History of the extraordinary Recco focaccia, born to survive Saracen invasions

A thin dough dripping with creamy cheese: in addition to the legendary fugassa, Liguria has given birth to another of the most delicious baked goods, a regional heritage and treasure of Italian gastronomy: Recco focaccia.

What is Recco focaccia

The name is linked to the small village that saw it born over a century ago, on the Riviera di Levante in Liguria. The Manuelina focacceria created it, in operation since 1885 and renewed in 2019 by the heirs of a tradition that began almost by chance, starting from a humble homemade recipe, based on water, flour, extra virgin olive oil, and fresh cheese. Recco focaccia also enjoys the recognition of PGI (Protected Geographical Indication), an unparalleled goodness that conquers at the first bite thanks to the abundance of stringy cheese: usually, prescinsêua is used, a typical product with a very creamy consistency, or crescenza or stracchino.

Recco Focaccia, the product of resistance

In reality, similar focaccias already existed before: during the Saracen invasions of the sixteenth century, the population of Recco experienced difficult times, great famine, and had to take refuge inland to survive with what was available. A bit of flour, water, and oil kneaded together to create a simple and delicious dough, even more nourishing thanks to the cheese filling. Perfect to feed more mouths and make everyone happy.

But to have Recco focaccia as we know it today, we have to wait for Manuelina's intervention: originally a stopover on the road to the city, during the years of economic boom, the restaurant became a reference point in the Ligurian gastronomic landscape, thanks to the entrepreneurial skills of its patron at the time, Gianni Carbone, a promoter of the promotion of Recco focaccia. For some years now, this Ligurian specialty has also reached the United States, offered in various restaurants and pizzerias, especially in New York.

The recipe for Recco focaccia from La Baracchetta di Biagio

Making Recco focaccia at home is simple: the recipe is provided by La Baracchetta di Biagio, a local establishment in the Recco marina where you can find various local specialties.

Ingredients

1 kg of type 00 flour

1 kg of very fresh crescenza

4-5 dl of water

1 dl of extra virgin olive oil

Salt

Form a dough with flour, salt, and oil poured in a thin stream, gradually adding water. Knead it by hand until it is soft and smooth, then let it rest for at least 1 hour at a temperature of about 18-20 degrees, covering it with a cloth. After this time, take a little more than half of the dough and roll it out lightly with a rolling pin, making the dough thin. Close your hand into a fist under the pastry and, turning it, spread it out as much as possible. Place the pastry on an already oiled copper baking sheet.

Then delicately place the crescenza in small pieces (about a walnut) on the pastry.

Make a second very thin, almost transparent pastry, using the same procedure as the first one, and use it to cover the preparation. Close the ends of the two layers of dough so that the overlapping edges are well sealed. With your fingers, pinch the top in several places, forming holes about 1 centimeter in size.

Sprinkle the focaccia with salt and extra virgin olive oil and bake it in the oven at a temperature ranging from 270 to 320 degrees for about 5-7 minutes. To get a perfect focaccia, it is necessary for the bottom of the oven to be hotter than the top plate. It will be ready once the surface is completely golden.