Quick and Easy Focaccia Bread

This Quick and Easy Focaccia Bread takes the delicious flavors of olives, fresh tomatoes, garlic, and rosemary and bakes them all up into a delightful bread recipe that is perfect as an appetizer or snack. This bread pairs nicely with your favorite pasta dish or can be enjoyed on its own. It’s also incredibly versatile as you can swap out the herbs, or toppings.

Why You’ll Love This Quick and Easy Focaccia Bread

• Versatile: Swap out the ingredients to get creative with this recipe and make different flavor variations.
• Easy: Although this recipe takes some time for the dough to rise, the recipe itself is super easy.
• Delicious: I’m not joking, the olives, garlic, and rosemary in this make it so delicious.

Ingredients

Olives – I used green olives but you can use whatever you want here. If you’re not a big olive person, you can also skip this completely or replace it with another veggie of your choice.

Maria Koutsogiannia

Maria is the creator of FoodByMaria and your go-to Greek food expert for cozy, flavor-packed recipes. Inspired by her Mediterranean roots, she brings traditional Greek flavors, feel-good ingredients, and a whole lot of joy to everyday cooking.

More about maria

Garlic – OMG the garlic adds so much to this recipe. You cannot leave it out. I mean you can, but you’ll be disappointed. Use fresh or roasted garlic here for the best flavor.

Tomatoes – You can also swap this for sundried tomatoes for a different flavor profile or swap it for something like artichokes in a jar. However, highly recommend keeping the fresh tomatoes as they are a carotenoid. Carotenoids are a class of pigments known for their anti-inflammatory properties and can have a positive impact on your cells, cardio health, and your gut immune system. You can also add things like bell peppers or corn to your focaccia for even more added benefits.

One way I get an extra boost to help my gut, outside of just eating gut-healthy foods, is by taking Seed’s DS-01®️ which is a 2-in-1 capsule-in-capsule probiotic and prebiotic that is great for gut health and overall health.

Use code FOODBYMARIA for 25% off your first month’s supply of Seed’s DS-01®️

How to Make Quick and Easy Focaccia Bread

1. In a large mixing bowl, add the warm water, sea salt, sugar, yeast and olive oil. Whisk together to combine. Then, add the flour and use a wooden spoon to mix for at least 1 minute, until the dough is wet and sticky. Cover with a tea towel and let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Next you’re going to perform a set of 4 folds with 10 minutes of resting time in between each set of 4 folds. Wet your hands with water. Grab a corner of the dough and gently lift it to just above the bowls’ edge and then fold over into itself, sort of sealing like an envelope. Perform this fold 3 more times, for a total of 4. Cover with a tea towel and let sit for 10 minutes. Repeat three more times, for a total of 16 folds, letting sit for 10 minutes after each set of 4 folds.
3. Next, fully coat the dough in the bowl with olive oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a tea towel. Let the dough rest and rise in a warm spot at room temperature for at least 1.5 hours or until the dough is doubled in size.
4. Once the dough has doubled in size, remove the tea towel and plastic wrap. Gently move the bowl back and forth to allow the dough to open it’s bubbles.
5. Generously coat the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking pan (or slightly large pan if that’s all you have) with olive oil. Add the dough to the pan and gently spread the dough towards the corners – don’t force it, only spread it out as much as the dough allows.
6. Allow the dough to rest in the pan for a final proof for 30 minutes.
7. As the dough does its final rise, preheat the oven to 450F and prepare your toppings. Halve the baby tomatoes; cut the olives into halved width-wise; zest the lemon; mince the oregano. Set the toppings aside.
8. The dough should continue to stretch and rise so after 30 minutes you should be able to gently spread the dough closer to the corners of the pan.
9. After 30 minutes, lightly drizzle the top of the dough with olive oil and dimple the dough by pressing down on the top of the dough, making small wells/dips over the whole thing. This will look similar to playing the piano.
10. Next, evenly disperse the halved tomatoes, halved olives, lemon zest, and a good sprinkle of sea salt. Make sure to gently press the halved tomatoes and olives into the dough.
11. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until golden on top. (Since oven strength varies, start checking at 18 minutes)
12. Remove the focaccia gently out of the baking tray to a cooling rack to fully cool. Sprinkle with the minced fresh oregano.
13. The focaccia is best enjoyed the day it’s made. Serve with our Greek Dressing or Bread Dipping Oil to dip in!

Tips and Tricks

• Use a Stand Mixer: You can use a stand mixer with a dough hook for this recipe. If so, knead on low speed until ingredients come together, then increase to medium speed for 3-5 minutes until a soft, springy, and smooth dough has formed.
• Water Temperature: Use water that feels warm to the touch but not hot – around 110°F is ideal.
• Folding Technique: Keep your hands wet to prevent sticking during the folding process.
• Rising Environment: For the best rise, place your dough in a warm spot – near a sunny window or on top of the refrigerator.
• Dimpling: Don’t be shy with your dimpling – those indentations are what make focaccia distinctive.

