Focaccia Barese En

This recipe was recommended to me by my daughter Litó, who was on holiday in the south of Italy this summer with her friend Camilla.

We always talk about the food of the country we visited, but this time Litó was absolute! "Mom you have to make this focaccia! You can't imagine how delicious it is!!" And of course, being the good mom that I am, I listened to her and I don't regret it at all!

This focaccia is divine!! It's like eating pizza and you don't miss the cheese!! It's not difficult and so I make it every week. When it cools down I put the leftover pieces in the fridge and when we want to enjoy it warm I heat up the amount we need in a sandwich maker and it becomes crispy again!!

Ingredients 

300g lukewarm water

10 grams sugar

1 sachet of dry yeast (8-9g)

500g pizza flour

14g salt

650g tomatoes

1 tablespoon tomato paste

Salt

Oregano

50ml water

60ml olive oil

Extra oil for the tray

Place the water in the mixer bowl, add the sugar and mix. Finally, spread the yeast without mixing. Let the yeast foam for 5 to 10 minutes.

Add the flour and knead for 5' in the mixer or with your hands.

Add the salt and knead for another 5 minutes.

Transfer the dough to a greased tray and let it rest for 2 hours.

Prepare the tomatoes:

Break the tomatoes with your hands into small pieces in a bowl. Add the tomato paste, salt and oregano.

Place the water and oil in a small container.

Spread olive oil in a large pan, ideally an aluminium one, because it will allow for the bottom part to cook better. My pan is has 37cm in diameter.

Spread the dough over the entire surface with your fingers. Spread the tomato over the dough as best as possible.

Let the focaccia rest for half an hour. Mix the water and oil with a whisk and pour it over the focaccia. Let it rest for another half hour.

Turn on the oven to maximum with a fan. My oven reaches 250°C. Let it heat up well for half an hour and put a baking stone if you have in it to help the bottom part cook better.

Bake the focaccia for about 20'.

Of course, it is best to eat it hot and the remaining pieces can be kept in the fridge for several days. We heat the amount we want in the oven or in the air fryer. For me, it would be  ideally on a grill so that the bottom becomes crispy again.