Description
This easy and versatile Pizza Dough Focaccia Bread recipe uses simple ingredients to create a golden, crispy, and flavorful bread perfect as a side or base for your favorite toppings. Made from homemade or store-bought pizza dough, enriched with extra virgin olive oil and flaky sea salt, this focaccia features characteristic dimples for a classic texture and allows for creative toppings like rosemary, olives, or cherry tomatoes.
Ingredients
Scale
Basic Ingredients
- 1 lb pizza dough (homemade or store-bought)
- 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (divided, use high quality for best results)
- 2 tsp flaky sea salt (or coarse sea salt)
Instructions
- Prep Dough: Prepare homemade pizza dough using your preferred recipe, or let store-bought dough rest at room temperature for 30-45 minutes to become pliable. Remove it from its packaging before proceeding.
- Mold dough to the Pan: Generously coat a 9×13 inch baking pan with 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Place the dough in the pan and gently stretch it towards the edges. If it resists stretching, cover and rest the dough for another 10-15 minutes, then try again. Once fully stretched, cover with a damp towel and allow the dough to rest for 45-60 minutes to rise slightly.
- Create the Dimples: Pour 4 tablespoons of olive oil over the dough surface. Using your fingertips, quickly poke straight down into the dough repeatedly like playing piano keys to create many dimples across its surface. This step helps give the focaccia its characteristic texture and holds pockets of olive oil.
- Add Toppings: Keep it simple by sprinkling flaky sea salt and fresh rosemary into the dimples. For variety, consider toppings such as sliced red onions, shallots, pitted olives, cherry tomatoes, fresh or roasted garlic cloves, assorted herbs, shredded Parmesan cheese, or sliced sweet or spicy peppers. Arrange toppings creatively to your liking.
- Bake the Focaccia: Preheat your oven to 450°F (230°C). Bake the focaccia for 22-25 minutes until the crust turns golden brown and crisp. For a crisper crust, bake for the full 25 minutes. Once baked, immediately transfer the bread to a wire rack and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Notes
- Using really good quality extra virgin olive oil greatly enhances the flavor.
- Ensure proper resting times for the dough to achieve a light, airy texture inside.
- Dimples help trap olive oil and toppings, preventing sliding when baked.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or freeze slices for longer storage.
- Warm the dough before shaping if using refrigerated store-bought dough to ease handling.
- For gluten-free variations, use gluten-free pizza dough alternatives but note texture differences.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (approx. 1/8 of focaccia)
- Calories: 220
- Sugar: 0.5 g
- Sodium: 320 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.8 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 25 g
- Fiber: 1.5 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Keywords: Focaccia, Pizza Dough Bread, Italian Bread, Olive Oil Bread, Homemade Focaccia, Easy Bread Recipe, Rosemary Focaccia