Variations

• Toppings: For a classic version, try rosemary and sea salt or caramelized onions and parmesan for a savory twist.
• Flour: You can substitute up to 50% whole wheat flour for added nutrition and flavor depth.
• Herbs: Fresh herbs are best, but dried herbs work too – just use 1/3 the amount.
• Gluten-Free: While not traditional, a quality 1:1 gluten-free flour blend can work – though the texture will be different.

Best served with

• The Focaccia Bread can pair great with Basics With Bails’s Homemade Chicken Carcass Soup Recipe
• Broccoli Soup Recipe
• Jennifer Aniston Salad with Orzo

How to Store Leftovers

Wrap in tinfoil and store in a tightly sealed container at room temperature for 5 days. You can also freeze this bread. Cool completely, wrap in parchment, and then place in an airtight container in the freezer for 2 months. To reheat, simply place in the oven until warm. Follow the same instructions as the storage rules above.

Common Questions

5 from 6 votes

Quick and Easy Focaccia Bread

🍞 Skip the bakery run! This quick and easy focaccia bread requires no special equipment or kneading – just a simple folding technique and a few rests deliver a perfectly dimpled, olive oil-infused masterpiece that even beginners can nail.

Prep Time 3 hours hrs

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 3 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

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Cook mode:Prevent your screen from going dark

Course Vegan Appetizers

Cuisine Baked Goods

Servings 12

Calories 187

Servings: 12

IngredientsInstructionsNutrition

Watch the Video

[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”JzHDKfse” upload-date=”2023-09-22T00:00:00.000Z” name=”Focaccia Bread Recipe” description=”Full of flavor and the perfect fall appetizer or snack. This focaccia bread recipe is so delicious. The best part is you can get creative with the toppings!”]

Ingredients

• ▢ 500 ml warm water
• ▢ 1 tbsp sea salt
• ▢ 1 tbsp sugar
• ▢ 2 tsp instant dry yeast
• ▢ 1 tbsp olive oil
• ▢ 550 g bread flour
• ▢ olive oil
• ▢ 1 cup halved baby tomatoes
• ▢ ½ cup halved pitted green olives
• ▢ zest from one lemon
• ▢ flaky salt
• ▢ 1 tbsp minced fresh oregano

Instructions 

Start Cooking

1. In a large mixing bowl, add the warm water, sea salt, sugar, yeast and olive oil. Whisk together to combine. Then, add the flour and use a wooden spoon to mix for at least 1 minute, until the dough is wet and sticky. Cover with a tea towel and let sit for 10 minutes.
2. Next you’re going to perform a set of 4 folds with 10 minutes of resting time in between each set of 4 folds. Wet your hands with water. Grab a corner of the dough and gently lift it to just above the bowls’ edge and then fold over into itself, sort of sealing like an envelope. Perform this fold 3 more times, for a total of 4. Cover with a tea towel and let sit for 10 minutes. Repeat three more times, for a total of 16 folds, letting sit for 10 minutes after each set of 4 folds.
3. Next, fully coat the dough in the bowl with olive oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a tea towel. Let the dough rest and rise in a warm spot at room temperature for at least 1.5 hours or until the dough is doubled in size.
4. Once the dough has doubled in size, remove the tea towel and plastic wrap. Gently move the bowl back and forth to allow the dough to open it’s bubbles.
5. Generously coat the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking pan (or slightly large pan if that’s all you have) with olive oil. Add the dough to the pan and gently spread the dough towards the corners – don’t force it, only spread it out as much as the dough allows.
6. Allow the dough to rest in the pan for a final proof for 30 minutes.
7. As the dough does its final rise, preheat the oven to 450F and prepare your toppings. Halve the baby tomatoes; cut the olives into halved width-wise; zest the lemon; mince the oregano. Set the toppings aside.
8. The dough should continue to stretch and rise so after 30 minutes you should be able to gently spread the dough closer to the corners of the pan.
9. After the 30 minutes, lightly drizzle the top of the dough with olive oil and dimple the dough by pressing down on the top of the dough, making small wells / dips over the whole thing. This will look similar to playing the piano.
10. Next, evenly disperse the halved tomatoes, halved olives, lemon zest and a good sprinkle of sea salt. Make sure to gently press the halved tomatoes and olives into the dough.
11. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until golden on top. (Since oven strength varies, start checking at 18 minutes)
12. Remove the focaccia gently out of the baking tray to a cooling rack to fully cool. Sprinkle with the minced fresh oregano.
13. The focaccia is best enjoyed the day it’s made. Serve with our Greek Dressing or Bread Dipping Oil to dip in!

Notes

For a simple focaccia, use only flaky salt, fresh tomatoes and fresh oregano as your toppings.

Remember this is not a pizza, so ensure no more than 4 toppings, with even distribution.  Other delicious toppings could be adding in red onion or feta cheese.

NutritionHide Nutrition

Serving: 10Calories: 187kcalCarbohydrates: 34.9gProtein: 6.1gFat: 2.5gSaturated Fat: 0.4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.5gSodium: 510.6mgFiber: 1.6gSugar: 0.8g