Rosemary Focaccia

Light, airy Italian olive oil bread with a golden, crisp crust, dimpled and topped with rosemary and flaky salt. No kneading needed – just time. Naturally vegan.

3 h 30 minto make
10portions
Mediumto cook
Vegandiet

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Ingredients

For 10 portions

500g bread flour
7g yeast
1 Tsp sugar
420ml tap water
2.5 Tsp salt
80ml olive oil
2 Tsp fresh rosemary

Method

In a large bowl, mix the bread flour, dried yeast, sugar and 2 tsp of the salt. Pour in the lukewarm water (it should feel just warm on your wrist) and stir with a spoon until there's no dry flour left. The dough will be very wet and sticky – that's right.
Pour 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over the dough, cover the bowl and leave for 30 minutes.
Stretch and fold: with a wet hand, grab one side of the dough, stretch it up and fold it over the middle. Turn the bowl a quarter and repeat 4 times. Cover and rest 30 minutes. Do this twice more (3 rounds in total over 1½ hours). The dough will become smooth, bubbly and stretchy.
Pour 3 tablespoons of the olive oil into a 23 x 33 cm baking tin and spread it over the base and sides. Tip the dough in and gently stretch it towards the corners. If it springs back, wait 10 minutes and try again.
Cover and leave to rise in a warm place for 45–60 minutes until puffy, airy and nearly doubled. Preheat the oven to 230 °C (210 °C fan) during the last 20 minutes.
Oil your fingers and press them all the way down into the dough to make deep dimples all over. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil so it pools in the dimples, scatter with the rosemary leaves and the remaining ½ tsp salt (flaky sea salt if you have it).
Bake for 22–25 minutes until deep golden on top and crisp underneath.
Leave in the tin for 5 minutes, then lift onto a rack to cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting. Best eaten the same day; reheat leftovers in a hot oven for 5 minutes.