Places We Go

Real People Real Travel

  • Destinations
    • Africa
    • Arctic
    • Asia
    • Australia
      • New South Wales
      • Queensland
      • Northern Territory
      • ACT
      • Tasmania
        • Spirit of Tasmania
        • Tasmania’s Western Wilds
      • South Australia
      • Victoria
      • Western Australia
    • Europe
      • Scotland and the Highlands
    • Latin America
    • North America
    • New Zealand
    • Middle East
    • Oceania
    • Antarctica
  • Travel
    • Travel Styles
      • Camping & Caravanning
      • Driving Adventures
      • Family Travel
      • Long Weekends
      • Touring & Cruising
      • Backpacking
      • Luxury
    • Activities
      • Adventure
      • Food & Drink
      • Outback
      • Historic sites and landmarks
      • Walks & Hikes
      • Events & Festivals
      • Wildlife & Nature
      • Island Hopping
      • Snow & Skiing
      • Photography
    • Planning
      • Travel with Kids
      • Packing
      • Travel Tips
      • Accommodation
      • Booking
      • Gear
      • Tech
      • Transport
      • Health
  • PWG TV
    • Episodes & Video
    • PWG Behind the Scenes
    • Recipes
      • Camping & Caravanning
      • Australian Inspiration
      • Global Tastes
    • Interview series
    • People We Meet
  • The Australian Bucket List
  • About Us
    • About Us
    • Contact Us

Recipe: Sun Blushed Tomato, Olive, Basil and Balsamic Focaccia Bread

Jon Riley - The Gourmet Camp Chef | November 6, 2017 | 11:42 am | Comment

Basil and Balsamic Focaccia Bread

When you spend a number of days away camping in the bush one of the staples you bring that never lasts long is bread. And there is nothing like fresh bread enjoyed with a little olive oil or butter, or as toast in the morning. This basic recipe is very easy, all you need is flour, yeast, salt, sugar, water and a bit of time.

You can adapt the basic bread recipe into a bread for toast or add sea salt, cracked pepper and rosemary as a great accompaniment to some hummus as an afternoon snack.

Print
Recipe: Sun Blushed Tomato, Olive, Basil and Balsamic Focaccia Bread

Prep time:  60 mins

Cook time:  25 mins

Total time:  1 hour 25 mins

Ingredients
  • 450g plain flour
  • 1 tsp table salt
  • 1 tbs Caster Sugar (reduce to a tsp if you wish)
  • 2 x 7g Sachets of Dried Yeast
  • 300-350mls lukewarm Water
  • 12 Green Sicilian Olives pitted and halved
  • 6 Black Kalamata Olives pitted and halved
  • 1 Bunch of Basil
  • Balsamic reduction to drizzle
  • Extra virgin olive oil
  • Good Quality Sea Salt Flakes
  • Cracked Black Pepper
Instructions
  1. Mix all your dry ingredients together in a bowl
  2. Warm your water so it is at body temperature and no hotter or you will kill the yeast
  3. Make a well in the centre of your mix and add ¾ of the water
  4. Mix and bring the dough together adding more water till you get a well formed, but not wet dough. If you add a little too much water, add a little more flour until you get a dough you can work with your hands that’s not sticky
  5. At this stage you need to activate the gluten in the flour. Otherwise known as a bit of elbow grease Kneed and stretch out your dough, working it for about 10 minutes
  6. Basil and Balsamic Focaccia Bread
  7. Into a clean bowl drizzle and wipe some olive oil around the bowl
  8. Place the dough into the bowl and rub the dough with a little more oil. This just prevents a crust forming on the dough
  9. Prove the bread for 45 minutes (see tip)
  10. Whilst the bread is proving prep your olives and pick your basil
  11. Your bread should have doubled in size by now. You should be able to make depressions in the dough with your fingertips…a strangely satisfying part of bread making
  12. Knock back your dough with a quick kneed and place in a lightly floured camp oven
  13. Push the dough to the edges and press your fingers deep into the dough to make deep depressions
  14. Basil and Balsamic Focaccia Bread
  15. Start pushing all your ingredients into the holes (as much or as little as you wish, packed full is always my preference)
  16. Basil and Balsamic Focaccia Bread
  17. Sprinkle with sea salt, cracked pepper and a generous splash of olive oil
  18. Half a shovel of coals as a base in the edge of the fire and half a shovel on top. As always have extra heat on the other side of the fire pit near one edge of the oven. Rotate your oven every 5 minutes with a ¼ turn for an even cook - should take around 25 minutes
  19. Once cooked drizzle with a little more olive oil, drizzle balsamic glaze (can get this pre-made at Coles or Woolies) and a final sprinkle of sea salt to taste
*As always with a fire the cooking times and heat is only a guideline so check your bread half way through and apply more coals if needed.
**Your Bread is cooked when you turn it out, tap the bottom and get a hollow sound.
***You can also adapt this to a sweet dessert bread by increasing the sugar, reducing the salt a little (not totally) and press milk chocolate into the holes instead.
****TIP- I use a black bin bag to prove the bread. Put it in the sun with a little splash of water in the bag to create some condensation. Works very well to prove any yeast based breads or pastries.
3.5.3217

 

About Jon Riley - The Gourmet Camp Chef

Having grown up on a farm in Somerset, UK, Jon's love for the outdoors was always strong, and 20 years as a chef fuelled his passion for camp cooking and his website Aussie Bush Camping . Jon is driven to inspire people to think beyond what’s achievable whilst camping - and wants to share and inspire others to create more themselves.

