Tomato Mozzarella Focaccia is a no fuss bread to make. It’s so easy and delicious, you’re going serve this for every get together and Italian night dinner. Which is what we’re doing this lazy Sunday. Making a big Italian family feast and nothing says Sunday comfort like baking bread.
Focaccia was one of the first things we baked in culinary school and I fell head over heels for it. I had a Chef that told me focaccia should never be a like a pizza, but I say you can put whatever your heart tells you to. My heart was telling me grape tomatoes and mozzarella pearls today.
I’m so in love with this bread, its soft, and chewy and flavorful. And the added bonus with this recipe, it’s cheesy!
Tomato Mozzarella Focaccia
You use cherry tomatoes instead of grape, that's just what I had on hand. Serve with chopped parsley or basil.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Warm Water
- 1 package (1/4 oz) Active Dry Yeast
- 2 tablespoons Honey
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 3 cups Flour, plus more if needed
- 1 cup Grape Tomatoes, halved
- 1 cup Pearl Mozzarella Cheese
- Maldon Flaked Sea Salt
- Olive Oil, for brushing
- Fresh Basil and Parsley, chopped for garnish
Directions
- Step 1 In a mixing bowl or your stand mixer combine the warm water, yeast, and honey. Let stand for 15 minutes until mixture looks foamy and puffed. Add kosher salt and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Slowly start incorporating the flour, one cup at a time. Mixture will be tacky and elastic looking. If too wet add a touch more flour.
- Step 2 Knead dough for 10-15 minutes. Dough should be soft and bouncy.
- Step 3 In a separate bowl, drizzle in a little olive oil to coat the inside of the bowl. Place the dough in the bowl and roll in the garlic olive oil to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.
- Step 4 Prepare a 13×9 sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Place the dough in the middle and gently stretch the dough to fit the pan. It’s okay if it doesn’t stretch all the way. Just do your best to make it an even rectangle shape. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in the pan for 20 minutes.
- Step 5 Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Step 6 Uncover the dough. Evenly place the grape tomato halves and pearl mozzarella over the top of the dough. Gently push into dough to create divots. Brush the dough with olive oil oil and sprinkle with sea salt.
- Step 7 Bake for 15-18 minutes until bread is golden brown.
- Step 8 Transfer bread to a wire rack to cool for a few minutes. Garnish with chopped basil and parsley. Slice and serve. Enjoy!
Just a beauty.
Savor and Enjoy!
I cut that salt..I hope it turns out ok, I know there’s a lot of honey in it. But I just couldn’t put a whole tablespoon of salt in it. I will add some more on top… And the amount of kneading time…is that hand kneading?? It seems like a lot for machine kneading.
We made this in our Grade 3 class at school. I’m wondering if there is a mistake with the salt quantity though – we used 1 teaspoon of salt as that’s how much I would normally use for this amount of dough. We also scattered torn basil with the tomato pieces. Delicious!!