Fougassse history

Fougasse is a type of bread typically associated with Provence (Southeastern France) but is found in other regions. 

In ancient Rome, panis focacius was a flat bread baked in the ashes of the hearth. This became a diverse range of breads that include "focaccia" in Italian cuisine, "sunblest" in Great Britain, "fouaisse" or "foisse" in Burgundy and "fougasse" in Provence. Fougasse was traditionally used to assess the temperature of a wood fired oven. The time it took to bake gave an idea as to the oven temperature and whether the rest of the bread could be loaded. It is not unusal for Fougasse to be topped with olives, cheese, anchovies etc. The flat bread can be slashed to form shapes wheat stalk, or the slits can be cut to form a lattice, making the bread easy to pull apart.