Holes! It’s got holes! 🙂 Crispy crust, soft and chewy interior, super-cheesy flavour and beautiful holes! *sigh* It’s the little things in life that make me smile!

Of course, there was no way three of us could finish this loaf in one sitting, so I extended the shelf-life of the leftover bread by turning it into biscotti to munch on with a cold drink on a warm spring afternoon.

Ingredients

375g Type 0, bread or all-purpose (plain) flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp instant dry yeast
30ml extra-virgin olive oil
240ml cold water

Filling

120g Parmigiano Reggiano, finely grated

Topping

olive oil
coarse sea salt

Directions

Mix all dough ingredients together and knead until smooth, about 10 minutes. Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place for 4 hours.

Turn dough out onto a floured surface, knead lightly and stretch and fold into a ball, tucking the seams underneath. Return to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rest another 2 hours.

Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Turn dough out onto a floured surface and stretch out to a large rectangle about 1cm thick. Sprinkle with half the Parmigiano Reggiano then fold the dough with 4 folds into a tight package from one of the short ends. Press out again to a rectangle about 2cm thick, sprinkle with the remaining cheese then fold with 3 folds into a package again. Place the dough onto the baking sheet, press out to about 2cm thick, cover with a clean, dry tea towel and let rest for another hour.

Preheat oven to 250°C.

When ready to bake, use your fingertips to make indentations all over the top of the dough. Drizzle generously with olive oil and sprinkle with course sea salt.

Bake for about 20 minutes, until golden. Serve warm.

Biscotti

Preheat oven to 150°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Thinly slice the focaccia (about 1/2cm thick) and lay the pieces on the parchment.

Bake for about 30 minutes, flipping once or twice, until dry and crisp and golden brown. Your baking time may vary (my oven is slow at drying things) so check them frequently.

Cool completely on a wire rack before serving with a cold drink.

Store in an airtight container.