As far as I am concerned there is no really good excuse for using store bought pizza dough, except in an emergency like you are extremely hungry and the hour or so wait for your own dough to rise is just too long to consider.
Pizza dough is fast and easy to make and once you know how you can always have ingredients on hand to make a great dinner for one, two or ten without much fuss.
For all intents and purposes pizza dough has 3 mandatory ingredients; flour, water and yeast. Optionally, a pinch of salt, a pinch of sugar and a tablespoon of oil. That's it! All the ingredients keep for long periods of time so you can always have them on hand when you spirit moves you for a pizza or focaccia or a stuffed roll or calzone or a stromboli or you get the idea, they're all made from the same exact dough.
A few words about flour are in order before we begin. Flour is classified by how refined it is, unlike your author who is completely unrefined and for this discussion is either white or whole wheat. I refer to my preferred unbleached flour as white flour. The three main types of flour are cake flour which is very finely ground, bread flour which is made from a harder wheat and is high in gluten which made to dough it produces doughier and is used for bread and pasta. Last but not least is the flour everyone has in their pantry, All Purpose Flour which is really a blend of the other flours making it ALL PURPOSE.
I like my pizza like a like my women a little on the chewier side, tougher if you will so I use bread flour which is unbleached as well. A brief side note on bleaching, it is what the name implies like 1950's starlets bleached with some form of peroxide and sometimes other agents. I also like to occasionally mix in between a quarter and a third of whole wheat flour which adds a nutty dimension to the finished product.
Ingredients:
3 - 4 Cups of Flour
1/4 Oz Rapid Rise Yeast
1 Cup of Warm Water (110-115 degrees)
Preparation:
In a large mixing bowl add your dry yeast and optionally a pinch of salt and a pinch of sugar. The sugar kick starts the yeast by giving a quick snack and the salt keeps it from rising too fast. Add the 1 cup of water. Most household hot water heaters are set to about 120 degrees and your body temperature is about 98 degrees so mid way between full on hottest you can make your tap go and feeling just barely warm on your finger is the right temperature for the yeast to wake up and work.
Mix the yeast around with a fork or spoon or your finger if no one is watching and give it a minute to start to bloom. You may see bubbles start to rise up that is the yeast belching which is what makes the dough rise. Start adding your flour (the first 3 cups) and with a oil coated scraper or spoon get the mixing started. You could also oil your hands and just jump right in, your choice.
Once the initial three cups of flour are all incorporated you have to get your hands in the mix. Flour your counter or table and dump the dough ball out. Add about another half cup of flour and start kneading the dough by pushing down with the heel of your hand and then lifting and folding the dough onto itself and repeat. The more your knead the dough the sticker it will get as the glutens are released so keep adding a little flour at a time to stop it from sticking.
After you have kneaded the dough for about 3-4 minutes form it into a ball, dust it with flour all the way around and cover it with a bath towel. In about an hour it will have doubled in size and is either ready to use or punched down wrapped in plastic wrap and stored in the fridge or freezer for use later.
Lots of words but not lots of time. The active part of making pizza dough is less then 5 minutes which unless you live next door to a supermarket, bakery or pizzeria that sells raw dough is less time then it takes to go and buy it.
My New Favorite Vegetable
I confess, I get bored in the kitchen. I get complacent and fall back on routine. This is especially true when it comes to vegetables. I make it a point to have a large serving of vegetable every night and try to make enough to carry over for a healthy portion for lunch the next day. Sometimes I incorporate them into another dish but usually they stand alone, from Asparagus to Zucchini. I try to have something green with every dinner. So if there is a root vegetable involved it is almost always supplemented by another offering.
You would think a repertoire that regularly makes use of a couple of dozen or more produce choices prepared in a variety of ways wouldn't get old and yet sadly it does. I watch a lot of cooking shows and last year's popular ingredient was Ramps which are a kind of leek. If you know anything about me at all you should know that the last thing I am is a slave to fashion and pop culture. So needless to say Leeks in general were persona non grata in my kitchen.
Call me a knee jerk reactionary and a snob but if it's for the masses it's not for me. Fortunately the leek craze died down on the cooking shows and I began to notice them neatly bundled in groups of 2 or 3. Rubber banded together and looking alien, especially the dark green tops which appeared inedible. They looked like over sized Green Onions, which is really not far off the mark.
