A Rustic Focaccia To Love.
From the archives.
So the groundhog had his day. And whether or not the sky is sleeting or snowing or raining (maybe iguanas?) where you live at the moment, one Truth with a big T is clear. Spring *IS* coming. Truly. Hold on tight.
I say this with all empathy and hope for the future because it happens to be sleeting, with fog, no less, infused with a misty cold rain here in our neck of the woods. And what I’m thinking is this.
It’s a great weekend to bake some bread.
And I don’t mean warming up some sorry store bought frozen gluten-free bread stuck with ice crystals on it that resemble what’s ticking at your window pane like so many NFTs of ice. I mean freshly baked, warm from the oven, fragrant, tender, rustic bread. The kind of nubby, crusty loaf that conjures the word hearth (such an antique word) and home (now a literal, medical refuge for so many of us). What I’m talking about is a delicious, home baked loaf that is just plain good for the soul. And you just don’t get that in a frozen plastic package.
So crank up the oven and bake up some love.
And as our favorite TV coach was prone to say, clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose.
Gluten-Free Goddess Sun-Dried Tomato Focaccia Bread
We found some fabulously sweet sun-dried tomatoes at Trader Joe’s for this new bread recipe. They were delightfully tender and not too chewy. I like my sun-dried tomatoes to resemble fruit, not leather. They gave this rustic bread a rich, Italian inspired flavor.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sorghum flour or certified gluten-free oat flour
1 1/2 cups cassava or potato starch
1/2 cup almond meal or GF millet flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
4 teaspoons dried basil
2 teaspoons xanthan gum (or try gelatin)
1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1-2 teaspoons minced garlic, to taste
1 1/4 cup warm water (115ºF)
1 teaspoon raw sugar
1 packet rapid yeast
2 large organic free range eggs, beaten
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1 teaspoon mild rice vinegar (or lemon juice)
1/2 cup lightly packed sun-dried tomatoes (dry packed)
Instructions:
Warm the oven by turning it on and off. Line a 9-inch cake pan with a piece of parchment.
In a mixing bowl combine the sorghum flour, tapioca starch, almond meal, brown rice flour, dried basil, xanthan gum, sea salt and garlic.
In a large measuring cup add the sugar to the water and dissolve. Add the yeast, stir and set aside until the yeast gets happy and poofy. (The sugar feeds the yeast.)
Add the proofed yeast and liquid to the flour and begin beating to combine. Add the eggs, olive oil and vinegar. Beat for a minute or two until the dough is smooth.
Lightly chop the sun-dried tomatoes. Toss them into the dough. Stir to distribute.
Scoop the dough into the prepared pan, shape and smooth the top with oiled hands.
Set the pan in the warm oven, on the center rack, and allow the dough to rise. A quick rise of 20 minutes will produce a flat bread style rustic loaf (shown). A longer rise, until doubled in height, should give you a slightly higher loaf, depending upon your altitude and ambient temperature.
When the dough has risen, turn the oven on to 375ºF.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until firm and golden. Note: At about 20-25 minutes I brushed the top with olive oil. This helps make a lovely golden crust.
Serve this flavorful bread warm from the oven, with authentic extra virgin olive oil. (See this book Extra Virginity for the truth about olive oils- thanks to my pal Gluten-Free Anna for the heads up on this book.)
Makes one 9-inch rustic bread.
Note: For substitution help, please see my guide to baking with substitutions here.
Recipe Source: glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com
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