Lemon Garlic Herb No Knead Focaccia
Easy no knead focaccia with a crisp crust and a soft airy interior, heady with the aroma of olive oil. A generous shower of fresh Italian herbs accented with zingy lemon slices for a beautiful bread.
Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 125kcal
Ingredients
- 500 g (4 cups) strong bread flour*
- 12 g (2 tsp) caster sugar
- 12 g (2 tsp) salt
- 2¼ tsp instant yeast*
- 450 mL (1¾ + ⅛ cup) cold water
- 24 mL (2 tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
Lemon Garlic Herb Topping
- 48 mL (4 tbsp) extra virgin olive oil
- 6 cloves garlic ,minced/crushed
- 2 tbsp mixed herbs* ,roughly chopped
- 1 lemon ,sliced thinly
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Make a well at the center and pour in the cold water, using a wooden spoon or your hands to mix the dough together. When there are no pockets of flour, add in ⅔ of the olive oil and mix. Drizzle the rest of the oil and stir until a cohesive dough has formed. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave in the fridge for 12-24 hours to rise.
- The next day, line a 9x13" pan with parchment paper and remove the dough from the fridge. Deflate the dough by grabbing the outer corners and folding them in. Transfer to the prepared pan and gently stretch the dough to the edges. Cover the pan and leave to double in size, about 2-3 hours. The dough will be bubbly and very wobbly.
- While waiting for the dough to rise, combine the olive oil with the crushed garlic to infuse, prepare your herbs and slice the lemon.
- Preheat oven to 220°C. Drizzle the garlic oil over the surface of the dough and sprinkle the chopped herbs. With your fingers, dimple the dough all over and top with lemon slices and flaked sea salt. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden. Towards the end of the baking time, the pan can be placed on the highest rack to brown the crust even further. Leave to cool for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Slice and enjoy!
Notes
*Bread flour can be substituted with all purpose flour. This will yield a slightly softer crumb.
*Instant yeast can be substituted with 3 tsp active dry yeast. Just make sure to activate the yeast before using.
*I used a mix of thyme and rosemary when I made this.
Recipe adapted from The Boy Who Bakes