Focaccia with Vegetables
Like pizza, but different! This light Italian dish serves as a great healthy alternative.
Step-by-step instructions in images
- 4-6 people
- 1h30
- 1h30
Ingredients
Dough
- 300 g floury potatoes (de: mehligkochend)(1)
- 500 g spelt flour (150 g whole grain, 350 g white)
- 30 g fresh yeast(2)
- 4 tsp fennel seeds or aniseeds(3)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 0.5 tsp salt
- 220 mL lukewarm water
Topping
- 6 tbsp olive oil
- 1 kohlrabi (200 g)
- 200 g carrots
- 1 fennel (200 g)
- 200 g zucchini
- 1 red pepper (200 g)
- 2 spring onions or 1 onion
- 250 g cherry tomatoes
- 1 red chili pepper (optional)
- 80 g snow peas (de: Zuckerschote, optional)
- 1 organic lemon, skin (optional)
- 3 tbsp chardonnay vinegar(4)
- rosmarin
- salt, pepper
- fleur de sel
Directions
- Prepare the potatoes: Cook the potatoes with their skin in boiling salt water for 20-30 minutes. After cooking, pour away the water, let the heat evaporate and peel the potatoes while still hot. Mash the potatoes with a masher, potato press or with a fork.
- Prepare the dough: Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water. Be careful that the water is not too hot, otherwise the yeast will be killed. Add the flour, fennel/aniseed, salt to the potatoes. Make a small cavity in the flour mixture in which to add the yeast water solution. Knead everything into a smooth dough, either by hand or with the kneading hooks of a mixer. If needed add more water, especially with more whole grain flour. At the end incorporate the oil. Form a dough ball, cover it and let it rise in a warm location until it doubles (approximately 1 hour)(5).
- Cut the vegetables: In the meantime, peel the kohlrabi and cut it into ca. 1 cm thick slices and cut these further into 6-8 small cake pieces. Peel the carrots and cut them into ca. 5 mm thick slices at an angle. Wash the fennel and cut into ca. 1 cm thick slices. Wash the zucchini and cut into ca. 8 mm thick slices. Wash the pepper and cut into 6-8 big slices. Chop the chili pepper into small rings. Cut the onions into small pieces. Half the cherry tomatoes.
- Prepare the vegetable mixture: Heat up 6 Tbsp of olive oil in a big pan. First, add the kohlrabi, carrots and fennel and cook on a high heat for 10 minutes. Next, add the zucchini, paprika, chili pepper, onions and snow peas and cook for another 10 minutes. Stir regularly. Spice with rosmarin, salt and pepper. Transfer the vegetables into a bowl and mix with lemon skin, cherry tomatoes and vinegar. Let infuse for 30 minutes.
- Roll the dough: Take out the dough from the bowl and put it onto a baking tray covered with baking paper. If it is sticky, cover your hands in a bit of olive oil. Roll it out to cover the entire tray. For easier handling, sprinkle the dough with olive oil and cover it with another baking paper while rolling. Let the dough rise for another 30 minutes.
- Prepare and cook the focaccia: Spread the vegetable mixture on the dough. Cook the focaccia in the preheated oven (180°C, upper/lower heat) for 20 minutes on the lowest shelf of the oven. Cook for another 10-15 minutes on the 2nd lowest shelf. Sprinkle with fleur de sel prior serving.
Notes
- (1)You can also use leftover potatoes, in that case heat them up in a microwave for a warmer dough (which aids the yeast activity).
- (2)You can also use 1 bag of dried yeast.
- (3)Optionally, the fennel or aniseed can be roasted in a pan without fat and subsequently crushed using a mortar.
- (4)Aceto balsamico works as well.
- (5)A warm location can be the oven preheated to 50°C. Turn the oven off after putting the dough inside.
- Credit for this recipe goes to essen & trinken
More delicious recipes
This is one of the many other recipes available on this blog