Summer eats: Fresh thyme and rosemary focaccia bread
We’re loving having our summer outdoors. The drinks on the patio, the lunches with friends, the catch up dinners with family…it’s great to catch up with everyone and to have the weather to do it!
But we’re starting to run a little low on appetiser ideas. We’ve done the classic melon and ham, the pretzels and crisps, the barbecued sausages and now we want something new and this focaccia bread recipe is the genius idea we’ve been waiting for!
You’ll need…
2 cloves garlic
2tsp dried oregano
1tbsp honey
460g all-purpose flour
1tsp fine sea salt
1/2tsp coarse sea salt
Black pepper
6tsp olive oil
2tbsp shaves parmesan
2tbsp butter
305g water
2 1/2tsp active dry yeast
1tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
1tbsp chopped fresh thyme
Heat your oven to 200C.
Chop your herbs and garlic into fine pieces.
Heat 4tbsp of olive oil in a pan over a medium heat and toss in your oregano, thyme, rosemary and garlic for 2-3 minutes and set aside. Don’t let the garlic burn.
In a large bowl, add in yeast, honey and water, stirring continuously to mix.
Bit by bit, sift in your flour and stir it in. Halfway through pouring the flour, add in a little over half of your herb-garlic infused, set aside olive oil. Then add in the rest of the flour, continuing to stir.
Sprinkle in fine sea salt and stir to combine. By now, your dough should be forming and it should be thick.
Sprinkle a little flour on the countertop and give your dough a quick knead. Place the kneaded dough into a bowl and lay a towel over it to allow it to rise for a few hours.
In a bread baking tray, drizzle in half of the rest of your herb-garlic infused olive oil and brush it around the edges to fully coat the tray.
Put your dough into the baking tray and using your fingertips, gently dimple the top of the bread. Brush the rest of the herb-garlic infused olive oil over the top of your dough and sprinkle the parmesan shavings, coarse sea-salt and black pepper over the top.
Bake at 200C for 20-25 minutes, inserting a toothpick to test if it’s cooked through.
Serve warm with fresh butter.
