Fennel Focaccia Recipes

FENNEL SEED FOCACCIA WITH KALAMATA OLIVES

Steps:

• Make starter:
• Mix flour and yeast in 8- to 10-cup bowl. Using wooden spoon, stir in 3/4 cup water; beat until smooth soft dough forms, about 3 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl. Cover with plastic; let stand 30 minutes. Chill overnight. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before continuing.
• Make dough:
• Stir 1/4 cup warm water and yeast in large bowl. Let stand 5 minutes. Add starter and 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons cool water. Using wooden spoon, mix starter and water 1 minute (mixture will look milky and foamy). Mix in 1 1/2 tablespoons oil, 4 teaspoons salt, milk and fennel. Add 3 1/3 cups bread flour, about 1 cup at a time, mixing until very soft sticky dough forms.
• Knead dough gently on floured surface until dough comes together but is still sticky, sprinkling with more flour and loosening dough from surface with pastry scraper, about 5 minutes. Return to same bowl. Cover with plastic; let rest until firmer and less sticky, about 20 minutes.
• Knead dough gently on floured surface until supple and elastic, sprinkling with flour to prevent sticking, about 5 minutes. Push dough out to 12-inch square. Sprinkle with 2/3 cup chopped olives; fold dough over olives. Knead gently to distribute olives; shape into ball.
• Oil large bowl with 1/2 tablespoon oil. Add dough; turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. Let dough rise until almost doubled in volume, about 1 hour. Uncover; fold dough edges in toward center. Turn dough over, releasing some air but deflating as little as possible. Cover; let rise until almost doubled, about 1 hour.
• Position rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 425°F. Oil 17x11-inch baking sheet and line with parchment paper. Turn out dough onto pan. Without deflating dough, gently stretch and push dough to cover pan. If dough springs back, let rest 5 minutes, then stretch. Repeat resting and stretching until dough stays in place. Press quartered olives over surface. Indent dough with fingertips in several places. Let rise until puffy, about 20 minutes.
• Sprinkle dough with 1 teaspoon salt. Place pan in oven. Spray oven with water 8 times. Close door 1 minute. Open and spray several times more. Close door; bake focaccia 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Bake focaccia until golden and crusty, about 12 minutes longer. Cool focaccia on rack 30 minutes.

FOCACCIA

Steps:

• Sprinkle yeast and sugar over 1/2 cup warm water in a large bowl. Stir to dissolve, and let stand 10 minutes, until the mixture is foamy. Add remaining 2 cups warm water, 2 tablespoons oil, 2 cups flour, and salt; stir with a wooden spoon until smooth. Gradually add 4 cups flour, using your hands once mixture becomes too thick to stir. If dough is still too wet, add just enough of the remaining cup flour until it is no longer sticky.
• Turn out dough onto a clean work surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, using any remaining flour, if needed. Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Transfer dough to an oiled 11-by-17-inch rimmed baking sheet; stretch to fill sheet, and press to form an even thickness. If dough shrinks back, cover with a damp towel, and let rest 10 minutes before proceeding. Once dough fills sheet, cover with a damp kitchen towel; let rise again until doubled in bulk, about 30 minutes.
• Using your fingers, make dimplelike indentations all over surface of dough. Drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons oil; spread with your hands to coat evenly.
• Place baking sheet in oven. Toss a cup of ice cubes into bottom of oven to create steam (if using a gas oven, place a small baking dish of ice water on oven floor). Bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes, rotating pan halfway through; avoid opening oven any more than necessary or the steam will escape. Transfer focaccia to a wire rack to cool.

HARVEST FOCACCIA

Steps:

• For the dough: Whisk together the flour, yeast and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Stir in the warm water and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil while the machine is on low speed, mixing until the flour is completely moistened. Let stand 5 minutes.
• Add the salt and knead on medium speed for 5 minutes. (The dough will tighten up, then begin to relax. After 5 minutes, it will be very wet and stick to the bottom of the mixer but not the sides.)
• Rub 2 tablespoons olive oil around the bottom and sides of a large mixing bowl (large enough to hold at least double the volume of dough). Transfer the dough to the bowl with a scraper or spatula, flipping once to coat completely with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
• Pour the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil into the bottom of an 18-by-13-inch rimmed baking sheet. Use your hands to evenly distribute the oil along the bottom and up the sides. Scrape the dough into the baking sheet, flattening it slightly with your hands. Flip the dough once and gently stretch it to fit into an even layer in the baking sheet. (The dough may not stretch to the edges at this point. If it starts to pull back, let rest 10 minutes and re-stretch, making sure to pull from the center as well as the edges to get an even thickness.) Use your fingertips to make dimples over the surface of the focaccia, pressing firmly but not so hard you make holes in the dough.
• For the brine and toppings: Dissolve the kosher salt in 1/3 cup warm water. Drizzle over the surface of the focaccia, letting it pool in the dimples.
• Starting in the upper right corner, gently press the largest mushroom pieces into the dough and continue down and to the left, working from the largest pieces to the smallest in a curling, tapering wave shape. Fill in the spaces between the mushrooms with the arugula, radicchio, carrot slices, fennel, fennel fronds and rosemary sprigs. Let stand in a warm place for 45 minutes so the dough can relax and rise again.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Sprinkle the focaccia all over with flaky sea salt and sprinkle the vegetables with a couple pinches of red pepper flakes if using. Bake, rotating the baking sheet halfway through, until the focaccia is deep golden brown on the top and bottom, 30 to 35 minutes. Drizzle with the olive oil and let rest for 5 minutes. Use a spatula to remove the focaccia to a wire rack to cool completely.

FOCACCIA WITH CLEMENTINE AND FENNEL

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Brush the bottom and sides of a 9-by-13-inch rimmed baking sheet with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Stretch the pizza dough to fit the pan. Using a pastry brush, brush the dough with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Evenly distribute the clementine slices, shaved fennel and fennel seeds over the dough, pushing them gently into the dough. Sprinkle with the flaky sea salt and drizzle with an additional teaspoon of olive oil if desired.
• Bake the focaccia until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Cut into slices and serve.

GRAPE AND WALNUT SWEET FOCACCIA

Steps:

• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment proof the yeast with the granulated sugar in the water for 5 minutes, or until the mixture is foamy, add the flour, the salt, 1/3 cup of the brown sugar, the cinnamon, and the butter, and combine the dough well. With the dough hook knead the dough for 2 minutes, or until it is soft and slightly sticky. Form the dough into a ball, transfer it to an oiled bowl, and turn it to coat it with the oil. Let the dough rise, covered with plastic wrap, in a warm place for 1 1/2 hours, or until it is double in bulk. The dough may be made up to this point, punched down, and kept, covered and chilled, overnight. Let the dough return to room temperature before proceeding with the recipe. Press the dough evenly into an oiled jelly-roll pan, 15 1/2 by 10 1/2 by 1 inches, and let it rise, covered loosely, in a warm place for 1 hour, or until it is almost double in bulk.
• In a bowl stir together the grapes, the walnuts, and the Marsala and sprinkle the mixture evenly over the dough. Sprinkle the focaccia with the remaining 1/3 cup brown sugar and bake it in the bottom third of a preheated 400°F. oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until it is cooked through and topping is caramelized. Let the focaccia cool in the pan on a rack and serve it warm or at room temperature.