Focaccia Bread

Basically a double-recipe of the Pizza Dough for a large 11 x 17 jellyroll pan..

INGREDIENTS

1 1/3 cup lukewarm water (105–115°F)
2 (1/4-oz) package active dry yeast (5 teaspoons)
2 teaspoon sugar
4 tablespoons olive oil plus additional for brushing
3 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour plus additional for dusting
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1 tablespoon table salt
Optional: rosemary, roasted garlic


PREPARATION

1.Stir together water, yeast, and sugar in a large bowl and let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes. (If mixture doesn’t foam, discard and start over.) Stir in oil, flour, cornmeal, and table salt, then stir until a dough forms. Add chopped rosemary (about 3 tablespoons) if desired.

2.Knead on a floured surface, dusting with more flour as needed to prevent dough from sticking, until smooth and elastic, 5 to 10 minutes (dough will be moist). I use my Kitchen Aid mixer at medium and the dough hook for 5 minutes.

3.Put dough in an oiled deep bowl and turn to coat with oil. Let dough rise, covered with plastic wrap, in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

4. Punch down dough and then place on to well-oiled jelly roll pan. Pat out dough and let rise in warm place for another hour.

5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush top of dough with olive oil or with egg wash. Dimple dough with thumb. Place pieces of roast garlic on top if desired.

6. Bake for 20 minutes until crisp and golden brown on bottom.

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