You’ve come this far

(you must have liked what you’ve seen?)

Subscribe to receive regular email updates with competitions and news.

LEAVE A REPLY Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Rate this recipe:  

Watch Us NEW EPISODE ONLINE NOW

Join our tribe

Subscribe to receive regular email updates with competitions and news.

RECENT AND POPULAR POSTS

Our Armidale Adventure

outback towns

Places We Go, People We Meet – Gary Weir

An Arctic Adventure Diary – Part 2

arctic adventure

An Arctic Adventure Diary – Part 1

scotland by rail

Why you should see Scotland by rail

Quick Links

  • Video
  • Driving Adventures
  • Competitions
  • Travel With Kids
  • About Us
  • Australian Travel
  • Contact Us
  • Food and Drink
  •  
  • Luxury Travel
  •  
  • Caravanning & Camping
  •  
I was lucky enough explore regional Victoria earli I was lucky enough explore regional Victoria earlier in the year (between lockdowns!), and tour the Goldfields with @big4holidayparks – Sure, I got my much-needed fix of the outdoors and was able to feed my insatiable curiosity as I explored the regions utterly fascinating history & culture, but it was sitting up at the old bar of family run Munari wines, just outside of Heathcote that got me.
.
 Chatting to the chief winemaker Adrian Munari, and his daughter India (over a lovely red, of course) I heard all about the historic sheep station that was established in 1871, and life on the property today. (I wonder how the farmers endured the pandemic in 1919?)  
 .
Here’s to a happy summer holiday for us all, of enjoying those ‘moments’, wherever we are. 
.
 I based myself at the @BIG4BendigoAscotHolidayPark 
.
 See link in bio if want to plan your own getaway 😍
 .
#holidayhearthisyear #ExploreBIG4 #BIG4HolidayParks #VisitVictoria @visitmelbourne
WHO WANTS TO **WIN** A LUXURIOUS 2-NIGHT GETAWAY? WHO WANTS TO **WIN** A LUXURIOUS 2-NIGHT GETAWAY?
.
How would you (and a friend!) like to escape to NSW’s New England Tablelands on a 2-night LUXURIOUS getaway, experiencing the best of Armidale’s premium accom, stunning food, wine & beer, an immersion in the local arts AND a World-Heritage Listed backyard to cap it off? 
.
Your weekend will include: 
.
- 2 night premium suite package at the historic Tattersalls Hotel (including food & drink from their award-winning restaurant & breakfast included) 
.
- A special "Private Directors Tour" at the New England Regional Art Museum of HINTON: Treasures of Australian Art, plus some goodies to take home! 
.
- Grabbing a beer at Great Hops Brewing Company PLUS some special gifts delivered to your home
. 
- A special Hema Australian Atlas & Guide plus a NSW State Map 
.
Take it from me, this is worth entering, and if you do in fact WIN, set your alarm and get up for sunrise in the New England National Park, followed by a trip to Wollomombi Falls (the second highest falls in the county!) - it was sincerely exceptional.
.
Oh and say hello to John at the Tattersalls Hotel, Rachael from the Art Gallery, and Sam from Great Hops Brewery. 
.
 **TAG A FRIEND YOU'D  LOVE TO TAKE, and increase your chances of winning by both entering.. I know I would 😉❤
.
 **LINK IN BIO **
Good luck, 
Jen xx
WE HAVE LIFT OFF!!! ON TV TODAY 😎🕺 . Would WE HAVE LIFT OFF!!! ON TV TODAY 😎🕺
 .
Would love you to join me as we celebrate the locals of #armidale on TV today
.
Tune in (or set your record buttons) @ 1.30pm, ON TEN **TODAY**
.
A special thanks to all those that not only shared their magnificent backyard with us, but who opened their hearts and let our TV cameras in.
.
Armidale, you can no longer use the term “hidden treasure” 😉
 . 
Ps did I say “today” enough times? 😆🤪🙏 Jen xx
ARMIDALE IN THE SPOTLIGHT Ready for another cele ARMIDALE IN THE SPOTLIGHT
 
Ready for another celebration of a brilliant person and travel experience for us all?
.
Meet James Rainger from @fleetadventures 
.
He not only spends his life taking us travellers on scenic chopper tours over his World-Heritage Listed backyard of the #newengland region – he’s one of the many brilliant pilots who you’ll find hovering above the blazing heat helping fight our Australian Bushfires.
.
When I shared my nerves about flying, he settled me with in seconds. Super grounded, in safe hands kind-a-feeling, with the biggest sparkle in his eye.
.
“To be part of the firefighting team is being in the #armidale  community - we all live here, our kids go to school here, so we love it. Armidale is a community where we all band together, we’re very passionate about our backyard, and we hope it shows.. and we certainly hope people come and see what it’s like. We’ve got a unique view of part of the world that not many people get to see. And there are not hordes of people here, so it’s very personal, we like to bring people into our world and our life – and share it – thank you for taking the time to come and visit us… “
.
As for the flight? Put it on your @theaustralianbucketlist
 .
Jen xx

Social

© 2023 · Places We Go. All rights reserved. | Privacy | Terms & Conditions

Copyright © 2023 · Places We Go on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in