This recipe won the Great Durham Bake Off and I would love to share it with people who are interested. It looks like a lot of work but you can omit the cured olives and just make a “normal-ass focaccia” and it’ll still be good.

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1-3 days before baking

Make the cured olives and oranges.

Combine the following in a nonreactive container and refrigerate:

  • 1 jar castelvetrano olives in brine, halved
  • Zest of 1 blood orange, peeled with a vegetable peeler and cut into ribbons
  • 1 blood orange, sliced into 2mm thick rounds
  • 1 Calabrian Chile, halved lengthwise
  • 3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed with the blade of a knife
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • Olive oil to cover (use a good EVOO; organic preferred; definitely first cold press)

The night before baking

Make the dough.

Combine the following in a large nonreactive mixing bowl:

  • 500g AP flour or bread flour; either works
  • 375g water
  • 50g olive oil from your cured olives
  • 1/2 tsp instant yeast [^1]
  • Mix with your hand until combined and shaggy

Let rest 15-20 minutes, then add:

  • 10g salt (2 tsp morton kosher salt or 1 tbsp diamond kosher salt)
  • A splash of water
  • Sprinkle the salt all over the top of the dough, add a few drops of water, and dimple the dough with your fingers.

Then stretch and fold the dough around the bowl about 25 times until things are combined and the dough is looking smoother.

Cover with a plate or plastic wrap and leave at room temperature (65-80 F) overnight. If your room is hotter, use just a touch less yeast.

Two hours before baking

Prepare a 12 inch round pan (cast iron skillet is great) by adding 2-3 tbsp of the oil from the cured olives.

Gently turn the dough out of the bowl (it should be risen nearly to the top by now) into the oiled pan.

Delicately flip the dough over to oil both sides.

Press it out toward the edges of the skillet with the heel of your hand, being careful not to totally de-gas it. It’s okay if it resists spreading out to the edges; don’t force it.

Stud the top of the dough with cured olives and press them deeply into the dough. You should feel them touch the bottom of the pan.

Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and let proof 2 hours.

1 hour before baking

Preheat the oven HOT. 525 if you can. 510 if you have a convection oven.

Right before baking

Remove the lid and scatter slices of orange zest around the dough. Dimple the dough all over with your fingers (push down all the way to the bottom of the pan). Sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt.

Pop any bubbles that get too big; they’ll burn in the oven.

Lay 6-8 blood orange slices over the top of the dough. Push them gently down so they’re about 1/4 inch below the surface.

Bake for 16-20 minutes. Start checking the top for excessive browning at 16 minutes. If you’re really obsessive, you can check the internal temperature with a thermometer to know when it’s done. It should be somewhere north of 205 F to have a nice crumb.

If all goes well, it’ll look like this:

oNot the exact bread, but one following this method

Happy baking!

[^1] If you’ve made a focaccia dough with this recipe, you can omit yeast next time if you reserve some of today’s dough for tomorrow’s bread. Grab about 1/2 cup of the dough out of the pan when you turn it out to proof and stick it in a covered container in the fridge. This will be your starter for the next bake. Add it instead of the yeast and continue as normal.