Classic focaccia recipe: delicious ideas and preparation tips for the popular Italian flatbread!
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Crispy pizza, aromatic pasta and lasagna or a heavenly tiramisu – Italian cuisine has a lot of delicacies to offer and always provides a real treat for the palate. Once again we would like to take a culinary trip to Italy and introduce you to another popular classic – the best focaccia recipe! Beautifully fluffy, wonderfully crunchy, full of flavor and super versatile – the Italian flatbread is irresistibly delicious and tastes really good both as a starter and as a single meal. The delicious bread is very popular in this country and is also very easy and quick to prepare. Whether classic with tomatoes, with or without yeast, stuffed or even sweet focaccia with strawberries for dessert – make sure there is some variety on the table and try our focaccia recipes today!
Focaccia recipe original Italian style
The word focaccia comes from the Latin expression “panis focacius”, which literally means “flatbread baked under the ashes of a fire”. The fluffy flatbread dates back to ancient Rome and was invented in the province of Liguria. Depending on the region, there are now hundreds of variations with their own, regional ingredients. Whether with onions, anchovies, olives or tomatoes – the list is really endless. First, of course, we’ll show you the classic focaccia recipe which you can serve with a variety of dips. The flatbread is made of yeasted dough, as we know it from other pastries. But so that the bread is crispy on the outside and wonderfully fluffy on the inside, significantly more olive oil is used. The classic recipe for Focaccia Genovese is that easy.
Ingredients:
- 480 grams strong bread flour
- 360 ml lukewarm water
- 1/2 cube fresh yeast or alternatively 1 tsp dry yeast
- 70 ml olive oil
- 1 tbsp coarse sea salt
- 3-4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
Directions:
- Mix the bread flour and sea salt in a bowl and crumble the yeast over it.
- Add the water and half the olive oil and knead with the dough hook for 5 minutes to form a smooth dough.
- Cover the bowl and let it rise in a warm place for about 30-40 minutes until the dough has doubled in size.
- Preheat the oven to 200 C degrees and line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Knead the dough by hand on a lightly floured work surface and roll out into a 2-3 cm thick flatbread.
- Place the dough on the baking sheet and let it rise covered for another 20 minutes.
- Now carefully press small indentations into the focaccia with your fingers and then drizzle with the remaining olive oil.
- Cover with a little more sea salt and rosemary leaves and bake for 25-30 minutes.
- Let cool for 10 minutes, slice and enjoy – and the classic Italian focaccia recipe is that easy!
- If you don’t have fresh yeast handy, you can use dry yeast to make the focaccia recipe.
Quick recipe for focaccia without yeast
Ready in 30 minutes and just as crispy and delicious – this focaccia recipe without yeast is perfect when you need something quick.
Ingredients:
- 280 grams strong bread flour
- 45 ml olive oil
- 120ml of water
- 120 ml whole milk
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs, such as rosemary, thyme or chives
- 1 tbsp coarse sea salt
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 200 C degrees and generously grease a baking sheet with olive oil.
- Whisk together the flour, baking powder, herbs, and sea salt in a large bowl.
- Add water, milk and half of the olive oil and mix well.
- Knead the dough well with your hands on a floured work surface. If it’s too sticky, add a little more flour.
- Place the dough on the baking sheet and make small indentations in it with your fingers.
- Drizzle over the remaining olive oil and top with some fresh herbs if you like.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown and your recipe for focaccia without yeast is ready.
Italian flatbread with tomatoes and olives
But now it’s going to be delicious! Full of flavor and very tasty, this tomato and olive focaccia is perfect for a light appetizer. Of course you can experiment with the recipe and add other ingredients to your liking. How about homemade pesto? Or prepare a focaccia with tomatoes and feta cheese? The sky is the limit!
Ingredients:
- 500 grams of wheat flour type 550
- 25 grams of fresh yeast or alternatively 1 pack of dry yeast
- 300 ml lukewarm water
- 40 ml olive oil and another 40 ml for the tomato topping
- 250 grams of cherry tomatoes
- 50 grams of olives, pitted and finely chopped
- A pinch of sugar
- 1 tbsp coarse sea salt
- 1 tbsp Italian herbs
Directions:
- Mix the yeast and sugar with the water in a bowl and stir until you get a homogeneous mixture.
- Whisk together the flour and salt in a large bowl and make a large well in the center.
- Add the yeast mixture, mix well and leave covered for 10-15 minutes.
- Add 40ml olive oil and herbs to the bowl and stir.
- Knead the dough well with the dough hook for 8-10 minutes and leave to rise covered in a warm place for another 2 hours.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and roll out the dough on it. Let rise again.
- Preheat the oven to 200 C degrees.
- Use your fingers to make small indentations in the dough and then cover with tomatoes, olives and olive oil.
- Let rise for another 10 minutes and bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.
- Enjoy the focaccia with tomatoes and olives with a glass of white wine.
Stuffed flatbread with cheese and olives
What’s the best way to make any focaccia recipe even better? If we stuff it with cheese, of course!
Ingredients:
- 450 grams strong bread flour
- 300 ml lukewarm water
- 1 tbsp dry yeast
- 50 ml olive oil and some more for drizzling
- 250 grams frozen spinach, thawed
- 250 grams of fresh mozzarella, diced
- 40 grams of olives, pitted and finely chopped
- Fresh thyme, finely chopped
- Coarse sea salt for sprinkling
Directions:
- Mix the flour and dry yeast in a large bowl and form a dough in the center.
- Add olive oil and water and mix with a wooden spoon.
- Place the mixture on a floured surface and knead vigorously with your hands for 10 minutes.
- Cover the dough and let it rise in a warm place for 2 hours.
- Meanwhile, squeeze the spinach and mix with the mozzarella, olives and thyme.
- Grease a baking tray with olive oil and preheat the oven to 200 C degrees.
- Knead the dough and divide into two parts.
- Spread the spinach mixture over the dough and place the other piece on top.
- Press the edges together well and brush with olive oil.
- Bake the filled focaccia for 30 minutes, let cool slightly and enjoy!
Focaccia recipe with strawberries and basil
Do you love the combination of sweet and savory? Then we have the perfect focaccia recipe for you! Caramelized onions, aromatic strawberries and basil – a real dream!
Ingredients:
- 600 grams of wheat flour
- 420 ml warm water
- 1 tbsp dry yeast
- 20 grams of honey
- 180 ml olive oil
- 20 grams of butter
- 1 red onion, thinly sliced
- 200 grams strawberries, cut into small cubes
- 50 grams of fresh basil, roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp salt
Directions:
- Mix the water, honey and dry yeast in a bowl and let it rest for 15 minutes.
- Mix wheat flour, salt and half the olive oil in a bowl and form a well in the middle.
- Knead with the dough hook for 6-7 minutes and add a little more flour if necessary.
- Cover the dough and let it rise in a warm place for 1 hour.
- Grease a baking sheet with the remaining olive oil and place the dough on it.
- Turn once to coat both sides of the dough with oil and make small indentations with your fingers.
- Cover and let rise for another 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, heat butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat and sauté the onions for 10 minutes.
- Add balsamic vinegar and caramelize for another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Preheat the oven to 200 C degrees and top the focaccia with onions and strawberries.
- Sprinkle with some olive oil and sea salt and bake for 20 minutes.
- Garnish the strawberry focaccia with basil and enjoy!
