Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Olives & Rosemary Focaccia

 I am a very reluctant bread maker. To hop, skip & run to the market for a fresh loaf appeals to me more than the agonizing time spent in waiting for the bread to prove & bake :P . A bread-baking newbie the walls of hesitation are strong, but the many tantalizing loaves of fellow bloggers are pushing me towards breaking them- and there is good news, I am slowly enjoying the many joys of a freshly minted home loaf !! Now take this focaccia for instance- there are so many posts on this bread with various combination of herbs & spices & toppings on the net ! The pictures of the various bookmarked recipes finally pushed me in to bringing this wonderful & delicious bread to my hearth.




Focaccia is an Italian oven-baked  flat bread.It's much like a poor man's pizza and can be made either sweet or savory. The bread is dented/punctured on the surface(to relieve bubbling over) just before baking and that gives it a distinct flat-bread look !! The best thing about this bread is it can be customized to what your taste buds crave for at that moment ;also it does not require much sweating and generally can not go wrong. I recommend it to any novice bread maker to give this a try and get over the initial fear of making breads ! That said, I was totally anxious the whole time,, I heaved a sigh of relief only after the first bite of the crunchy yet moist n fluffy piece of delight !


The recipe is courtesy a whole lot of blog-hopping & in particular The Purple Foodie ! The bread was well loved and enjoyed with & without a variety of accompaniments ! This bread will sure make many more appearances in my kitchen !!


What's in the bread :-

  • All Purpose Flour -  250 gms
  • Active Dry Yeast - 7 grams
  • Olive Oil - 40 to 50 ml
  • Salt - 1 tsp
  • Warm water - 125 to 150 ml- as required
  • Olives (Black & Green) - 1/2 cup - roughly chopped
  • Dried Rosemary  & Oregano - generous sprinkles
Here's How:-

Activating the dry yeast was the first step. Refer the pack for instructions  - I mixed little warm milk & sugar to get it frothy.
Now in a bowl, add the flour, salt, oil (retain a little for brushing over the dough later & for oiling the bread tin) & the warm water little by little(as required) and blend it to a sticky dough. 


Work on the dough for a good 10-15 minutes to achieve a nice elastic consistency.
Return the dough to a well-oiled bowl, keep it covered and allow it rise. Let it rest for a minimum hour or two.


Once the dough has risen, return it to a dusted surface and blend in the chopped olives and knead again for 5 more minutes.
Transfer the dough to the greased baking tin and spread the dough to the size of the tin/tray (with hands) ! Let it rest again for 10-15 minutes covered.
Now  dent/poke/dimple the dough with your finger tips gently and brush it with a coat of olive oil & sprinkle the dried rosemary & oregano generously.


In a preheated oven bake @ 220 C for 30 minutes or till it is golden brown.


Serve warm ! You can also store it in air-tight container once it is cooled completely !
Enjoy !


Linking it to Kankana's Hearth &Soul Blog Hop #51
Hearth and Soul Hop at Sunshine and Smile

30 comments:

  1. Yum ...am planing to try my hands on focaccia too ..

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  2. I always go for yeasted breads...the focaccia has turned out super good.

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  3. I have heard of this.bread. Looks yummy and crunchy.. Nice Pics..

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  4. looks warm & delicious! Home bakes takes satisfaction to a whole new plateau, no?

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  5. This looks fantastic. I love the smell of home made bread the best.

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  6. Looks wonderful and perfectly baked !!

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  7. Love the flavors in the Focaccia... Looks delish...

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  8. I absolutely love focaccia, this is delicious :)

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  9. Love focaccia, looks prefect and fabulous..

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  10. bread looks great..homemade is always the best :)

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  11. Looks delicious..perfectly baked

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  12. Great match Olive n rosemary, can't beat that..I've also bookmarked this many months back..Ur bread has come out well..Would love to have one of the slice from ur platter

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  13. Olive an rosemary focaccia looks awesome perfect, nice crumb and crust.

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  14. Wowwww... sounds delicious and tempting.. thanks for the awesome recipe.. :)

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  15. Excellent recipe,bread looks so inviting.

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  16. Nice recipe..and next time yor in Chennai do drop in a line..would love to say hi..

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  17. I love olives and I love focaccia, so this is a great combination1

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  18. Nothing smells better than home made bread baking. It looks delicious Priya!

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  19. the focacia looks good! Even Im hesitating to get into bread baking after my bun making flopped :P I'll give this a try :)

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  20. Delicious Focaccia priya..must have been very aromatic, while preparing it right..i can imagine..

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  21. Wonderful and interesting type of bread. Looks soft, spongy, yummy and perfect.

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