A Wedding and Focaccia

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This summer is packed with eventful occasions, not the least of which has been my niece’s wedding. It was held at the homeplace of the grandparents who raised her from the time she was two years old, when her birth parents were both taken from her in a freak accident. It was an outdoor wedding held in the beautiful backyard of my in-laws. The service was held on top of a hill overlooking the orchards and a soybean field. The bride was escorted up the aisle by her two older brothers, one flanking her on each side. They gave her away to her groom and I don’t believe there was a dry eye on top of that hill at that moment.

A simple backdrop pointing to heaven.
“Who gives this woman to this man?” Bride’s brothers: “We do”.
What a look of deep joy.
The memory table
God DID make little green apples and they were used in the table decorations.
I loved the decorations.
A beautiful cake done by my sister-in-law.
After the ceremony the guests meandered down the hill gradually to the tent where the reception was held. The gorgeous floral decorations were put together by a cousin from the South, using young little apples from our orchards and greenery. The cake was a highly successful collaborative effort between her and my sister-in-law who lives locally. I thought it was a wonderful symbol of the combined effort of the two families, one in the North and one in the South, to provide a safe haven for these young people who had lost their parents at such a young age.

A tribe of aunts, cousins and the maternal grandmother came from South Carolina early in the week to help prepare for the big day. An aunt who is gifted with organizational skills set up a plan in which we relatives took turns providing the lunches during this week of set-up. On my allotted day, I took ingredients for build-your-own-sandwiches and made focaccia that morning to assemble them on. Focaccia is essentially a slightly puffy flat bread that is drizzled with olive oil, herbs and other toppings. I have made focaccia many times as a side, but this was the first time I used it as a sandwich base. It will definitely be repeated! I cut them in rectangles, then split them in half lengthwise to layer with sandwich toppings. It was a simple but delicious repast a little out of the norm.

Fresh garlic, herbs and tomatoes
Baked and ready to cut in half.
Add a few slices of tomatoes if you wish
Oiled, herbed and parmed focaccia
I grow my own herbs in pots, but we sell several varieties at Martin’s Family Fruit Farm, as well as the tomatoes, peppers, onions, lettuce, fresh garlic, and cheese. For the sandwich toppings I offered Tuscan ham, smoked turkey, cheese, sliced onions, tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, and various spreads. 

This post is sponsored by Martin’s Family Fruit Farm. The stories and recipes are my own. 

A Wedding and Focaccia

Ingredients

Dough:

IMG_20170624_145536076
Focaccia triangles
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour or a mixture of grains and wheat flours
  • 2 teaspoons white sugar
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon instant yeast
  • 1 1/2 cups warm water
  • 1/4 cup oil

Toppings:

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 – 3  tablespoons grated parmesan or feta cheese
  • 3 tablespoons chopped mixed fresh herbs or 1 tablespoon dried herbs
  • 3 large garlic cloves, minced
  • generous grinding of coarse salt (about 1 teaspoon)
  • 1/2 – 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper 
  • 2 medium plum tomatoes, very thinly sliced (optional)
  • 1 small red onion, thinly sliced (optional)*

Directions

Stir the dry ingredients together for the dough. Add warm water and oil and stir until well combined. It should be a soft but manageable dough. Turn out onto a well-floured surface and knead well until the dough feels springy. Cover with the bowl and let it rest for 15 minutes to half an hour. 

While the dough is resting grease a 15″x 10″ cookie pan and prepare topping ingredients. Turn on the oven to 400°F (204°C). Roll out the dough to a 16″x 11″ rectangle. Fit into the prepared pan. Dent surface of dough firmly with your fingers. Drizzle oil over top and brush to coat, allowing oil to puddle in the dents. Sprinkle with the remaining ingredients, laying tomato and onion slices on last, if using. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until nicely golden. Let cool for about 15 minutes before cutting into rectangles. A pizza cutter works really well for this. Cut in half for sandwiches with a serrated knife. Best served warm. 

*Sometimes I carmelize the onions for the topping. That adds a nice touch. Simply fry the onions slowly in a pan with butter until they are deep golden in colour before adding on top.

 

 

 

 

 

This entry was posted in Yeasted Breads.

2 thoughts on “A Wedding and Focaccia”

    Danette Martin said:
    August 7, 2019 at 8:02 am

    Beautiful blend of story-telling and sharing of recipes, as always. Thank you doing this. (and for the sweet words about the cake!)

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