Sun-Dried Tomato Focaccia with Feta

Focaccia's light texture topped with a touch of olive oil and coarse salt provides a perfect side for nearly every meal.  Filled with savory goodies, the plain dough it an empty palette just waiting to be adorned... Garlic, caramelized onions, fresh herbs or simply shredded Parmesan all come to mind.  Our classic Herb Focaccia has been a staple for nearly 15 years, but when my husband pulled a batch of his home made (by him!) spaghetti sauce from the freezer last night, I wanted something a little more substantial.

Short on time I combined 4 different recipes into an excellent flat bread that will enter our regular rotation.  Sun-Dried Tomato Focaccia with Feta met my time requirements as a no-knead bread, though the rising time will still take about an hour.  The addition of a handful of beautiful sun dried tomatoes and a few tablespoons of Trader Joe's Mediterranean Feta provided an entirely new layer of flavors to the garlic and herb base.  Baked in a hot oven for about 20 minutes, the slightly crisp crust was drizzled with a garlic olive oil and a sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan Cheese for the perfect savory/salty side to our sauce.

Sun-Dried Tomato Focaccia with Feta
recipe by Kim Kelly - Liv Life

2¼ cups all purpose flour

½ tsp salt

scant 1 cup warm water

1½ tsp yeast

1½ Tbs olive oil

¼ cup feta cheese (I used Trader Joe's Mediterranean Herb)

¼ cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes

½ tsp Italian herb seasoning

⅛ tsp dried rosemary

3 cloves garlic, minced or finely chopped

olive oil for brushing

3 pinches coarse salt

Parmesan Cheese for sprinkling

semolina flour sprinkling on the baking sheet

In a large mixing bowl combine 1 cup of flour with the water and yeast.  Stir until smooth and set aside for a few minutes while you are assembling the rest of your ingredients.  Add the salt and olive oil and mix again.  Add the garlic, tomatoes, feta and herbs, stir again.  Add the flour in 1/2 cup measurements, stirring after each addition to combine until all the flour is incorporated.  The dough will be a bit wet.  If it is too wet to work, add a Tablespoon or two of flour, being careful not to add too much.  Do not knead the dough.

Place the dough in a greased mixing bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Put the dough in a warm area and let rise until dough has doubled, about 45 minutes.  Punch down dough and pour out onto a well floured surface.  Stretch the dough to about a 1 - 1½ inch thickness and carefully transfer to a prepared baking sheet (I simply sprinkle the sheet liberally with semolina flour).  Preheat oven to 425º.   Cover with a cloth and let rise 20- 30 minutes.  Drizzle dough with additional olive oil (I like to use a garlic flavored oil!) and sprinkle with a few pinches of coarse salt.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Remove focaccia from oven and quickly sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese.  Quickly return focaccia to the oven and bake for about 10 more minutes, or until golden brown all over and slightly crispy.

Remove from oven and cool.  May serve warm or cold.  Wonderful dipped into an herb or garlic olive dipping oil!