This style of Focaccia was disigned to have more flavor than the recipes
I have seen. Perhaps this style is around, though.
The basic idea is the use of Kaiser dough as the base to give the bread
a crisp crust and maist body. The ingredients for seasoning can
obviously be altered for individual desires. The size of each loaf is
also quite variable. My loaf is about 5-6". I cut it horizontally like
a sandwich bun. I use a K-TEC machine, using 5C of water to make a batch.
That makes approximately 23 - seven oz. loaves. The bread freezes quite
well.
The Kaiser dough recipe comes from Betsy Openeer's book-THE BREAD BOOK.
German-style Kaiser rolls:
1 1/2 T Instant yeast or 2 T active dry yeast
2 1/2 C water
2 T vegetable shortening
6-7 C unbleached bread flour
3 egg whites (room temperature)
seasoning that I use:
Ingredients are not in specific measurements. They are added to taste.
Dried rosemary
basil
granulated garlic
garlic salt
1-medium sized medium chopped yellow or white onion.
corn meal
olive oil
Instructions:
Meringue the egg whites. Add water. Add shortening,salt, sugar and 3
C flour. Add instant yeast. Mix well. Mix in enough flour to form a mass
then knead dough, either by hand or with KA until medium stiff. Go
through the regular process to proof the dough till doubled.
The following procedure is my personal style; you just need a flat
surface to deal with it.
Place dough in half-sheet pan and spred out evenly. Brush with olive
oil sprinkle chopped onions evenly, sprinkle rosemar, basil, garlic
and garlic salt. Fold dough in thirds. With a dough scraper, chop the
entire mass into medium size pieces 1/2"-1 1/2" being sure to spread
the seasonings evenly as possible. Using a scale, use handfuls of the
dough to weigh a 7 oz. pile, then transfer to a half sheet pan. One half
sheet pan will hold 6 piles of dough. With each pile of dough, generally
shape like a bun. With each pile brush lightly with olive oil, vey
lightly sprinkle corn meal (almost as though it was to be used as a
garnish) and garlic salt. Let rise, then bake at 425 for approximately
25 minutes. The end product should be crispy and appealing to the
nose and the eye.
The procedure sounds complicated, but in reality, its not. You are
just taking that dough, adding the seasonings, chopping it up, then
making cow pies. The Focaccias that I have seen previously seem to have
one solid piece of bread with some seasoning on top. In my style, the
seasonings are much more integrated. You can eat it like a tear away
bread. The key for the crisp crust is the egg whites that have been
meringued.
This is my first posting. I'm really happy to have found the Digest.
Dan