Garlic and Herb Sourdough Focaccia

Ingredients

Focaccia

375 g all purpose flour

280 g room temperature water

94 g ripe/mature/fed sourdough starter

22 g honey

22 g olive oil

8 g kosher salt

Garlic Confit

2 whole heads of fresh garlic, broken into cloves and peeled

¾ to 1 cup (up to 130 grams) extra virgin olive oil

Topping

All of the Garlic Confit, plus a few tablespoons of reserved garlic oil

3 tablespoons chopped fresh herbs, such as thyme, rosemary, and sage

Flakey sea salt

Preparation

Garlic Confit

Preheat the oven to 250°F

In a Mini Milo Dutch Oven, combine the peeled garlic and olive oil until the garlic is fully submerged in oil.

Place the Dutch in the oven uncovered and bake for 1 hour, or until the garlic is soft, golden brown, and very fragrant.

Remove the cloves of garlic from the oil and reserve the garlic in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready for use the following day.

Reserve the oil and allow it to cool. You will use some of this oil in other steps.

Focaccia Dough

Combine all the ingredients for the focaccia in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix together with the dough hook on the lowest speed for 2 minutes, then on the second lowest speed for 8-12 minutes, until a soft, tacky, and smooth dough forms.You can also knead by hand--be prepared for this to take up to 20 minutes.

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover loosely, and allow to rise until almost doubled in size, 4-6 hours at a room temperature of around 75F.

Prepare a quarter sheet pan (one with sides at least 1 inch tall is preferable, or use a 9x13 inch cake pan) by placing a Kana Precut Parchment Paper Sheet on the pan. Liberally coat with a few tablespoons of the garlic olive oil.

Gently transfer the dough to the sheet pan, being careful not to press out too many of the bubbles. Stretch the dough to fill the sheet pan--it may spring back a bit, in which case you can let it rest for 10 minutes and then stretch it a bit more. As the dough proofs overnight, it will continue to fill out the pan.

Cover the pan with a damp towel, wrapping the towel tightly around the pan to prevent the focaccia from drying out, then place in the fridge overnight, 8-12 hours. 8. The next day, remove the pan from the refrigerator and allow the dough to come up to room temperature and finish proofing. The proofed dough will be light, puffy, and soft, but you may not see a ton of huge bubbles on the surface--more will come out as you dimple the dough in step 10.

Preheat the oven to 425°F and remove the garlic confit and a few tablespoons of the reserved garlic oil from the refrigerator to warm up slightly. The oil might have solidified from the cold--it will liquify again at room temperature.

Drizzle a few tablespoons of the garlic oil over the dough, spreading with your fingers, then use your fingertips to dimple the dough all over, pushing straight down to create little divots on the surface. Press the garlic cloves all over the surface of the dough, then top with chopped herbs and flaky sea salt.

Bake the focaccia until it is golden brown all over, 25-35 minutes. Cool focaccia in the pan for 5 minutes before removing. Peel off and discard the parchment paper, slice the focaccia into strips or squares, and enjoy. Best eaten the same day it’s made, but can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.