Leeks are members of the Allium family which is the group that includes onions and garlic. In fact Elephant Garlic is not garlic at all but a leek! Then a few weeks ago on what should have been my standard Sunday ritual of a trip to Wegman's I was transformed.
True transformation is rarely planned or anticipated it usually happens unexpectedly by chance. This particular Sunday shopping trip was unusual, Lorraine, my beautiful partner in life, came with me. This is a rare occurrence, while she is brilliant and gifted in many ways when it comes to food she is a wonderful eater but an unwilling preparer and consumer. Food shopping for her is only slightly less uncomfortable than cooking which is torture.
So having her with my was a treat until we arrived in the parking lot and saw that this particular Sunday brought out huge crowds as though Saturday shopping was cancelled and they were all forced to swarm my Sunday shopping trip. Long story short this made the all the more uncomfortable for Lorraine and so in turn me. My discomfort was compounded by the horde of locust that descended on the produce and picked the place clean. The poor stockers were unable to keep up with the demand and the result was slim pickings beyond the basics, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach.
Stuck between the celery and green onions on one side and the fresh herbs on the other were the leeks. Staring defiantly at me, daring me to pick them up. I'm not a person to be pushed around by produce I stared right back for a good long time, I even faked reaching for a bunch and backed off trying to get them to blink so I could walk away victorious. They never blinked. Defeated I picked up a bunch, plopped them in my basket and moved on to fruit not making eye contact with any of the zucchini for fear they would see my shame.
This is not a sad story about betrayal or disappointment, this is a story about discovery and the excitement of a breathless new infatuation that is already blossoming into a deep and abiding love.
Sauteed Leeks
Chicken & Rice Soup
 |
| Fresh Leeks |
Call me a knee jerk reactionary and a snob but if it's for the masses it's not for me. Fortunately the leek craze died down on the cooking shows and I began to notice them neatly bundled in groups of 2 or 3. Rubber banded together and looking alien, especially the dark green tops which appeared inedible. They looked like over sized Green Onions, which is really not far off the mark.
Leeks are members of the Allium family which is the group that includes onions and garlic. In fact Elephant Garlic is not garlic at all but a leek! Then a few weeks ago on what should have been my standard Sunday ritual of a trip to Wegman's I was transformed.
True transformation is rarely planned or anticipated it usually happens unexpectedly by chance. This particular Sunday shopping trip was unusual, Lorraine, my beautiful partner in life, came with me. This is a rare occurrence, while she is brilliant and gifted in many ways when it comes to food she is a wonderful eater but an unwilling preparer and consumer. Food shopping for her is only slightly less uncomfortable than cooking which is torture.
So having her with my was a treat until we arrived in the parking lot and saw that this particular Sunday brought out huge crowds as though Saturday shopping was cancelled and they were all forced to swarm my Sunday shopping trip. Long story short this made the all the more uncomfortable for Lorraine and so in turn me. My discomfort was compounded by the horde of locust that descended on the produce and picked the place clean. The poor stockers were unable to keep up with the demand and the result was slim pickings beyond the basics, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach.
Stuck between the celery and green onions on one side and the fresh herbs on the other were the leeks. Staring defiantly at me, daring me to pick them up. I'm not a person to be pushed around by produce I stared right back for a good long time, I even faked reaching for a bunch and backed off trying to get them to blink so I could walk away victorious. They never blinked. Defeated I picked up a bunch, plopped them in my basket and moved on to fruit not making eye contact with any of the zucchini for fear they would see my shame.
This is not a sad story about betrayal or disappointment, this is a story about discovery and the excitement of a breathless new infatuation that is already blossoming into a deep and abiding love.
Sauteed Leeks
Chicken & Rice Soup
Sauteed Leeks
Sublimely elegant, supremely simple and surprisingly simple sauteed leeks can easily become a favorite because they are both mildly familiar in flavor and at the same time unique. Leeks have a very mild onion-y and vaguely garlic-y flavor to them but only enough so that if you pay attention you recognize the taste but not so strong that you eating onions.Buying leeks is easy, they are usually rubber banded together into groups of 2 or 3 depending on your market. I find 3 nice size leeks to be perfect for 2-3 servings so you can up-size based on your needs. Fresh leeks have a dark green leaf on top which fades to white on the bottom. When selecting leeks the bottom (the white part) should be firm and solid if there is any real give pass them by because they are really old.
