Lemon & Sea Salt Focaccia

In a medium bowl, dissolve yeast with 1/2 cup lukewarm water. Let it stand 5 minutes until foamy. Add 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water and 2 tablespoons olive oil and stir. Set aside.

In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine flours and salt. Add yeast mixture and stir with a wooden spoon or paddle attachment until just combined.

Then remove the dough from the bowl and put it onto a lightly floured countertop. Knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. Or, you can just replace the paddle attachment with the dough hook and knead it in the stand mixer on medium, adding just a bit more flour as needed until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 3-4 minutes.

Shape dough into a ball and place it in a large bowl with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Roll dough in oil and cover bowl lightly with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

Brush an 11-by-17 inch baking sheet lightly with olive oil (or four 8-inch round cake pans) and set aside. Punch down dough. Spread dough with fingers to cover the entire inside bottom of the baking sheet (or divide dough in quarters and spread it into the cake pans). The dough might resist a bit, but with a little persistence it’ll start to behave.

Cover pan(s) with a cooling rack topped with a damp towel so the towel doesn’t touch the dough (or just cover the cake pans with damp towels) and let them rise until puffy, about 30-45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450 F. Uncover dough and poke it lightly with your fingertips to create dimples. Drizzle with olive oil and top with fresh rosemary leaves. Top with sliced lemon and sprinkle with sea salt. Drizzle on more olive oil.

Bake bread until golden brown, about 20-30 minutes. Remove from oven and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Let cool slightly before slicing.

Adapted from Canal House Cooking, via The Kitchn.