I put my dough into the oven with just the light turned on, door closed. The temp in my lighted oven is more even and closer to 70°.
King Arthur Flour Recipe of the Year - Big and Bubbly Focaccia
- Thread starter Good Foods
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I used the electric oven light for proofing dough in my last house. I now have a gas oven with no pilot (electronic ignition) but the light does add enough warmth and keeping the door closed helps the temp stay even.
mariadnoca
Moderator
I can’t wait to try this, but I’ve started low carbing in an attempt to lose some weight before my grand niece‘s June wedding. So, it will be awhile before I can attempt. Unless I fall off the wagon, which is entirely possible.
Okay...I finally climbed on the focaccia band wagon.
Damn you all.
The weather here is still vacillating between 25 degrees n the morning and 65 in the afternoon, so I cranked up the furnace AND turned on the propane stove AND turned on the oven light.
I think I over-did the wet finger step in the first turn because my dough was very wet. In fact, it didn't dry out until the fourth turn and I was timing those at 20 minutes each, not 15. Also, I kept feeling lumps of flour so I obviously didn't do the first blending step correctly either.
Proofed it in the oven using the oven light bulb suggestion and it worked.
The parchment sling hint is a good one.
To finish, I used Malton sea salt and crushed it first because some pieces are 1/4". Added a bit of Italian herb seasoning to that as well.
Everyone loved the end result.
I served it with lemon pasta coated in homemade alfredo sauce and nested in seasoned, breaded chicken breasts topped with Rao's tomato and basil sauce, then mozzarella and parmesan all over. Served with a bowl of alfredo sauce and tomato sauce.
Dipped my focaccia in a blend of both sauces and HOLY MOLY. I'm sure an artery clogged somewhere along the way, but totally worth it!
PS: I thought it was a bit too salty, but was vigorously out-voted by my guests. Of course, I tend to pick the salt off pretzel sticks or bagels, so who am I to judge.
Damn you all.
The weather here is still vacillating between 25 degrees n the morning and 65 in the afternoon, so I cranked up the furnace AND turned on the propane stove AND turned on the oven light.
I think I over-did the wet finger step in the first turn because my dough was very wet. In fact, it didn't dry out until the fourth turn and I was timing those at 20 minutes each, not 15. Also, I kept feeling lumps of flour so I obviously didn't do the first blending step correctly either.
Proofed it in the oven using the oven light bulb suggestion and it worked.
The parchment sling hint is a good one.
To finish, I used Malton sea salt and crushed it first because some pieces are 1/4". Added a bit of Italian herb seasoning to that as well.
Everyone loved the end result.
I served it with lemon pasta coated in homemade alfredo sauce and nested in seasoned, breaded chicken breasts topped with Rao's tomato and basil sauce, then mozzarella and parmesan all over. Served with a bowl of alfredo sauce and tomato sauce.
Dipped my focaccia in a blend of both sauces and HOLY MOLY. I'm sure an artery clogged somewhere along the way, but totally worth it!
PS: I thought it was a bit too salty, but was vigorously out-voted by my guests. Of course, I tend to pick the salt off pretzel sticks or bagels, so who am I to judge.
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Good Foods
Active member
Looks wonderful Marilyn.....your dinner sounded amazing.....Glad you got to try the recipe
mariadnoca
Moderator
Oh my that’s a beauty! Everything sound completely delicious. Yum.
Looks fabulous! Care to share your home-made alfredo sauce recipe? I haven't made it in years and was never really happy with the results.
monj, I don't really have a proportional recipe. It's just three ingredients and the key is when to add what.
heavy cream
soft butter
block parmesan
I dumped the remains (a little more than a cup) from a pint of heavy cream into a sauce pan and reduce that until half. When the pasta is cooked and drained, I heat the cream again, then add in--OFF HEAT--about 4 TBL of soft butter and at least a cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese (NOT the pre-shredded stuff, which doesn't melt right).
The issue with alfredo is cheese and butter will break (separate and look oily) if they are added too early at too high a temperature. By blending them in at the end without any heat, you don't run into that issue. Then taste for seasoning with salt & pepper. Sometimes I'll add a grate of nutmeg but my favorite is simply pasta coated with a bit of butter, sauteed veggies and the alfredo sauce drizzled on top. That way it's not overwhelming.
I haven't found a way to reheat this basic alfredo sauce without it breaking. Maybe one made with a roux would work?
heavy cream
soft butter
block parmesan
I dumped the remains (a little more than a cup) from a pint of heavy cream into a sauce pan and reduce that until half. When the pasta is cooked and drained, I heat the cream again, then add in--OFF HEAT--about 4 TBL of soft butter and at least a cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese (NOT the pre-shredded stuff, which doesn't melt right).
The issue with alfredo is cheese and butter will break (separate and look oily) if they are added too early at too high a temperature. By blending them in at the end without any heat, you don't run into that issue. Then taste for seasoning with salt & pepper. Sometimes I'll add a grate of nutmeg but my favorite is simply pasta coated with a bit of butter, sauteed veggies and the alfredo sauce drizzled on top. That way it's not overwhelming.
I haven't found a way to reheat this basic alfredo sauce without it breaking. Maybe one made with a roux would work?
Interesting, thank you so much for the tips. Fueling the debate on cream or no cream in Alfredo. I don't typically use cream, but might give it a try! Your post caused me to look around online a bit and took me down the rabbit hole of comments on the NYT (Elaines Fettucine Alfredo recipe, which has cream and an egg yolk) and ATK's different versions, cream vs. butter and cheese, no cream. DH and I enjoyed FA at our favorite Italian restaurant as daters in the mid 80's and haven't had one that good since. Been trying to replicate for years. Restaurant is long gone, sigh.
Keep some of the pasta water when draining it. If the sauce seems too thick or you reduced the cream too much, whisk some of the starchy water. If there isn’t enough water, the emulsion won’t hold.
Good luck. Favorite old food memories are hellishly difficult to replicate.
Good luck. Favorite old food memories are hellishly difficult to replicate.
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KA Focaccia Round 2: visited a friend in GA this weekend and showed her how to make the bread. I corrected two of my own issues by putting the water & oil in the mixing bowl first, then whisking in the flour. No flour lumps this time.
Also, I made sure she only wet her fingers once during the initial turn process. I had wet mine each lift of the dough and added too much extra water. Took longer for the dough to dry out.
Her oven has a proofing option but she thought it messed up rolls she had made earlier. I wanted to verify the internal oven temperature, but those oven thermometers only go down to 150 degrees and I wasn’t willing to leave my Thermapen in the oven to test it. So we used the oven light bulb option. It worked.
Perfect focaccia again. Had it with a vegan casserole with faux alfredo sauce. (She would NOT be among the friends who had the heavy cream/butter/parmesan version I made earlier in the week.)
My photos are from Gibbs Garden in Jasper, GA.
Also, I made sure she only wet her fingers once during the initial turn process. I had wet mine each lift of the dough and added too much extra water. Took longer for the dough to dry out.
Her oven has a proofing option but she thought it messed up rolls she had made earlier. I wanted to verify the internal oven temperature, but those oven thermometers only go down to 150 degrees and I wasn’t willing to leave my Thermapen in the oven to test it. So we used the oven light bulb option. It worked.
Perfect focaccia again. Had it with a vegan casserole with faux alfredo sauce. (She would NOT be among the friends who had the heavy cream/butter/parmesan version I made earlier in the week.)
My photos are from Gibbs Garden in Jasper, GA.
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Wow, what a welcome spring sight! Gorgeous tulips and flowering trees. Counting down, should be another month for us here in NJ. Enjoy your visit!