Classic Focaccia
Light and airy with a crispy golden crust.
We have a few focaccia recipes up already but realized recently that we don’t really have a standard classic focaccia. It’s super light and airy on the inside with a perfectly golden and crispy crust - exactly what we’re looking for in a focaccia.
While you do need time to make a good focaccia, you don’t need a lot of hands-on time which is what makes this bread so great. Just a few minutes of work and some patience and you have one of the most delicious breads fresh from the oven. We love having focaccia on hand for sandwiches, garlic bread, snacking, or even french toast.
Why you’ll love this recipe:
It’s and easy, no fuss recipe.
Perfect balance of crispy and fluffy.
A versatile bread that can be used in many different ways.
Top tips for making the best focaccia:
Weigh the ingredients. Baking bread can be fairly precise. That’s why using a scale means you get exactly the right amount of ingredients in your bowl.
Double check the yeast expiration date. Expired yeast will get you no where, double check the date before you start your recipe.
Don’t work the dough too much. The beauty of focaccia is that it does not need to be worked a lot to yield a delicious crumb. Work it just enough to come together into a loose dough.
Give the it the time it needs. Focaccia needs time to rest and proof, both at room temperature and overnight in the fridge. Don’t try and shorten or skip these steps, they’re needed for the most flavour and best texture.
Use good olive oil. Okay, we’ve made this recipe with both cheap and better olive oil and they’re both delicious. However a good amount of the flavour in focaccia comes from olive oil (you use a LOT in the recipe) so use one you like.
Be flexible if you need to be. Focaccia is a forgiving dough. You don’t need to aggressively watch the clock or be super specific. Even over-proofed dough results in a delicious bread. So if you’re running a bit late or need to let your dough rest in the fridge a touch longer don’t sweat it. We’ve left dough in the fridge for up to 48 hours at one point and it was still delicious.
Generously grease the pan. The worst that can happen is your focaccia sticks to the pan – we grease our pan generously with olive oil but also often line it with parchment paper or butter to ensure it comes out nice and easy. This recipe we call for butter, but if you prefer not to you can skip the butter and use parchment with olive oil.
How to make a classic focaccia:
Prep Time: 20 Min | Rest Time: 16 Hrs | Bake Time: 30 Min | Total Time: 17 Hrs
Makes: 1 9x13 focaccia
Ingredients:
1 tbsp yeast
600 g (2 1/2 cups) water
10 mL (2 tsp) maple syrp
600 g (5 cups) all-purpose flour
2 tsp kosher salt + more for topping
6 tbsp olive oil, divided
1 tbsp dairy-free butter
Instructions:
Whisk together yeast, warm water, and maple syrup in a large bowl. Set aside to activate for 5 minutes.
Add all-purpose flour, kosher salt, and 1 tbsp olive oil to the yeast mixture and fold with a rubber spatula until combined. It will be a very hydrated, sticky dough – this is what you want. Drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil and gently toss the dough to keep from sticking to the bowl.
Cover and let rest at room temperature for about 60-90 minutes or until doubled in size.
Stretch and fold the focaccia dough up and onto itself, rotating the bowl a quarter turn and repeating. Do this until you move around the bowl twice, 8 folds in total. Cover and set in the fridge to rise overnight or at least 12 hours.
When finished proofing in the fridge, prepare a 9x13 inch pan by greasing thoroughly with softened butter and 2 tbsp olive oil.
Turn the dough out onto the prepared pan and gently stretch. Cover and let rise once more until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
Once the dough has risen, drizzle with 2 tbsp olive oil. Grease your hands with olive oil, then gently dimple the dough using your fingers. Sprinkle with kosher salt and let rest while you heat the oven.
Heat the oven to 450°F.
Bake the focaccia in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown on top and around the edges.
Let rest in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. When ready slice and enjoy.