Ingredients:
2 Tbs Olive Oil
1 Tbs Unsalted Butter
1/3 Cup White Wine
3 Large Leeks
Preparation:
Like all leafy vegetables leeks tend to pick-up bits of grit and sand as they sprout from the soil and need to be cleaned thoroughly. Start by trimming away the inedible tops and the root bottom. I save the tops in the freezer for making stock but that's another story. Splint the leeks length wise and then slice the halves about 1/4 inch wide. Place the cut leeks in a colander an rinse thoroughly with cold water and drain.In your favorite straight sided sautee pan add the olive oil and butter and heat the pan on high heat until the butter is completely melted and stopped bubbling. The bubbling is the water in the butter boiling off. When the pan is ready add your leeks.
Stirring occasionally let the leeks cook until they start to get a little brown on the edges and are tender all the way through, about 5-7 minutes depending on the quantity. Without lowering the heat add your wine. Stir your leeks in the wine to make sure they are all treated to nice drink. Cook until almost all of the wine is gone.
Saturday Date Night
As many of you know my wife, Lorraine is a CPA and we have our own business which means during tax season even though we are together all day and into the evening together in the office we don't spend a lot of quality time with each other. So years ago during tax season we came up with Saturday Date Night where we would sit in front of the TV with a good movie and enjoy an easily prepared meal.
The idea of date night dinner was that it had to be simple, so I wasn't spending more time in the kitchen then necessary so the usual fare become creative salads; Asian with Mandarin orange toasted almonds rice wine Teriyaki vinaigrette, or Blue Cheese crumbles on spring mix with Raspberry Balsamic Vinaigrette or something with goat cheese because everything is better with goat cheese.
Now that Matthew is out of the house and we're alone, except for the dogs and cats we still enjoy our date nights and when it's not tax season I sometimes indulge myself and make something other than salad which brings me to this week. I went a little beyond my normal 15-20 minute date night prep limit and spent about an hour preparing and cooking three incredible items.
Whether you like tomatoes or tomato salad or not I promise you can not judge until you savor the sublime flavor of the never bright red usually hideously unattractive heirloom tomato!
Heirlooms are old school tomatoes, the ancestor, the mother of long shelf life bright red mild mannered hybred tomato. Heirlooms, when you can find them are usually organic and well worth the few extra cents they cost. Think of them as tomatoes on steroids. Big fleshy flavor packed fruits of the vine.
Eggplant Caponata is a rustic Italian\Spanish eggplant salad which can be purchased in a can in ethnic food aisle of most supermarkets and is relatively expensive in a cost per ounce basis.Caponata's main ingredients are; eggplant, onion, tomato and olives. This deep red almost brown salad is lumpy and viscous and like heirloom tomatoes and myself not particularly attractive to the eye but we more then make up for looks in taste.
Our date night meal was rounded out fresh focaccia. Focaccia is an Italian flat bread. As you'll see from many of the recipes I'll post here my food is decidedly ethnic, not just Italian, but Spanish, Mexican, French, German, Polish, African, Asian, Jewish... The more ethnic the better. Why? This will be answered in greater detail one day in a post of it's own, however for now the short answer is because American's eat junk and if you are looking for a healthy tasty meal, THINK ETHNIC!
Now for the recipes.
Basic Focaccia
Caponata
Heirloom Tomato Salad
Heirlooms are old school tomatoes, the ancestor, the mother of long shelf life bright red mild mannered hybred tomato. Heirlooms, when you can find them are usually organic and well worth the few extra cents they cost. Think of them as tomatoes on steroids. Big fleshy flavor packed fruits of the vine.
Eggplant Caponata is a rustic Italian\Spanish eggplant salad which can be purchased in a can in ethnic food aisle of most supermarkets and is relatively expensive in a cost per ounce basis.Caponata's main ingredients are; eggplant, onion, tomato and olives. This deep red almost brown salad is lumpy and viscous and like heirloom tomatoes and myself not particularly attractive to the eye but we more then make up for looks in taste.
Our date night meal was rounded out fresh focaccia. Focaccia is an Italian flat bread. As you'll see from many of the recipes I'll post here my food is decidedly ethnic, not just Italian, but Spanish, Mexican, French, German, Polish, African, Asian, Jewish... The more ethnic the better. Why? This will be answered in greater detail one day in a post of it's own, however for now the short answer is because American's eat junk and if you are looking for a healthy tasty meal, THINK ETHNIC!
