Focaccia Ligure

Name: Focaccia Ligure
Cook time: 180 min
Total time: 180 min
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 500g Bread Flour (Tipo 0/00); 320ml Water, lukewarm; 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil; 10g Sea Salt, fine; 4g Active Dry Yeast; 1 tsp Sugar; 50ml Water; 30ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil; 1/2 tsp Sea Salt, fine; 2 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil, to grease the pan and drizzle; 2 tsp Sea Salt, coarse

Focaccia Ligure is a pillowy, olive oil–rich flatbread with a thin, golden crust and a soft, airy interior. Finished with generous drizzles of oil and coarse salt, it’s simple yet deeply flavorful — perfect for tearing apart and sharing with soups, salads or a platter of antipasti.

Focaccia Ligure is a pillowy, olive oil–rich flatbread with a thin, golden crust and a soft, airy interior. Finished with generous... Show more

Traditional Italian Recipe

Health Grade

D · Occasional

Rating

4.5

Time

3 hrs

Price

0,26 €

Calories

315 kcal

vegan

budget

low calorie

low sugar

mediterranean diet

comfort food

Method

Wake the yeast

In a large bowl, stir the lukewarm water with the sugar until dissolved, then sprinkle in the active dry yeast. Let it sit for 10 minutes, until the surface looks foamy and smells pleasantly bready.

Mix and knead

Add the bread flour, extra virgin olive oil, and fine sea salt to the yeast mixture. Stir until you have a shaggy dough, then knead for 8 to 10 minutes in the bowl or on a lightly oiled work surface, until the dough is smooth, elastic, and only slightly tacky.

Let dough rise

Shape the dough into a ball, place it back in the bowl, cover it, and let it rise in a warm, draft-free spot for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until doubled in size and airy when you gently press it.

Oil and stretch

Generously grease a rectangular baking pan with olive oil. Turn the dough into the pan and gently press it outward with your fingertips as far as it naturally goes, without forcing or tearing it.

Rest the dough

Cover the pan and let the dough relax for 15 minutes. This short rest helps the gluten loosen so the dough will stretch all the way to the corners more easily.

Whisk the salamoia

In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining water, olive oil, and fine sea salt for the salamoia until the mixture looks cloudy and lightly emulsified.

Dimple and proof

Stretch the dough gently so it fills the pan edge to edge. Dip your fingertips into the salamoia and press deep dimples all over the dough, then pour the rest of the salamoia evenly over the top so some of it settles into the dimples. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt, cover loosely, and let it proof for 45 minutes, until puffed and softly jiggly.

Heat the oven

During the last 20 minutes of the proof, place a rack in the middle of the oven and heat it to 475° F so it is fully hot before the focaccia goes in.

Bake until golden

Bake the focaccia for 20 to 25 minutes, until the top is deeply golden, the edges are crisp, and the bottom is lightly browned. Rotate the pan halfway through if your oven browns unevenly.

Cool and serve

Let the focaccia cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then lift it out, cut it into squares, and serve warm or at room temperature. If you like, finish with a very light drizzle of olive oil while it is still hot.