Schiacciata all’uva (Tuscan Grape Focaccia) – Thermomix & Conventional Methods

While researching our upcoming West Australian “Southern Forests Food & Wine Experience” to be scheduled later in 2021, I headed back down to Manjimup & Pemberton during this year’s grape harvest and vintage. I  popped in to see Gail & Paul Kordic, and their son James, for a couple of wonderful meals and a visit to their Chestnut Grove Wines. While driving around the property we passed by some of their table grape vines and all I could think about was when we had escorted one of our “Discover Tuscany” groups to Toscana during vintage and Sergio & Stefano prepared a Tuscan “Schiacciata” (Grape Harvest Focaccia). So we picked some of the vineyard’s seedless table grapes and, using some of Gail’s proofed bread dough, I just had to use them to transport us back to Toscana! Thank you Gail & Paul for your wonderful hospitality!

For a little taste of Tuscany at home, here’s our Recipe of the Month! Enjoy this sweet/savoury focaccia with a glass of your favourite wine and thin slices or shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano!

Buon viaggio e buon appetito!

Focaccia
(Serves 8 – Makes one x 40cm x 30cm or two x 20cm x 15cm focaccia)

400g water, lukewarm

(7g) 1 sachet dry yeast

40g extra virgin olive oil, plus additional for baking tray and drizzling

500g Bakers Flour

10g (2 tsp) salt

300g seedless red grapes

2 tbsp picked rosemary leaves

sea salt flakes & cracked black pepper

Thermomix Method

1. Place water, yeast and oil into TM bowl. Mix for 5 seconds on speed 6.
2. Add flour and salt (use a tsp for more accurate measure) and mix for 20 seconds on speed 6
3. Set dial to closed lid position and knead for 2 minutes on Interval Speed
4. Remove dough and place in an oiled bowl and let rise in a warm place for up to an hour or until doubled in size.
5. Knock down and use oiled fingers to stretch and spread the dough onto either one heavy-based oiled baking tray about 40cm x 30cm, or divide dough in half to make two 20cm x 15cm focaccia. Use as much oil as necessary to be able to stretch out the dough onto the baking tray (focaccia loves olive oil). The smaller schiacciata tend to crisp up better on the base than the larger one.
6. Scatter grapes over stretched dough, gently pressing them into the dough. Sprinkle over rosemary leaves and season with sea salt flakes and pepper.
7. Bake in preheated 200C oven for about 30-40 minutes or until the underside is golden brown and crust has crisped up.
8. Best served while warm.

Conventional Method

1. Place water, yeast and oil into a bowl and let sit for a couple of minutes.
2. Add flour and salt and knead by hand or use a dough hook tin a food processor, for about five minutes until mixture is well combined and sticky.
3. Continue recipe from Step 4 above.