With the addition of herbs and vegetables, the basic recipe can be turned into three different flavors of focaccia bread.
Two or more ingredients can be combined to create new flavors of focaccia bread. Black olive with sun dried tomatoes, chopped basil with parmesan cheese, or red bell pepper with feta cheese are delicious combinations that can be tried out. Focaccia bread can be served along with butter, margarine or tomato sauce. It also tastes terrific unadorned, fresh from the oven. The basic recipe can also be used as a pizza crust.
Ingredients for the Basic Focaccia Bread
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon dried yeast
- 4 cups white flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Coarse salt
- Extra flour for kneading
Directions for the Basic Focaccia Bread
- Add ¼ cup of the warm water to a small bowl.
- Add the granulated sugar and stir until thoroughly dissolved.
- Sprinkle the yeast on top of the water and set aside until the yeast has begun to turn frothy. This step will take approximately 10 minutes.
- In a large bowl, sift together the flour and salt.
- Add the yeast mixture, 1 tbsp of the oil and the remaining ¾ cup of water to the flour.
- Stir together until a dough is formed.
- If the dough is dry, add a bit more water.
- Form the dough into a ball and knead on a floured work surface for 3-4 minutes.
- Add additional flour to the ball of dough, if necessary, to prevent it from sticking to the work surface.
- Coat the bottom of a clean bowl with non-stick cooking spray.
- Place the dough into the bowl.
- Cover the top of the bowl with a clean kitchen towel.
- Let the dough rise, in a warm location, until doubled in size. This step can take between 1 and 2 hours.
- Punch the dough down and place it on baking sheet which has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.
- Spread the dough out until it covers the bottom of the pan.
- Set the pan of dough aside and let it rise for 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- While the oven is preheating, coat the top of the dough with the remaining tablespoon of oil and sprinkle with coarse salt.
- Place the pan in the oven and cook for 25 minutes, or until the top is light golden brown.
Rosemary Focaccia
Add 2 teaspoons of chopped fresh rosemary to the basic focaccia bread recipe. The rosemary should be added to the flour and salt mixture, before the wet ingredients are added. If desired, a few, small springs of fresh rosemary can be sprinkled on top of the dough before it is placed in the oven.
Garlic Focaccia
Slowly baking garlic, gives it a nice, mellow flavor.
Ingredients for Garlic Focaccia
- 1 head garlic = 10-15 cloves
Directions for Garlic Focaccia
- Remove the skins from each individual clove of garlic.
- Large cloves should be cut in half.
- Press the garlic pieces into the top of the pan of dough before placing into the oven.
Red Onion Focaccia
Add thinly sliced red onions to the top of the pan of dough before placing it in the oven.
Ingredients for Red Onion Focaccia
- 1 medium red onion - sliced thin
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Directions for Red Onion Focaccia
- Add the sliced red onion to a small bowl.
- Toss the onions with the olive oil.
- Place the onion slices over the top of the loaf of bread.
Additional Recipes
If the recipe for focaccia bread seems a bit intimidating or too time consuming, see the article Quick Bread Recipes. The article includes quick and easy recipes for making chili cheese cornbread, garlic herb bread & parmesan cheese biscuits.
