Green Sourdough Focaccia

What if you could bake summer? What if summer wasn't just a season, but a feeling? Today I want to test an unusual idea. Can you bake a bread that looks like a fresh summer meadow using only natural ingredients? No artificial food coloring, just nature. It sounds simple, but there is one problem. Natural green color is incredibly fragile. After baking, it often turns gray. So today there are only two possible endings. Either we will capture a little piece of summer, or we will end up with an ordinary gray focaccia. Let's find out. To recreate the colors of a summer meadow, I only need two ingredients. Spinach for the color, parsley for the aroma. If you are using fresh herbs, blanch them for just 10 or 15 seconds. Then transfer them straight into ice water. Here is a little trick. A few drops of lemon juice help preserve that beautiful green color. I'm using frozen spinach today, so I can skip this step. Now blend everything with ice-cold water until it's completely smooth. If your blender leaves behind any fibers, simply strain the liquid. And there is where the experiment really begins. Normally, bread starts with water. Today there won't be any. Every drop of liquid comes from fresh greens. Now let's see if the dough accepts it or fights back. The dough itself is incredibly simple. Flour, an active sourdough starter, and our green water. Mix everything together and let the dough rest for 45 minutes. Add the salt. I have something new to share with you. From now on, every recipe on this channel will have its own printable recipe card. Not just the ingredients, but all the little details that make a real difference. This one also includes my classic focaccia recipe. If you'd like to support the channel and build your own collection of artisan bread recipes or another recipes, you will find a link in the description below. Give the dough another hour. Move it by one gentle fold. After that, let it ferment for another hour and a half before placing it into the refrigerator overnight. And now comes the hardest part. Waiting. By tomorrow morning, we will have our answer. Will the color survive or disappear overnight? The next day, it's finally time to bake. The color survived the night. But the hardest part is still ahead. Handle the dough as gently as you can. This dough has over 80% hydration. If you are using a strong flour, you can even push it to 90%. I like to gently flip the dough before baking. It helps create a more even rise, while keeping those beautiful open air pockets inside. And don't be afraid to press your fingers deep into the dough. Those little dimples are what make focaccia focaccia. Now there is no turning back. The next 15 minutes will decide everything. Bake for 15 minutes without steam. I bake mine on a baking stone. But a fully preheated baking tray works just as well. Well, this is the moment we have been waiting for. From the outside, everything looks promising. But that doesn't tell us much. The real answer is inside. Let's cut it open. Wow, it's worked. A paper-thin crust. An incredibly light and juicy crumb. Beautiful, open pockets of air. And a naturally green color. Not bright like a food coloring. Just real. Exactly the way I hoped it would be. But I think this bread deserves more than just butter. Let's turn it into the perfect summer sandwich. Today I'm using ripe tomatoes. Fresh burrata or mozzarella if you prefer. A drizzle of balsamic glaze. A generous handful of arugula. And don't skip the finishing touch. Fresh lime zest. And just a few drops of lime juice and olive oil. That brings all the flavors together and makes the sandwich taste incredibly fresh. And there's one more surprise. This exact same dough also makes an incredibly light and airy pizza. If you'd like to see this recipe next, let me know by writing pizza in the comments. If you enjoyed this little experiment, please give the video a like or a comment. It really helps YouTube share my videos with more people and it helps this channel grow. Thank you so much for baking with me today and I'll see you in the next video.