. I’ve also only done dough by hand and so not really good w/ the KA yet. Any details you could offer would be great! Also, my starter is about 2.5 years old, so I think it is probably strong enough. This time I waited to mix the dough until the starter floated in water to ensure that it was at peak. Any thoughts?
Hey, Greg. I replied back to the person asking about mixing, scroll down to see the (lengthy) reply if you’re interested. I highly dough you’re over mixing the dough unless it becomes very stiff and taut. This is a pretty highly hydrated dough, it’d be hard to over mix in my experience. If your starter is rising and falling predictably each day with signs of strong fermentation, it’s just fine. Definitely use it at it’s peak for this dough and try to keep the dough itself warm. The key to a light interior is strong fermentation and minimal handling near the end when it’s in the final pan rising. Just let it be after it mostly fills the pan, this will give it the space/time it needs to fill the pan and rise up nice and tall. You won’t see much rise until the end of the proof, really.
Read through that mixing comment below and see if that helps as well!
Hi Maurizio. Have you ever experimented topping your focaccia with a brine near the end of your final proof (/while oven is preheating) to keep the focaccia tender and the crust thin? I’ve come across the technique in a few recipes and I’m curious to try – I have your dough resting in my fridge for its final proof as I type!
I haven’t Jennifer, but it’s something I need to try! That said, my crust is always so thin with this, every time I make it I am so apprehensive to change anything 🙂
Hi Maurizio! Do you still recommend the “Bakers Math” silver kitchen scale, or is the Hario scale shown in the photos above better? Love your website! Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge with the world.
Thanks, Annie! I still recommend the MyWeigh linked on my baking tools page. The Hario is a nice scale but it’s more of a coffee scale (fine precision) 🙂 Happy to help and happy baking!
Hi Maurizio, we just ate this focaccia for dinner. I had made it for the first time today and loved the fact that I now have a fourth recipe to use up excess starter.
Unfortunately I wasn’t as impressed with the outcome as I had hoped for. Like several others said before me, my dough didn’t really rise or become puffy. There were some bubbles and it rose a little, but even after 6 hours it didn’t look quite ready. Granted the temperature in the house was 75 at most. Since it was dinner time I went ahead and baked it. The focaccia turned out to have quite a sturdy, rustic crust and the inside texture was more sourdough bread than focaccia. I baked it exactly as instructed. The crumb was open and fairly light, but again, more like a sourdough loaf than expected. May be I over proofed it? But what about the crustiness? Is there anyway to get a more delicate crust? Thanks as always!
Hey, Birgit! This should turn out light and airy, so I’m sorry to hear it didn’t work out for you. I’d say next go try to use a bit of your starter right when it is mature, if you didn’t this last time. When I bake this I get a light and thin crust, with an open interior. If your dough is over hydrated and/or under strengthened, you might not see sufficient rise or bubbles. Try dropping the hydration a bit and give it a bit more strength (through kneading, mixing, and/or stretch and folds during bulk) to see if you can get more rise. Also, be sure the pan isn’t overly large or it’ll spread wide and thin instead of staying thick.
Let me know how that next attempt goes!
Thanks Maurizio! The starter was very mature, may be even a little too much so (12-13 hours old). I used the Kitchen Aid to knead the dough for probably 10 minutes and it looked and felt beautiful and not too wet. I might keep a closer eye on the proofing temperature next time. The pan is the same one you use. I will try again and attach a picture next time. Thank you!
Hi – quick note… I looked on the KitchenAid site because I’m using one for this also, and it said never knead anything in the mixer for more than 5-6 minutes total mixing time. Maybe that’s the issue?
Ha! I love that you looked that up Jackie! I really wasn’t sure how long to leave the machine on and assumed the longer the better. 5-6 minutes is it for next time. Thank you!
It’s definitely possible to over mix this dough if mixed too fast for too long in a KA!
Hi Maurizio — can I ask you to speak for a moment about overworking dough? I’m sure it’s a topic deserving of its own article (and I’d very much appreciate that!) but for now, for this particular focaccia dough, since you said you often use a KA stand mixer, what sort of rule of thumb do you follow? I’m thinking about guidelines for speed setting, amount of time, whether you use the regular paddle, flex-edge paddle, dough hook, etc. I’m generally very interested in this topic as I suspect I’m often going overboard with my KA mixer, but want to have an idea of a starting place. Thanks so much for everything!
