3½cups(500grams)flourall-purpose flour or half all-purpose and half whole wheat flour
1½cups + 1 tablespoon(375grams)lukewarmwater
1teaspoon(3.5grams)yeastinstant dry yeast or active dry yeast. 10 grams if you use fresh yeast.
1teaspoon(5grams)sugar
2teaspoons(10grams)salt
Topping
4mediumzucchini
2 to 3tablespoons(30grams)oliveoil1 tbsp for the baking tray - 1 to 2 tbsp on top
½teaspoon(2.5grams)salt
3twistsblack pepper
MAKE THE DOUGH
To a small container, add the lukewarm water, instant dry yeast, and sugar. Stir and let the yeast activate (bloom) for 2 minutes.
To a large mixing bowl, add the flour and the salt. Stir with a wooden spoon, then add the yeast mixture.
Mix the ingredients with a wooden spoon or a silicone spatula until you have a wet and sticky dough. Roughly shape the dough into a ball and lightly drizzle with olive oil before putting it to proof.
PROOFING THE DOUGH
Cover the bowl with a damp cloth, leaving enough space between the dough and the cloth. Let it proof in a slightly warm oven for two hours. The dough should double in volume.
FOLD THE DOUGH
Fold the dough on itself from the outside to the inside with a spatula or spoon.There's no need to touch it with your hands. Fold it 20 times. This will take about 30 seconds. Folding gives structure to the dough.
SHAPE AND SECOND PROOFING
Grease your baking tray with a tablespoon of olive oil. Transfer the dough to the center of the baking tray, then with the back of two spoons (or two spatulas), spread the dough out until almost the whole tray is evenly covered. The dough is elastic at this stage and will pull back, so don't worry if it doesn't cover the tray completely.To prevent the spoons from sticking to the dough, wet the spoons with water.
Note: Focaccia tends to stick to the baking pan. If you want to reduce the amount of oil, you can line your baking pan with parchment paper.We make thin, pizza-like focaccia here, using a 16 x 12 inches (40 x 30 cm) baking pan, but you can use a smaller pan to make thicker focaccia.
Put back in the slightly warm oven to proof for another 45 minutesto 1 hour. After this second proofing, remove it from the oven and preheat it to 450°F or 230°C.
ADD TOPPING
Grate the zucchini and spread it on top of the focaccia.
Season with a few pinches of salt, black pepper, and 1 to 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.
BAKE
Place the zucchini focaccia on the medium-low oven rack and bake it for about 18 to 25 minutes.The focaccia is ready when it's golden brown, crispy on the sides, and well-cooked on the bottom.Let it cool down for 5 to 10 minutes before removing it from the pan, cutting it, and serving it.