Potato, Rosemary and Cracked Pepper Focaccia

Name: Potato, Rosemary and Cracked Pepper Focaccia
Prep time: 3 h 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 3 h 45 min
Yield: Makes 1 loaf
Ingredients: coarse sea salt flakes; 15–20 pairs of rosemary leaves; freshly ground black pepper; 150g/5½oz /scant ⅔ cup water; 50g/1¾oz/3½ tbsp olive oil, plus a little extra for greasing and brushing; 300g/10½oz/2⅓ cups baby (new) potatoes; 5cm/2 in sprig of rosemary; 50g/1¾oz/3½ tbsp white sourdough starter; 150g/5½oz/about 1 cup white bread flour; 150g/5½oz/1 cupplus 2 tbsp tipo 00 bread flour

Preparation info

Makes
1
loaf

Difficulty
Easy
Ready in
4 hr

Appears in

Slow Dough, Real Bread

By Chris J L Young

Published 2016

About

The Latin for “hearth” is focus, where a whole family of flattish breads including focaccia and fougasse were once baked, and from which they take their names. If you have a wood-fired pizza oven, this is one to try in it. Or like me, you can bake in a regular domestic oven.

Ingredients

For the Dough

50g/1¾oz/3½ tbsp white sourdough starter
150

Method

Mix all of the dough ingredients together thoroughly. Cover and leave to rest for 10–15 minutes.
Knead the dough until smooth and stretchy. Cover and leave to prove at room temperature for 1–2 hours.
Meanwhile, cook the potatoes and sprig of rosemary in a pan of boiling water for 10–15 minutes until the potatoes are just soft. Drain, leave to cool and