Yes, definitely a deep topic. I almost always use the dough hook for bread-related items unless the hook is having trouble mixing. Some super wet doughs or enriched doughs benefit from the paddle, at least in the beginning until the dough comes together — a good example are my Bomboloni.
I usually mix a dough like this until it starts to smooth out some and begins pulling from the sides o the mixing bowl, it’ll start to bunch up around the dough hook as it gains strength. If it’s very wet, though, it might never reach this point in the mixer. The general rule I like to follow is to think about what I’m going to do during bulk: if I plan to give it a few stretch and fold sets then I don’t need to fully mix the dough (by fully I mean full development, passing the windowpane test — which I rarely do with a brea dough). I mix the dough just enough to get to the point where a few sets of s&f will finish it off and get it strong enough. I realize these are very vague and general terms, it’s hard to convey such a tactile thing with words.
The good thing here is we can always use s&f during bulk to correct for mixing: if we under mixed a bit, just give it another set or two of folds during bulk until it’s strong enough. Conversely, if we mixed too long and the dough is hard to s&f, stop there, even if you had more sets planned.
For this dough I highly doubt you’re over mixing unless you’re really pushing it. The dough is very wet and slack, and if you did mix for a long time and it started bunching around the hook, that’s fine, just stop there.
Hope this helps!
Much appreciated!
Can I use discarded starter for this recipe??
I make this focaccia with my starter directly, so yes you can certainly do that. I’d recommend, though, you try to time it so you’re using your starter right when it matures and not too long after.
I tried my first focaccia yesterday. Everything seemed to be going perfectly, and then I never got a bubbly rise even after extra hours – this was all in my proofer. There was a rise, a few small bubbles and that’s it – the dough was very sticky. After all that time I decided to attempt to bake it. When I pushed my fingers in to make holes the whole thing deflated, and I still baked it. I want to try again with the pan you suggest. My experience of focaccia in Italy is from Liguria and visiting the focacciarias daily – it was amazing, so light and fluffy. Any ideas?
Ah bummer, sorry to hear that Cheryl. It sounds like it was over proofed and/or over hydrated. I would try reducing the hydration of the dough by 5% and then cut back just a bit on that final proof time, perhaps 30 minutes, and see how that bakes up next!
This recipe looks delicious! However, my dough behaves kind of strangely when I try to make it. My house is a bit cooler, ~72F, so the bulk ferment takes a bit longer. I do the bulk ferment completely in a small cambro instead of half in a container and then half in the pan. It takes a bit longer, maybe 6 hours to get to a decently poofy state. At that point I dump it out and stretch it in the 9×13, but it seems to stop rising at that point. Gas bubbles form on the surface, but the dough itself doesn’t seem to lighten or rise, even if I let it for 6+ hours. Is there something I’m doing wrong?
It’s hard to say but it might be that the dough has gone a bit too far in bulk stage and there’s little left by the time you stretch it out to fit the pan (which will degas the dough). I would say try doing half in container and half in pan if possible!
Hello Maurizio. I’m planning to make this in the morning. I’m going to try using the mix master instead of by hand. My hope is that it will strengthen the dough and help it rise. Also, my sourdough should be at peak so I’m hoping that will help, too. Any tips on using the mix master for this recipe? Is my assumption abt strengthening and helping rise based in reality? 😋
I’m not sure what a mix master is, but a stand mixer will work very well with this recipe — I use my KitchenAid to mix this dough very often!
Great. Thanks so much for the quick reply!
Can I leave the dough in the refrigerator for 2 days instead of overnight? It is Saturday night and I really want to bake it on Monday
You’ll likely get less rise and a more-sour result, but it might be doable (really depends on how fermented your dough is)! If it were me and I didn’t feel like baking it, I’d try 🙂
Thank you! I’ll give it a try.
Thanks so much for this Maurizio! I just made Samin’s recipe last week after watching It’s Alive! and immediately got to wondering if you had a sourdough spin on focaccia.
