Potato and Onion Focaccia

A simple recipe for a great summer bread, perfect for sharing at family picnics and barbecues with friends. Almost a meal in itself and delicious dipped in flavoured oil.
Makes one loaf

Ingredients
500g strong white bread flour
10g salt
10g quick action dried yeast
380-400ml lukewarm water
60-70ml good quality extra virgin olive oil
handful of new potatoes, thinly sliced
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
pinch sea salt

Method

– Add the bread flour salt and yeast into a large bowl, and combine with your hands.

– Slowly add the lukewarm water, and mix together to form a sticky dough, using the dough hook fitting on a stand mixer, if you have one.

– Knead for around 8 to 10 minutes, or until the dough has become more elastic and starts to leave the sides of the bowl.

– Add the extra virgin olive oil to a square plastic bowl, and coat the sides to ensure the dough doesn’t stick. Transfer the dough into the box and spread it very slightly. Cover with a clean tea towel and leave it in a warm place to prove until doubled in size. This can take between 1-3 hours, depending on the temperature.

– Add a good amount of olive oil to a nice big baking tray, making sure that all the surfaces are coated so that the bread doesn’t stick as it’s baking.

– Remove the proved dough from the bowl and spread the dough into the corners of the baking tray.

– Prove the dough for another hour in the tray, until it has again doubled in size.

– Preheat the oven to 220°C / 200°C with a fan. If your oven has a steamer, turn it on. If not, add another baking tray containing some water, underneath the tray containing the dough, to form steam.

– Rub some oil on your hands, and press the sliced onion into the top of the dough, making holes to let the air get into the bread.

– Add the sliced potato as evenly as possible, brushing a little more oil on top to prevent them burning in the oven. Add a good pinch of sea salt.

– Bake for 25 minutes, until the bread is coming away from the sides of the tray. Leave to cool for a few minutes before cutting.

You can add your own flavours to the basic dough, try experimenting with rosemary or olives, or chopped red or green chillies.