Rise up in the kitchen with everyone’s favourite iso-activity: breadmaking. Food writer Libby Kimber has sourced this Strawberry, basil and goat’s cheese focaccia recipe.
Recipe courtesy of Queensland Strawberries | qldstrawberries.com.au
Serves 6-8
- 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
- 2 tsp dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 cups wholemeal flour
- 1 2/3 cups bread flour (high protein), plus a little extra for kneading
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 10 strawberries, hulled and halved
- Handful basil leaves, shredded
- 100g goat’s cheese
- Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Pour the water into a large bowl, add the yeast and sugar, stirring to dissolve. Add the olive oil followed by the flours and salt, mix with your hands to form a dough. Turn dough onto floured work surface. Knead, until the dough is elastic and smooth (adding a little flour as necessary to prevent sticking), about 10 minutes. Shape into a ball. Alternatively, you can use a stand mixer with a dough hook for this – mix on medium-low for 8 minutes until the dough forms around the hook, turn out onto a lightly floured surface, shape into a ball.
Clean the bowl and lightly oil. Cover with plastic and let rise in a warm spot for 1.5 to 2 hours, until doubled in size. Punch down the dough. Cover again and rest for a further 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 220°C. Grease a baking tray with olive oil and line with baking paper. Shape the dough into a rectangle or oval, pressing out until about 2 cm thick. Cover with a lightly damp towel and let rest for 30 minutes. Just before baking, dimple the dough all over with your fingertips.
Gently press the strawberries into the dough and dot over grape sized pieces of goat’s cheese. Sprinkle with coarse salt and the basil. Drizzle all over with olive oil (1-2 tablespoons).
Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the bread is golden brown. Rest for 10 minutes before eating or cool completely.
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