What are some good principles to hold in mind as I look to modify this recipe (or any) and add more whole grain flour – say, 15%? My first guesses would be to swap the AP flour with whole wheat, lengthen proof by an hour or so (or add in an autolyse), and up the water content if needed. But how do you think about this? Thank you so much!
I do indeed! I make this recipe very, very often and it couldn’t be easier. I’d say if you’re increasing the wg flour (which I’ve done) you’d actually want to expect to shorten the proof: you’ll likely see more fermentation activity as whole grain flour has more nutrients present because the bran and germ as intact in the flour. Just wing it, though, and bake it when you think it’s bubbly and risen enough. Even if you go a little over, it’ll still be great.
All in all, I think it’s a great idea to add in some wg flour! Have fun and enjoy.
Can we use 100% all purpose flour?
Yes, that would work well. I would suggest if you do this to hold back a little of the water in this recipe, perhaps 25-50g, and see how the dough feels when you’re mixing. There are always hydration adjustments to be done, but using all AP flour might mean it’s a little less able to take on the same water content (and this is just fine!).
Thanks a ton! Will make this ASAP! Love your best sourdough RECIPE too. In fact have two loaves for a cold bulk in my fridge right now!
Right on, so glad to hear all that. Thanks and happy baking, Anuja!
Making this now – hopefully I can get some feedback, but I am ok winging it… Question: Essentially there is a four hour bulk rest after the initial set of stretch and folds?I say so because the timing states that we transfer to a pan, and let it rest for the remaining two hours, but then* it states to also let it rest for an additional two hours… so four hours of dormant time? (the only difference being that the first two hours we are helping it reach the corners?). -TheBeginnersBreadBox
p.s. Thank you so so much for your site. I love it so much! This is the “what else can we do with sourdough starter” mecca! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Yes, that’s right. That final proof time, though, is variable based on how the dough is doing and the temperature in your kitchen. If the dough is super bubbly and weak looking/feeling, you can bake sooner. In other words, it’s not a strict 2 hour proof, shorten or lengthen this final time based on how the dough is doing!
Made this today and it turned out absolutely fantastic! My family devoured it. Only change I’ll make next time is to use parchment paper as I had a bit of trouble getting it out of the pan after. But seriously soooooo good. Thanks for the great recipe and step by step pictures/instructions, so helpful!
Glad to hear it, Rachael! I actually made this myself this weekend as well — it goes fast 🙂 I really like the USA Pan I have for this, it makes removal super easy. Otherwise, yes parchment works very well. Thanks for reporting back!
I’ll have to look into that pan! I saw you make it on IG and I had to have some haha!
This recipe has been on repeat in my house for the last 4 months or so. My fiance loves when I send him to work with sandwiches using this bread! We recently made a pizza with it and it turned out incredible. Love all your recipes!
Thanks for that feedback, Gianna, it’s great to hear it’s been a staple there in your kitchen. Coincidentally, I’m mixing a batch of this up for myself today! You’re right, it makes some killer sandwiches — in fact that just sorted out my lunch for today. 🙂 Happy baking!
Hi Maurizio, This is my 4th time making this recipe & although it turns out delicious everytime, mine does not have as many bubbles in it.
I am following the recipe exact & am doing the bulk fermentation in my B&T dough proofer so it has the consistent temperature. It looks similar to yours in every step of your photos except the photo under the ‘Top & Bake’ section where you have the massive bubbles before you put the toppings on.
Any suggestions?!
It’s hard to say, but it could be the level of fermentation in your dough. Those bubbles form in my dough when it’s well risen, super gassy, and when I push my fingers down into it to dimple, they push up and through in other areas. If you have good rise (with strong fermentation!) and your dough is strong enough (sufficient mixing/kneading/stretch and folds) it should pop up here and there!
Thank you! Is there a way to increase the level of fermentation in my dough to make it stronger? Does that have to do with my starter? Or should I try the bulk fermentation longer?
Both could be an answer. Definitely be sure your starter is fermenting very strongly and it’s mature when you use it — this is important. From there, if you keep your dough a little warmer this might help bulk fermentation.
