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Genose-Style Tray Focaccia

Genose-Style Tray Focaccia

Oil in the dimples, a corner for the cook
Author:
Austin Welsh-Graham
| Source:
The Toasty Book of Bread
Categories: The Toasty Book of Bread Leavening Bread Form Cooking Method Collection Regional Route Main Material
Tags: Baker’s yeast Flatbread Oven-baked The Toasty Book of Bread Western and Mediterranean Europe Wheat
Ingredients
500 g White bread flour (Strong white wheat flour.)275 g Water17.5 g Fresh yeast10 g Fine salt10 g Non-diastic malt extract25 g Extra virgin olive oil (For dough.)50 g Extra virgin olive oil (For tray and top.)40 g Water (For top.)2 g Flaky salt (For top.)
Description

Focaccia is generous before it is cut. The shining surface, golden edges and little pools of oil make a tray look ready to share. In Liguria, however, a short journey can change what the word promises. A risen bread beside morning coffee and a thin shell of dough around melted cheese belong to neighbouring tables.

A low Genoese-style tray bread, with a risen crumb, firm dimples and olive oil across its surface. Makes 1 tray, about 30 × 40 cm.

Recipe
Mixing and kneading
1
Dissolve yeast and malt in the dough water. Mix with flour, dough salt and 25 g oil. Knead until smooth. Cover for 30 minutes.
Shaping and layering
1
Oil the tray with 25 g oil. Place dough centrally. Rest 30 minutes, then press towards the edges. Rest 20 minutes if it springs back.
2
Spread the remaining oil and 40 g water over it. Dimple firmly with fingertips. Scatter the flaky salt.
Resting and fermentation
1
Cover without touching the top. Proof at room temperature until visibly puffy, approximately 1-2 hours.
Cooking
1
Bake at 220 °C for 18-25 minutes, until golden underneath and above. Lift onto a rack. Eat warm.
Notes

About 3–4 hours. 25 minutes hands-on. A shallow metal tray and a bowl.

Dimples that stay

Press through the thickness towards the tray without tearing the dough. A quick touch leaves marks that close up. A firm press gives the oil somewhere to sit. If stretching is difficult, wait rather than pulling holes into the sheet.

Malt here means non-diastatic malt extract, used for flavour and colour. Do not replace it gram-for-gram with active diastatic malt powder. If unavailable, omit it. The result remains a home adaptation.