Now for the recipes.
Basic Focaccia
Caponata
Heirloom Tomato Salad
Heirloom Tomato Salad
I love a beautiful tomato, I'm even fond of the kind that grow on vines. When my I want a squeeze from my tomato I make her some fresh heirloom tomato salad. My tomata's got gams up to here, she's one sweet dish.
Sorry I got carried away with Sam Spade-isms and confused my lovely wife Lorraine with the vegetable that's really a fruit, biologically speaking the tomato is a fruit. All that said, just like women there are all sorts of tomatoes. In fact there's a perfect tomato for every man and for every occasion. But when it comes to tomato salad for me the king is the Heirloom, of which there are numerous varieties but we'll stick to the generic term Heirloom to avoid too much confusion.
No matter the particular Heirloom in question it probably immediately be the apple of your eye. Unlike hybred tomatoes heirlooms are almost never all red, they do have red in them but they are never the perfectly pristine pictures of rosy purity. Who am I kidding these ladies are not at all attractive on the surface, in fact they can be downright ugly but once you get them behind closed doors and get passed their appearance brother your taste buds are in for the ride of their life!
Tomato salad is the wonderfully simple dish that can work by itself or as an accompaniment to something else. I was introduced to the latter at John's deli in Brooklyn where I heard someone order a chicken cutlet hero (sub, grinder, hoagie) with tamata salad. In Brooklyn there are not tomatoes only tamatas. At first I turned my nose up at the thought of it but when I tried it I was hooked.
Ingredients
Tomatoes
Onion (I like red but you can use whatever you prefer)
Fresh Basil (or dry)
Dried Oregano
Dried or Fresh Thyme
Vinegar (I use Balsamic because I'm sophisticated but Red Wine or some other is good too)
Preparation
Slice your tomatoes into wedges about 1/2" thick
Slice your onion thinnly
Chop up your basil
Combine everything in large bowl and let it stand for a least an hour, refrigerate it if it is going to be more then a couple of hours before you plan to eat it. Yes you could eat it immediately but the wait is worth it since it give everything a chance to marry.
Notes
In mid to late summer when heirlooms are available that is all I use but a nice extra ripe, starting to get a little soft beefsteak or other works too especially in the middle of the winter when a nice tomato salad will remind you of the warm days of August.
Sorry I got carried away with Sam Spade-isms and confused my lovely wife Lorraine with the vegetable that's really a fruit, biologically speaking the tomato is a fruit. All that said, just like women there are all sorts of tomatoes. In fact there's a perfect tomato for every man and for every occasion. But when it comes to tomato salad for me the king is the Heirloom, of which there are numerous varieties but we'll stick to the generic term Heirloom to avoid too much confusion.
No matter the particular Heirloom in question it probably immediately be the apple of your eye. Unlike hybred tomatoes heirlooms are almost never all red, they do have red in them but they are never the perfectly pristine pictures of rosy purity. Who am I kidding these ladies are not at all attractive on the surface, in fact they can be downright ugly but once you get them behind closed doors and get passed their appearance brother your taste buds are in for the ride of their life!
Tomato salad is the wonderfully simple dish that can work by itself or as an accompaniment to something else. I was introduced to the latter at John's deli in Brooklyn where I heard someone order a chicken cutlet hero (sub, grinder, hoagie) with tamata salad. In Brooklyn there are not tomatoes only tamatas. At first I turned my nose up at the thought of it but when I tried it I was hooked.
Ingredients
Tomatoes
Onion (I like red but you can use whatever you prefer)
Fresh Basil (or dry)
Dried Oregano
Dried or Fresh Thyme
Vinegar (I use Balsamic because I'm sophisticated but Red Wine or some other is good too)
Preparation
Slice your tomatoes into wedges about 1/2" thick
Slice your onion thinnly
Chop up your basil
Combine everything in large bowl and let it stand for a least an hour, refrigerate it if it is going to be more then a couple of hours before you plan to eat it. Yes you could eat it immediately but the wait is worth it since it give everything a chance to marry.
Notes
In mid to late summer when heirlooms are available that is all I use but a nice extra ripe, starting to get a little soft beefsteak or other works too especially in the middle of the winter when a nice tomato salad will remind you of the warm days of August.
