Vegan Bites: Beet Focaccia

 

Oh Wow.

Who would have thought pouring vinegar brine on your focaccia could take it up a notch? We tweaked the recipe from Waves in the Kitchen for this incredible, edible, plant-dyed, salty, soft focaccia. YUM. Big hit!

Beet Focaccia

~med/large beet, roasted and peeled

Puree beet in processor. Add 1T of water at a time, to make puree smooth. Measure out 1 cup of puree.

~2.5c lukewarm water

~1t dry active yeast

~2.5t honey

Mix honey and warm water. Sprinkle yeast on top. Allow to bloom.

~5 1/3c spelt flour

~1T sea salt

Mix dry.

Add beet puree to yeast mixture,  plus 4T olive oil and stir to combine. Pour into dry mix.

Stir well and allow to rise in warm spot until doubled (4-8 hours). Very wet mixture.

We folded ours several times, as it continued to grow out of the covered pot.

Place parchment on pan. Spread with oil. place dough on oiled pan and push outwards with oiled fingers.

Allow to rest 15-30 minutes. We needed to poke many holes with oiled fingers during that period as well, to keep it from rising out of the pan!

~1/3c warm water

~1.5t salt

~1T white vinegar

Dissolve salt in water. Add vinegar. Poke holes in focaccia before pouring brine on top (yes, it's true!)

Allow to rise another 20-40 minutes, while oven heats to 450. Sprinkle dough lightly with salt.

Bake on center rack for 30 minutes. 

Check bottom of bread and add 5-7 minutes if the bottom is still a little gooey.

Remove from oven and pour 2-4T oil on top while warm. Slice and serve!