E-Z Focaccia Sourdough “Granma” Pizza Focaccia

Making this focaccia Pizza is easy as 1-2-3.

Life is short make great pizza! This is a very simple easy dough with no kneading. Mixing the dough takes,10-15 minutes. Long cold development & starter makes flour and water turn into super sensational pizza dough with delightful crumb, and chew. Cure dough for 2-3 days in refrigerator, last 10-12 hours at room temperature. Sourdough is a living probiotic with flavor bombs that add nutrients and digestibility.

1, Focaccia Sourdough Pizza “Granma” dough

4 & 1/2 cups flour, best to use high protein flour:
1 teaspoon dry yeast, 1/4 cup 80° filtered water for yeast.
1/4 cup *sourdough starter (best) or Poolish, if sourdough is not available. Poolish is a quickie type of starter. (To make, mix 1/8 teaspoon dry yeast into 3 & 1/2 tablespoons water. Mix well then add 1/3 cup flour. Mix well again. Cover set in refrigerator over night before using.)
2 & 1/2 to 3 cups filtered or spring water.
1 teaspoon fine sea salt.
1 tablespoon olive oil.

Measure flour into large mixing bowl. Place 80° water in small bowl, sprinkle yeast over, whip a bit, let sit. Refresh sourdough starter, measure out 1/4 cup and set aside, or have *Poolish ready. Measure 2 & 1/2 cups filtered water with the option of more available. Measure and set aside; 1 teaspoon fine sea salt and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Set up mixer with dough hooks, or use your hands for mixing. Be careful of over mixing, run 1/2 minute or so after each addition. With mixer running on low speed add these ingredient one at a time into flour; yeast/water mixture, starter, water. Dough should be very wet and come together as shown in picture. If dough is still not coming together, add water, a bit at a time, until it looks right. Add salt, mix a bit more. Add olive oil, mix a bit, leaving some around the outside as shown. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2-3 days.

2. Pre-baking Pizza

Remove from refrigerator the night before baking. Dough will rise some as it comes to room temperature. 2-3 hours before baking move dough onto oiled 12″-19″ with 1″ sides baking sheet. Dough is very wet and sticky. Simply turn it upside down onto baking sheet. Use a plastic dough scraper or wet fingers to pull it out. Fold it over a couple of times to deflate it. Spread dough out on pan with gentle pushing. Let rest and rise 1-2 hour. Judge by the rise, look for 1/3 to 1/2 more than original. Focaccia is a bubbly dough, press down to get rid of big air bubbles. Use your hands or plastic dough scraper. Pinch off any big bubbles, make dimples in the dough with your finger tips. Let dough rise again another 1 hour or so. Pre-bake at oven’s highest baking temperature in my oven that’s 500°. When dough has started to brown and looks like the picture, remove from oven. Now the pre-baked pizza dough can wait 4-6 hours before finishing. If you want to wait until the next day, cool, cover, refrigerate, then bring back to room temperature before continuing.

3. Finishing Pizza

When cool to touch, cover with slices of dry mozzarella cheese. I like my local “Fiscalini” Scamorza cheese. If you have a wood burning pizza oven, at this point finish the pizza in it, adding sauce and toppings on top the mozzarella cheese. If you are using a regular oven, bake again at highest temperature until cheese has browned as pictured. Remove from oven. Spread *sauce almost to edges. Add toppings and bake.

Pizza toppings

Options here are endless: Everything should be room temperature before adding, keep in mind anything raw needs to cook on top the pizza. Small pieces work best. Cooked foods should be added with only a couple minutes of baking time left, or after pizza is out of oven. Pizza pictured was started with bits of bacon cooked on top the sauce about 15 minutes at 500°, then slices of dry salami and green pepper for another 3-5 minutes. Once out of oven it was topped with hand crushed black olives and dry cheese. I like my local “Fiscalini” San Joaquin Gold cheese.

*Pizza Sauce

Make ahead 1 hour to 2-3 days ahead, bring to room temperature before using. There is no need to cook the sauce, it will roast on top the pizza. Combine in blender until smooth.