(Responsibly) Conquer Your Fears, Part 2

So a few months ago, I made knock-off Red Lobster biscuits. It was my first baking project since the Great Nutella Cake Disaster of 2018 (pan size is important). It was also my first baking success in a long, long time, and emboldened me to try something a little more complicated next time. I figured that part of the reason I had success was because I didn’t actually make the biscuit dough myself. So, something that involved making my own dough seemed a good next step.

After some thinking, I decided on focaccia bread in May. Italian, delicious, and by all accounts, reasonably hard to mess up. The project did NOT begin auspiciously. The yeast that I ordered from Amazon, because the stores were out, took almost a month to arrive. But it did get here eventually...only after yeast had returned to the store and I’d bought more. (I now have yeast for probably the next twenty years.) I also couldn’t seem to find the right day to make the bread. Something kept coming up and pushing it off. But finally, the first week in June, a good month and a half after I started considering it, I got to make focaccia.

Before; I enjoy poking the holes in the dough!

The Red Lobster biscuits gave me a little more confidence. So did the fact that I remembered to measure my pan, get extra flour, and confer with more experienced bakers about what fully risen dough looks like. But I was still pretty nervous when I put the wet ingredients into the dry ones. Focaccia dough is very sticky, so thankfully I couldn’t think about much besides getting it off my hands. Even when the bread started smelling good through my house, I still wondered if something would go wrong at the last second. It usually does when I try to bake.

Well, nothing did go wrong this time. My focaccia turned out golden brown on the outside, and fluffy and cloudlike on the inside. I put the right amount of toppings, where nothing overpowered the other flavors. It tasted so good, with all the olive oil, that I didn’t even need to dip it in anything. And the best part was, I’d done something I was expecting to be a disappointment at some stage.

After

I’ve faced my fears of baking now, I think. After two successes, and an idea of where things are most likely to go wrong, I’m pretty sure I’m good. But it might still be a while before I try that Nutella cake again.

Focaccia: It depends on how you slice it, but I cut it in small rectangles and that made about 20-24 pieces. Larger squares usually makes 12-16 pieces.

Prep Surface Ingredients and Equipment:

9x13 pan or baking dish

Large mixing bowl

Flat cake spatula

Small handful of all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons olive oil

Dish of olive oil for hand-dipping

Bread Ingredients:

3 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon instant or active dry yeast

1 ¼ teaspoons salt

1 ½ cups warm water

3 tablespoons olive oil

Toppings:

Dried rosemary and oregano

Coarse kosher or sea salt

Minced garlic with juice

Olive oil

Fresh basil (optional)

Spread flour on the inside of the mixing bowl, and the two tablespoons of olive oil on the bottom and sides of your pan. Both of these things help keep the dough from sticking. Measure out and mix the dry ingredients (flour, salt, yeast), and then mix in the wet (water and oil). Put some olive oil on your hands, again to keep the dough from sticking, and knead the dough until you can’t feel grittiness or clumps. Scrape the dough into the pan, spread it out as evenly as possible with the spatula, and let it rest under a dishtowel for a minimum of 60 minutes.* While you’re waiting, preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Test the dough to see if it’s done resting: press your finger into it, and the indentation should stay. Poke holes in the surface of the dough, and add your toppings. Bake for 30 minutes**, and check it with the knife test: if an inserted knife comes out clean, it’s done. The top should also be golden brown, with slightly toasted toppings. Serve warm, as it is or with olive oil and dipping spices.

*One way you can help dough rise faster is to make sure it’s in a warm spot. Mine took about 70 minutes on the kitchen counter with the window closed.

**You can bake it in 10-minute bursts until it’s done cooking if 30 minutes wasn’t enough.