Sungold Focaccia
MAKES
One 9 x 13 inch / 23 x 33 cm loaf
TAKES
Prep time: 1 hour 30 minutes (+ up to 48 hours chill time)
Cook time: 35 minutes
Total: 2 hours 5 minutes (+ up to 48 hours chill time)
✻ ABOUT THIS RECIPE
Focaccia is a great bread for beginners or anyone who feels like a highly rewarding ‘lazy bake.’ This version is a celebration of late summer, dappled with juicy, sweet sungold tomatoes, which become jammy on top in the oven. Focaccia also makes an amazing sandwich bread, which is why I make so many shapes, sizes, and riffs on my Weeknight Focaccia recipe inside my book, Savory Baking.
INGREDIENTS
Weeknight Focaccia
570 g / 4 ¾ cups bread flour
12 g / 1 tablespoon fine sea salt
7 g / 2 ¼ teaspoon instant yeast
452 g / 2 cups warm water (around 110°F/43°C)
60 g / ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
21 g / 1 tablespoon honey
Toppings
570 g / 20 ounces sungold tomatoes
45 g / 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more as needed for finishing
kosher salt, as needed
lots of freshly ground black pepper
flaky sea salt, as needed
More Baking Tips and Tricks:
METHOD
1. Make the focaccia dough: 12-48 hours before you want to bake the focaccia, make the dough. In a large bowl, stir the flour, salt, and yeast together to combine.
2. Add the water, olive oil, and honey and mix until thoroughly combined, 1-2 minutes. The dough will be very wet and sticky. Cover the bowl and let rise at room temperature for 30 minutes.
3. Using a dough scraper or damp hands, gently reach under the dough, folding the bottom portion of it over onto the top. Repeat this process 4 to 5 times, working your way around the bowl. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 12 hours, and up to 48 hours.
4. Once the dough has risen, prepare the toppings. In a large bowl, toss the tomatoes with the olive oil. Use your hands or a potato masher to gently “mash” about 1/4 of the tomato mixture, just to encourage some of them to burst. Toss again to coat evenly with olive oil.
5. Season the tomatoes with a few pinches of kosher salt and generously with freshly ground black pepper. Toss well to combine.
6. Grease your baking pan generously with olive oil. Add the dough to the pan and gently turn it until both sides are lightly oiled. Cover the pan and let the dough rise until it nearly doubles in size and fills the pan, 30 minutes-1 hour.
7. Use your fingertips to gently stipple the dough to even out the thickness, helping to spread it out over the base of the pan. Cover and let the dough rest while you preheat the oven.
8. Preheat the oven to 450°F / 235°C with an oven rack in the center.
9. Arrange the tomatoes over the focaccia in a fairly even layer - some will fall into the stipples slightly. Pour any juices leftover in the bowl evenly over the surface.
10. Drizzle a little more olive oil over the surface, and garnish with flaky sea salt and a bit more black pepper. Bake the focaccia until the crust is deeply golden brown, and some of the tomatoes are blistered and browned slightly, 28-35 minutes. Cool at least 10 minutes before serving warm, or cool completely and serve at room temperature.
✻ HAVE YOU BAKED IT?
Tag @emcdowell on Instagram or use #happybaking. I’d love to see your bakes!
