Bread changes the feeling of a room before it reaches the table. First there is the quiet bowl, then the soft rise of dough, and finally a warm scent that makes every other plan feel less urgent.
Focaccia makes space for small irregularities. Fingers leave deep dimples; olive oil gathers in them; a few olives settle wherever they please. Zaatar brings its earthy, sesame-flecked fragrance to the golden surface.
This is bread to tear rather than measure into perfect slices. Put it in the middle of the table with a bowl of olive oil and something fresh. The first crisp corner rarely waits for the rest of lunch.
The open crumb and the little pools of oil give this loaf its warmth. A few crumbs left on the board make the scene feel unfinished in the nicest way: there is still someone expected at the table.
Before the kitchen grows warm, the ingredients have a quiet beauty of their own. The flour is still a pale little hill; the olives wait in their bowl. Setting everything within reach leaves a little more room to enjoy what happens next.
The surface holds a record of the making: a deep dimple, a glint of oil, an olive tucked into the dough. This is the part that cannot be hurried into looking finished. The tray waits, and the dough takes the time it needs.
Cutting into the loaf reveals a second landscape beneath the crust. Some pockets are small, others wide enough to catch a little olive oil. A few crumbs fall onto the board, and the making gives way to the simple pleasure of eating.
A good loaf turns an ordinary table into somewhere to stay.
A note from the kitchen
Olive and zaatar focaccia
A soft, generously dimpled loaf for a 23 × 33 cm metal baking tin.
- Makes
- 8–10 pieces
- Preparation
- 25 minutes + 2½–3 hours rising
- In the oven
- 25–30 minutes
What you’ll need
A little making
- 1
Mix flour, yeast, and fine salt. Stir in the water and 3 tablespoons olive oil until no dry flour remains. The dough will be sticky. Cover and rest for 20 minutes.
- 2
With wet hands, lift one side of the dough and fold it into the centre. Turn the bowl and repeat three times. Cover and leave in a warm place for 60–90 minutes, until visibly risen and airy.
- 3
Oil the tin with 2 tablespoons of the remaining oil. Ease the dough into it and gently stretch toward the corners. If it resists, rest for 15 minutes and try again. Cover and leave for 45–60 minutes until puffy.
- 4
Heat the oven to 220°C conventional / 200°C fan. Drizzle the final tablespoon of oil over the dough. Press oiled fingertips down to make deep dimples. Add olives, zaatar, and a little flaky salt.
- 5
Bake for 25–30 minutes until well browned and cooked through. Lift from the tin and cool on a rack for at least 15 minutes before tearing.
Rising times depend on room temperature; follow the dough rather than the clock. Check the salt content of the zaatar before adding flaky salt. Drain the olives well.
Keep a piece for tomorrow
A leftover square becomes a fine sandwich, or can be warmed briefly until its edges are crisp again. Bread asks to be enjoyed, and then enjoyed a different way.
