Garlic & Red Chili Focaccia
Posted November 3, 2010 by
Prep Time 20 min Cook Time 60 min Ready Time 1 hour, 20 min Servings: 12

Ingredients

  • 3-1/2 to 4 cups Stone Buhr Unbleached White Bread Flour
  • 2 cups water warm
  • 3 teaspoons dry active yeast
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 garlic finely minced
  • 4 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon red chili flakes
  • olive oil for sheet pan
  • Coarse salt for dusting

Directions

Combine warm water, yeast and honey and stir until yeast is nearly dissolved. Set aside until yeast dissolves completely and is foamy, about 10 to 15 minutes. Lightly oil the bottom of a sheet pan and set aside. Fit an electric mixer with a dough hook. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine 3 cups bread flour with 1 teaspoon salt. Turn machine to low, and pour in half of the yeast mixture. Mix until well combined and then pour in remaining yeast mixture. Mix on low to medium low speed for five minutes. If dough is still tacky, add more bread flour in .25 cup increments until dough is no longer tacky. (Do not add more than one cup in total.) Turn dough out onto lightly floured work space and hand knead for 3 minutes. Dough should not need more flour, and should pull easily away from your work space. Set dough on sheet pan and cover loosely with plastic wrap and layer with a clean dishtowel. Set in a warm space to rise, about 45 minutes to an hour. Leave to rise until dough has doubled in size. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine garlic, olive oil and chili flakes and set aside. When dough has doubled in size, move it back to your work space and punch down dough, turning once or twice and kneading lightly. When most of the air has been removed, move dough back to freshly oiled sheet pan. Stretch dough into a rectangular shape nearly the size of the sheet pan, leaving dough about half an inch thick. Using your fingertips, make several depressions into the surface of the dough. Pour reserved olive oil mixture over the entire surface of the dough. (It’s ok if olive oil pools in the depressions you’ve made with your fingertips!) Cover dough with plastic wrap and layer with a dish towel. Set in a warm space to rise for a second time, about 45 minutes to an hour. Leave to rise until dough has doubled in size and stands about 1 inch thick.