Garlic Cheese Focaccia

I prepare the dough one day in advance, and served my garlic cheese focaccia with vegetarian soups and salads as part of our no-meat Saturday lunch 😍😋

Video of my meatless meal which consisted of a garlic cheese focaccia and vegetable tomato soup 😋

Ingredients

A

185g superior bread flour

30g superfine wholegrain flour

13g raw sugar

130g water

25g low-fat milk

B

50g natural yeast/sourdough, 100% hydration *

1g instant dry yeast

20g rice bran oil

C

3g low sodium salt

Toppings

10g sliced garlic

8g rice bran oil

15g green capsicum, slice thinly

4g parmesan cheese, grated

48g cheddar cheese, candy size

1 tsp dried coriander leaves

Sprinkle salt, optional (I prefer a low salt version, so I omit it)

* 50g natural yeast can be replaced by 25g bread flour + 25g water + 1/8 tsp instant dry yeast, mix and stand till it doubles in volume.

Directions

1. Mix ingredient A together into a ball. 

Cover with a lid and let it rest for about 60 minutes.

2. Mix in Ingredient B

Sprinkle instant dry yeast over the natural yeast before adding to the dough. Mix and knead using an electric hand mixer fitted with a pair of dough hooks.

3. Knead in Ingredient C after all the ingredients have been well mixed.

4. Knead the dough till it almost reaches the window pane stage. Keep the dough in an oiled plastic bag. Tie a loose knot at the opening and store in a second plastic bag. Refrigerate for about 14~16 hours or overnight.

The dough was rather sticky 😜

5. Remove the outer plastic bag, invert the dough, and let it thaw for about 60 to 70 minutes at room temperature.

6. Pour about 8g of rice bran oil into a baking pan lined with parchment paper.

Transfer the dough to the baking pan, and coat the entire dough with rice bran oil.

Spread out the dough to a thickness of about 1cm. Keep the dough in a cold oven and let it proof for about 1 hour.

7. While the dough is proofing, warm 10g of garlic slices in 8 g of rice bran oil in a rice cooker using "Keep Warm" function for about 10 minutes.

Prepare the topping ingredients. Cut the candy cheddar cheese into halves each. Set them aside.

8. Remove the dough from the cold oven. Start to preheat the oven to 200℃.

Pour and spread the garlic and oil over the dough surface. 

Coat your fingers with oil, and sink them into the dough to create deep dimples over the dough. 

Add sliced capsicum, halved cheddar cheese, sprinkle parmesan cheese, and dried coriander leaves over the dough. You may sprinkle salt if prefer.

9. Bake at middle rack of a preheated oven at 200℃ for about 18 to 20 minutes, turn off the oven and continue to bake for about 3 minutes, or till the crust is golden.

10. Remove the focaccia from the oven and let it cool down a while.