Eggplant Caponata
Caponata or Eggplant Caponata may have originated in Spain and migrated to Italy before making it's way to America primarily via Italian immigrants. Caponata is a sweet and sour dish or as they say in Italian agro dolce. I am a big fan of agro dolce dishes because the argument between the two contrasting flavors as they dance around your palate is one of the most thrilling things your tongue can do while remaining inside your mouth.
Caponata is one of those wonderfully rustic dishes that is born of simple inexpensive ingredients whose ordinary notes combine to create a symphony of taste. This may seem to be hyperbole but it is not. Caponata, can be served as an appetizer, snack or as part of a meal made of tappas (small dishes). It only gets better with time which is great because you can make it and eat it today, tomorrow and the next day and have three different experiences with the same batch.
If your only experience with caponata is the kind that comes in a can and a relatively expensive can at that treat yourself and perhaps someone special to a treat and make some from scratch. How expensive is relatively expensive? Well this recipe will cost you less then $7. (probably much less) and makes about 2 pounds of finished product. If you buy 2 pounds worth in the cans it will cost you about $15.
My caponata is well mine, I based it on a few recipes and find my version suits my palate perfectly. I have seen the recipe include cocoa or chocolate and perhaps one day
With all my recipes I don't mind if you change them, improve them or take credit for them as you own. Just enjoy them
Eggplant Caponata
Caponata is one of those wonderfully rustic dishes that is born of simple inexpensive ingredients whose ordinary notes combine to create a symphony of taste. This may seem to be hyperbole but it is not. Caponata, can be served as an appetizer, snack or as part of a meal made of tappas (small dishes). It only gets better with time which is great because you can make it and eat it today, tomorrow and the next day and have three different experiences with the same batch.
If your only experience with caponata is the kind that comes in a can and a relatively expensive can at that treat yourself and perhaps someone special to a treat and make some from scratch. How expensive is relatively expensive? Well this recipe will cost you less then $7. (probably much less) and makes about 2 pounds of finished product. If you buy 2 pounds worth in the cans it will cost you about $15.
My caponata is well mine, I based it on a few recipes and find my version suits my palate perfectly. I have seen the recipe include cocoa or chocolate and perhaps one day
With all my recipes I don't mind if you change them, improve them or take credit for them as you own. Just enjoy them
Eggplant Caponata
Ingredients
1 - 1.5 – 2 lb eggplant -
Cut into ½” Cubes
1 Large Yellow or Spanish
Onion - ½” Dice
2 Celery Ribs – Split in
half & ¼” Chop
1/3 lb Oil Cured Olives
(Sicilian or Kalamata or both) Rough Cut
2 Tbs Capers Rinsed
1 Can Diced Tomatoes (Italian Type)
Alt
1 Very large Beefsteak or 3-4 Roma\Plum tomatoes ½” dice tossed with dry basil, oregano and
thyme.
1/3 Cup Pignoli (Pine) Nuts
2 Cloves of Garlic Minced
1 Tbs Tomato Paste
¼ Cup Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tbs Sugar
½ cup of water
2 Tbs Olive Oil
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
Preparation
In a heavy skillet heat your olive oil to just below smoke
point and onions between 5-8 minutes. Sautee onions until they are
soft\translucent and brown around the edges.
Add eggplant, celery and garlic, continue cooking until
eggplant is browned and soft about 10 minutes.
If you are using fresh tomatoes add them at the same time as
the eggplant, if you are using canned tomatoes add them (undrained) about 5
minutes after you add the eggplant.
When Eggplant is cooked add sugar, salt and pepper along
with about ½ cup of water.
Add chopped olives and about 2 tbs of the brine if you have
it.
When water is almost all gone add balsamic Vinegar and
pignoli (pine) nuts.
Add the capers
Cook out all visible remaining liquid (a couple of minutes
at most)
Serve warm on crostini or focaccia or refrigerate and reheat
to room temperature when needed.
Notes
When it comes to the type of eggplant you use, you choose. I like making this using Sicilian eggplants with Sicilian and Kalamata olives. I don't peel my eggplants before I cut them up because (I could be wrong) I think the skin brings a little extra flavor, color and texture to the caponata. Sometimes I toast my nuts, sometimes I don't, depends on my mood but mostly whether I remember or not. I understand if you use canned tomatoes, I avoid them because of the added salt, I like to control exactly what goes in my food rather then someone else.