Hi Maurizio, great recipe! I’ve made it twice and it’s come out incredible. My only issue is the focaccia getting stuck in the pan. Takes a lot of work to get it out. Almost is cemented in there. Aside from heavy oil in the pan, any suggestions? Thanks!
Awesome to hear that, Joe! Yes, that’s an issue if your pan doesn’t have silicone as a liner. Many people have found using parchment paper helps immensely!
Actually, sorry about the wrong description — the Manresa bread that I mentioned isn’t really focaccia…it’s more like a shallow wide bread (~ 2″ high in the middle) and based on how it’s shaped and cut, it’s obviously made in a wide shallow cake (or similar) pan…maybe I’ll take a photo and send it to you next time I’m there (unfortunately, it’s not pictured on their website). And for true focaccia, I now see that Jovial has a whole grain Einkorn recipe for it (and that’s what made me realize that the Manresa bread is really not focaccia). But I’d still love to know if you’ve tried making Einkorn focaccia and your results. Thanks again!
Hi Maurizio:
1) Have you tried making a 100% einkorn sourdough focaccia? Manresa Bread (operated by David Kinch of Michelin*** Manresa in Los Gatos, CA) makes one and it’s very good. I’d love to know how to make it. I believe that it’s made with whole grain (at least partly) and they told me that it only contains einkorn, water and olive oil.
2) I could have sworn that at one point you posted a picture of a cookie that you’d recently enjoyed in Italy — I believe that it was a nut-flour based type — and I’m trying to remember the name of it. If it was here that I saw it, would you mind pointing me to that blog post. I looked through several of the recent ones but couldn’t find it. Or maybe it was an Instagram post?
Thanks for spreading the bread-y love and joy!
Ginger:
1) I haven’t! But based on your other comment it sounds like it’s not a true focaccia. I’ll have to think about how to do this with einkorn, it would definitely be possible, but I’d expect it to be a little more flat and less airy, but super delicious I’m sure.
2) Yes, I did post a picture of cookies from southern Italy here. I made them here in my kitchen from the amazing cookbook Italian South by Katie Parla.
Hope that helps and I’ll give that einkorn focaccia shot sometime (I make my focaccia often)!
Thanks Maurizio! And to confuse matters more, at the bakery I believe that they’d said that it was all Einkorn, but I just now read a post with photo about it on Blue Bird (Oregon) where they buy their einkorn flour, and it clearly contains another wheat type too. It’s very good, but not 100% einkorn.
Yes, if I were to approach this recipe using einkorn, I’d likely do a mix of einkorn and traditional wheat, just to retain some of the familiar texture one expects with focaccia. Although, maybe it’s possible to go 100%, I just haven’t tried (yet)!
Hi Maurizio –
Thanks for the excellent recipe! A really easy, straightforward formula, right down to the timings – and I’m at sea level, not at 5000 feet like you are :). I was a little surprised by how wet the dough seemed, since I’ve made 80% hydration breads with similar ingredient lists that were much less extensible. It barely needed any stretching to fill the pan. My one deviation was to use my whole wheat starter instead of the white one, which added a skosh of extra flavor and made the dough just a little denser.
I made this yesterday, topped with rosemary, Maldon salt, and kalamata olives. We used it for awesome end-of-summer farmer’s market Caprese sandwiches – tomatoes, basil, mozzarella, and shallots (for the balsamic dressing) all straight from the farmers’ market, all on the just-out-of-the-oven focaccia. Delicious!
Thanks for the feedback, Jeff! I saw your post on IG as well — it came out fantastic. Yes, this is a very wet dough and the added olive oil adds to the delicate nature of it, but this means a more tender result in my experience. Now you’re making me hungry with all those toppings!
Thanks again and happy baking!
Hi Maurizio,
Thank you for this recipe. I tried it today, the focaccia turned out quite nice, even though I couldn’t follow the exact timings for the stretch and folds.
You’re very welcome, Deepa! Glad to hear that — yes it’s quite a forgiving process, even if you pushed bulk further it just seems to get better and better. Enjoy!
Hello Maurizio- when the dough is in the greased pan during bulk fermentation and before the proofing stage, should the greased pan be covered with saran wrap? Thanks!
Yes, I do keep it covered with a reusable cover (so it’s airtight)!