For me, the best focaccia is always the simplest one, topped with flaky sea salt and extra virgin olive oil. However, this variation made with wild garlic is a delicious meal in itself. Don’t be tempted to add too many herbs to it – simplicity always pays off.
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Ingredients
- 500 g strong bread flour, plus extra for dusting
- 1 x 7g sachet of dried yeast
- 60 ml olive oil
- 30 g breadcrumbs
- 70 g wild garlic
- 50 g shelled almonds, finely crushed or flaked ones
- extra virgin olive oil
Ingredients
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Instructions
- For the focaccia itself, pour 300ml of tepid water into a jug, add the yeast and mix gently with a fork. Leave for a few minutes.
- Put the flour and 7g of sea salt (a little bit more than 1 teaspoon) into a large bowl and make a well in the middle.
- When the yeast mixture starts to bubble, gradually pour it into the well, stirring and bringing in the flour from the outside to form a rough dough. Knead on a clean flour-dusted surface for 5 minutes, or until smooth and springy.
- Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a clean cloth. Set aside in a warm place and leave to rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, prepare the topping by placing the wild garlic in a pestle and mortar with a pinch of sea salt and bash well, then muddle in 60ml of olive oil and almonds. Alternatively, you can coarsely liquidise the garlic leaves, together with the olive oil and a pinch of salt, adding the almonds at the end.
- Lightly oil a deep baking tray (22cm x 28cm), and dust with the breadcrumbs. Take the dough and knead to remove any air bubbles. Spread and stretch the dough out on a baking tray. It should not be higher than 2cm. With the tips of your fingers make lots of dimples and rough dips in the surface of the dough – this will give you great texture later on.
- Spread over the wild garlic mixture and push your fingers right down into the dough to make sure that the oil gets into it. Season with sea salt.
- Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/gas 7. Ideally, you should now cover the dough with a damp cloth and leave to prove for at least 30 minutes.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden and crisp. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, then slice up and tuck in. Tastes best when warm.
Adapted from Jamie Oliver’s recipe for wild garlic focaccia.
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