For baking the focaccia, you can use a round baking sheet of 11 inches (for a slightly higher focaccia) or 12 inches in diameter.

The rising times are purely indicative as they depend on the ambient temperature in the house.

Let’s make the pre-dough (or ‘lievitino’, if you prefer). In a large bowl, perfectly dissolve the brewer’s yeast in 1/3 cup of water and add the well-sifted flour.

Mix until a soft dough is obtained.

Seal the bowl with food wrap and let it double in volume in a place away from drafts.
Meanwhile, let’s prepare the bell peppers. Wash them, cut them in half, and remove the stalk, seeds, and white filaments; then cut them into small pieces.

In a pan, brown the garlic in extra virgin olive oil, and when ready, add the bell peppers and let them brown for a few minutes over high heat, stirring constantly. Wet with the white wine and, continuing to stir, wait for the alcohol to evaporate, salt, cover, and let it cook for about 5/6 minutes on low heat; they should remain firm and crunchy. Turn off the heat, drain them perfectly from the seasoning, and let them cool.

Preparation of the dough. As soon as the pre-dough has doubled its volume, we can prepare the actual dough of our focaccia.

In the same bowl where we let the pre-dough rise, sift the flour (over the pre-dough) and add half of the water required (about 1/3 cup). Start incorporating the pre-dough into the flour and water with your hands.

Then dissolve the fine salt in the remaining water and add it to the dough. Work everything inside the bowl (3-5 minutes at most), until a well-mixed, soft, and sticky dough is obtained, resisting the temptation to add more flour.

Grease the inside of the bowl with a little oil and seal well with food wrap, to allow a perfect rise and to prevent the dough from drying out on the surface.
When the focaccia dough is well swollen, grease the baking sheet very well, and with great care, let it slide from the container directly into the baking sheet (so it doesn’t deflate).

Grease your hands with a little oil and, always gently, spread it with your fingers until it covers the entire baking sheet. Then, distribute the bell peppers on the surface, making sure to drain any remaining liquid seasoning.

Fold the outer edge of the focaccia inward (as in the 2nd photo), cover, and let it rise again for about 1 hour or a little more, depending on the ambient temperature in the turned-off oven.

 After the time has passed, take the focaccia out of the oven and turn it on to the highest temperature.

When the oven is ready, place the focaccia in the middle and immediately lower the temperature to 390°F.

Bake it for about 15 minutes at most. After 15 minutes, check that the bottom of the focaccia is golden; otherwise, extend the cooking for a couple of minutes, but do not overbake it, to avoid it becoming dry. If your oven cooks both top and bottom simultaneously, the cooking times are reduced by about 5 minutes.
When it’s cooked, take it out immediately and let it cool for a few minutes before serving. The aroma will be so inviting that it will be hard to resist the temptation to taste it while still hot.

An extra idea. The focaccia can be personalized as we like, using other types of flour, such as whole wheat, durum wheat, etc. In these cases, you will need to consider that the amount of water to be added to the dough will change, as each flour absorbs a different amount of water that varies both by type and based on ambient temperature and humidity.

We can use bell peppers simply blanched for a couple of minutes in already boiling salted water or leftover from previous preparations.

The quantity of fresh brewer’s yeast can be reduced to just one gram if the ambient temperature is particularly high.

Bon appetit