Notes
When it comes to the type of eggplant you use, you choose. I like making this using Sicilian eggplants with Sicilian and Kalamata olives. I don't peel my eggplants before I cut them up because (I could be wrong) I think the skin brings a little extra flavor, color and texture to the caponata. Sometimes I toast my nuts, sometimes I don't, depends on my mood but mostly whether I remember or not. I understand if you use canned tomatoes, I avoid them because of the added salt, I like to control exactly what goes in my food rather then someone else.
Focaccia - Italian Flat Bread
Focaccia - Italian Flat Bread.
Peasant, Rustic, Country, Simple. No matter what you call it or how you slice it, delicious. The beautiful thing about focaccia is that you can put whatever you want on top just so long as it does not include sauce which then makes it a pizza, usually. Traditionally they are topped with herbs, like this one, or a little cheese, olives maybe some onions and peppers or olives. But herbs and olive oil are the mainstays.
At the hear of any Focaccia is the dough, home made is best, because it takes less then 10 minutes to make and it is practically free. My thought is I like to eat and I like to eat a lot, so the more I can make for less the better.
Ingredients:
Pizza Dough
2 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Tbs Dried Basil
2Tbs Dried Oregano
1 1/2 Tbs Dried Thyme.
Salt and Pepper
Start with a ball of pizza dough your own or already made from the supermarket or bakery but NEVER that pre-cooked stuff in plastic. If you're buying pre-made dough the ingredient list should be short and simple, Flour, Yeast, Water, Salt.
Stretch your dough out on either a rectangular cookie sheet or a round pizza pan until it is no more than 1/8" thick. Work it out with your fingers to a mostly uniform thickness all the way to the edges this is a bread not a pizza so we don't want a thick crust on the outside edges.
Add about 2 table spoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and spread that around the top of the dough. Yes, Extra Virgin makes a difference here because it is part of the flavor of the focaccia. I use dried herbs here but you can substitute fresh if you want. Start with Basil 2 - 3 tablespoons spread evenly. The same for Oregano and about half as much Thyme. Finish off with a large pinch of either preferably kosher salt or if you want a lower sodium option coarse ground sea salt and a nice pinch of black pepper both evenly distributed.
Cook it in a 450 degree oven until the bottom is golden brown that I like to finish it under the broiler to get some color on top. This is optional but it's my blog and my preference. Once it's done let it cool and cut it into individual portions about 2 inches square but please don't obsess about shape or size this is about eating not displaying it in a museum.
Peasant, Rustic, Country, Simple. No matter what you call it or how you slice it, delicious. The beautiful thing about focaccia is that you can put whatever you want on top just so long as it does not include sauce which then makes it a pizza, usually. Traditionally they are topped with herbs, like this one, or a little cheese, olives maybe some onions and peppers or olives. But herbs and olive oil are the mainstays.
At the hear of any Focaccia is the dough, home made is best, because it takes less then 10 minutes to make and it is practically free. My thought is I like to eat and I like to eat a lot, so the more I can make for less the better.
Ingredients:
Pizza Dough
2 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Tbs Dried Basil
2Tbs Dried Oregano
1 1/2 Tbs Dried Thyme.
Salt and Pepper
Start with a ball of pizza dough your own or already made from the supermarket or bakery but NEVER that pre-cooked stuff in plastic. If you're buying pre-made dough the ingredient list should be short and simple, Flour, Yeast, Water, Salt.
Stretch your dough out on either a rectangular cookie sheet or a round pizza pan until it is no more than 1/8" thick. Work it out with your fingers to a mostly uniform thickness all the way to the edges this is a bread not a pizza so we don't want a thick crust on the outside edges.
Add about 2 table spoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and spread that around the top of the dough. Yes, Extra Virgin makes a difference here because it is part of the flavor of the focaccia. I use dried herbs here but you can substitute fresh if you want. Start with Basil 2 - 3 tablespoons spread evenly. The same for Oregano and about half as much Thyme. Finish off with a large pinch of either preferably kosher salt or if you want a lower sodium option coarse ground sea salt and a nice pinch of black pepper both evenly distributed.
Cook it in a 450 degree oven until the bottom is golden brown that I like to finish it under the broiler to get some color on top. This is optional but it's my blog and my preference. Once it's done let it cool and cut it into individual portions about 2 inches square but please don't obsess about shape or size this is about eating not displaying it in a museum.
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