Ingredients
CRUST
1/2 tbsp yeast
1 cup lukewarm water
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp parsley
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp wheat germ
3 cup flour
TOPPING
3 medium potatoes, diced
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 salt & pepper
1 olive oil, for brushing
1 parsley, chopped
Directions
In a mixing bowl, combine the yeast, water, sugar, salt, oil &
parsley. Let stand until the yeast starts to froth. Mix in the wheat
germ & 1 c flour. Beat well & let sit for 5 minutes. Knead in the
remaining flour & knead until the dough is soft & pliable. Lightly
oil a clean bowl & cover with a towel. Let rise until doubled in
bulk.
Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet & saute the potaotes until
they are soft. Remove from heat & set aside. Preheat oven to 350F.
Roll out the dough to fit into a cookie sheet or on a pizza stone.
Lightly sprinkle the cookie sheet with cornmeal & place the dough on
the sheet. Stretch into the corners & build up the edges slightly.
Let rest for 10 minutes.
Brush the dough with olive oil & spread the potatoes over the top.
Generously salt & grind fresh black pepper over the top & finish with
the fresh parsley. Bake for 25 minutes or until the crusts are done.
Cut up & serve immediately or let cool. This is equally good cold &
served at room temperature.
NOTE: I think that this recipe still needs something to pick it up a
little if you have any ideas, please let me know. It is based on a
recipe a friend of mine ordered in Glasgow in an Italian Restaurant,
she apparently orders it a lot, I had never seen it before. There is
a lot of starch, but don't let that put you off. I found it better
cold than hot, but that may be my preference.
Recipe by Mark Satterly.
Servings: 1 foccacia
Potato Foccacia Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Italian; Vegetable
The History of Recipes
We are able to track the history of written recipes way back into history, at least as far back as the Egyptians, and quite possibly further than that. However, generally, these old records were just simple hieroglyphic recipes for preparing meals.
The truth of the matter is, the oldest recipe discovered so far, according to experts is a collection of ancient tablets in ancient Sumerian which show the preparation of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made anyone who tried it feel `exhilarated, wonderful and blissful`. As we move into The time of the romans around 25BC a roman called Apicius compiled a collection of documents detailing recipes enjoyed by his fellow Romans. In his scrolls, Apicius recounts how the roman meals were split into appetizers, main meal and dessert, known in latin as `Gustatio, Primae Mensae and Secundae Mensae`. He also describes how the ancient chefs made use of a wide range of herbs, including many that are still in use today for example bay, rue and dill. As we move on, there were two recipe books from the fourteenth century ; a recipe book entitled `Forme of Cury`, and another, similary entitled `Curye on Inglish`. Perhaps surprisingly, these two books are unconnected to the indian food that is served today, but rather descriptions of the types of food prepared for the upper classes of that period. Later, in the fifteenth century, knights returning from the crusades brought back a variety of foods, spices and herbs from Arab cuisine, including spices like parsley and basil. These new foods and spices led to an eruption in publications on food, some of which are now in academic collections. The revolution that is television brings us TV cooks and the spin-off recipe books. And that neatly brings us to the present day and the invention of computers and the internet, permitting us all to search through massive numbers of recipes just like those on the site you are now reading. |
We hope you enjoy this Potato Foccacia recipe.
