Focaccia + My Pursuit of Being a Baker

I am always looking to challenge myself a little bit and I finally decided to tackle focaccia bread! I'll admit throughout the process I was met with bouts of anxiety… will the dough rise?  Did I let the yeast bubble enough? My friend Colleen was over and asked if she had to help me, I said no but that it would turn into The Little Red Hen story that I used to read as a kid. I would put in all the work and she would want a piece of bread at the end but she didn't help out! So the bread making adventure began...

I felt inspired to make focaccia because my boyfriend's dad will make it all the time and he makes it seem effortless. I thought it was going to be 1,2,3 and I'd be shoveling focaccia into my mouth… apparently there is a lot of waiting time during the process to let the yeast do its job. 

:INGREDIENTS:

1 package dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1 tsp honey

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 cup + 1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil

1/2 onion, thinly sliced

10-12 cherry tomatoes, thinly sliced

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

:DIRECTIONS:

1. In medium bowl, stir together the yeast, honey and warm water. Let it rest until bubbles form at the top. (About 10 mins)

2. Stir in the flour, 1/4 cup olive oil and 1 tsp of salt. Once it is well mixed. Knead it on a floured surface until smooth. (About 5-10 mins)

3. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and wrap it in plastic wrap and let it sit there for about an hour. 

4. While you anxiously wait for it to rise you can chop 1/2 an onion and toss them into a skillet with a TBSP of olive oil and let them cook for about 20 minutes until they are caramelized. Stir it occasionally. 

5. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

6. Remove the dough from the bowl and press it into a cast iron skillet. Then with your CLEAN finger press light little holes into the dough and let it sit there for about 15 minutes. Then drizzle the dough with 2 TBSP olive oil.

7. Slice the tomatoes thinly then sprinkle them over the dough. Then add the onions, salt and parmesan to the top and toss it into the oven for about 20 minutes!!

8. Get ready to enter a carb coma!