Focaccia Genovese

Ingredients

500 gr strong white flour
325 gr room temperature water
15 gr fresh yeast
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
rosemary
coarse sea salt

Melt the fresh yeast in the water in a bowl, then chuck the flour into the bowl
Place the water in a large bowl and dissolve the yeast in. Add the flour gradually while mixing it up the water with your hands. Then add the olive oil and the salt to the dough.
When the dough has begun to be workable, place it on a dusted surface and work it out for ten minutes following the these instructions: stretch the dough, fold it and turn it.
Again, stretch the dough, fold it and turn it for 10 minutes then.

Pour some olive oil in the bowl lay the dough in.
Leave it to rest until it doubles (around 90 minutes) in a warm and dry place.

Prepare a 30cm x 20cm tray 2cm deep and brush some olive oil thoroughly the base.
Get back to the dough and put it on the tray. Stretch the dough to the sides of the tray.
Make some holes on the dough with your fingers, like playing the piano.
Generously pour olive oil, water and preferably dry rosemary.

Leave it to rise for 1 hour.
Gently use the fingers to massage the dough making holes and pour some more olive oil

Leave it to rise for 1 hour.
Pre-heat the oven on 220C.
Gently use the fingers to massage the dough making holes and pour some more olive oil
Add at this stage coarse sea salt thoroughly the surface.

Leave in the oven for 20 minutes or until it is the shade of brown color you love.
Turn the focaccia over around the middle of the cooking time.

When ready, turn off the oven and put the focaccia on the middle rack of the oven so the base will be crunchy for 5 minutes.
The focaccia is ready!!

Note
Across the cookery course we tried the focaccia with a brown color.
For the soft version, reduce the cooking time by 5 minutes.
The focaccia will result soft but crunchy.

Note for chef machine or mixer
Melt the yeast in the water in a bowl and pour it into the mixing bowl.
Add the flour and olive oil.
You can switch on the mixer now at a slow speed and keep mixing for 5-8 minutes
After a few minutes add salt.
When finished, as above, put the dough in a oiled bowl and wait until doubled