This cheesy Cheese Tomato Sourdough Focaccia made with that sourdough starter you have been feeding. Homemade focaccia is topped with mozzarella cheese, sliced fresh tomato, herbs and spices then baked.
Homemade focaccia is delicious even when you make it rustic style and don't top it with anything but olive oil and salt.
When you add a layer of cheese with fresh tomatoes and rosemary this simple pheasant flatbread turns into something amazing.
Focaccia can be eaten as a breadstick appetizer dipped into a simple bread dipping oil, like my favorite olive oil and herb bread dip recipe below.
Or can be cut into large squares and eaten like a piece of focaccia pizza.
Olive Oil Bread Dip
My favorite bread dip yo serve with focaccia is a copycat recipe of the Carrabba's Olive Oil Bread Dip recipe.
I have had it in my recipe binder for about 15 years. My daughter gave it to me so I have no clue where the original recipe came from. I will share it below.
I have made some changes. I use fresh herbs in place of the dried herbs called for in the original bread dip recipe.
Sourdough Starter
This Sourdough Focaccia recipe is made using a homemade sourdough starter made with all-purpose flour and water.
Follow my easy step by step instructions on how to make a sourdough starter at least one week before baking your focaccia for the best results.
Sourdough is a natural leavening that is used in place of commercial yeast. Focaccia is a great sourdough discard recipe to use the starter you might throw away to make this delicious flatbread.
Homemade Focaccia
Focaccia is a flat oven-baked Italian bread product similar in style and texture to pizza dough. Focaccia can be used as a side to many meals or as sandwich bread. Focaccia al rosmarino is a common focaccia style in Italian cuisine that may be served as an antipasto, appetizer, table bread, or snack-
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Helpful Sourdough Tools
- a large mixing bowl
- a wooden spoon, any spoon will do but a stiff spoon is needed to mix the stiff dough
- 9x13 rimmed ¼ sheet baking tray
- a large silicone baking mat makes clean up of the flour so much easier. All of the flour stays on the mat while kneading, when I'm done I roll it up and take it to the sink.
Prep
- Prepare the focaccia sponge at least 1 hour or the night before beginning.
Focaccia Sponge Ingredients
- 1 cup active sourdough starter
- ½ cup warm water
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons honey
- ½ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
Cheese Tomato Sourdough Focaccia Bread Ingredients
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon table salt
Garden Focaccia
Have you seen those amazing focaccia garden bread that is taking over the internet? Some of them are awesome but I would never want to bite into a piece of bread with a real flower or flower petals pressed into it.
I like to add focaccia toppings that I would actually enjoy eating. Sliced tomato and fresh herbs are one of my favorite focaccia topping. If you want to get fancy with focaccia toppings you could use cherry tomatoes and cut them into flower petals.
Tomato Sourdough Focaccia Toppings
When it comes to focaccia toppings the world is your oyster. If you like it you can put it on top of focaccia. I am using shredded mozzarella cheese, fresh sliced tomatoes, fresh rosemary and sea salt to top my focaccia.
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 large fresh tomato, sliced thinly sliced
- fresh rosemary sprigs and finely minced fresh rosemary
- coarse sea salt
- red pepper flakes
You can use cheese and sliced pepperonis and make a focaccia cheese pizza if you like. Or you can use thinly sliced onions, sweet bell peppers and black olives to top focaccia.
There are so many options when it comes to topping focaccia. If you want to get really creative you could make a cheese stuffed focaccia.
Directions
- Prepare the focaccia sponge: In a large bowl mix the cup of sourdough starter, warm water, olive oil, honey and ½ cup of flour to make the focaccia sponge.
- Cover the bowl and allow the sponge to rest for 1 to 2 hours or until the top of the sponge is covered with bubbles.
- Prepare the focaccia bread dough: Add 2 cups of flour, ¼ cup of olive oil, and 1 teaspoon of salt to the bowl of sponge. Mix with a wooden spoon until a rough dough forms.
- Turn the dough over onto a floured surface. Knead the dough adding small amounts of flour as needed.
- Knead the focaccia dough for about ten minutes or until the dough is smooth and soft. Form the dough into a ball.
- First Rise: Oil a bowl with olive oil and turn the ball of focaccia dough into the bowl covering it with oil to keep it moist. Cover the bowl and place the bowl in a very warm draft free area. See notes.
- Allow the dough to rise until doubled. The first rise can take anywhere from one hour to 8 hours. See Notes
- Once the dough has risen and doubled in size punch the dough down.
- Drizzle olive oil into a 9 x 13 baking sheet that has a lip.
- Second Rise: Place the dough on the baking pan and use your fingers to spread the dough into the pan to the edges. If the dough is very elastic, difficult to spread and pulls away from the sides of the pan allow the dough to rest five minutes and repeat.
- Lightly cover the dough with plastic wrap or a clean dish towel and allow to rise in a very warm draft free area until roughly doubled in size, about an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 450 F. degrees.
- Focaccia Topping: When the dough has risen drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the dough. Sprinkle the top of the dough with sea salt.
- Sprinkle the top of the dough with the shredded cheese.
- Arrange the thinly sliced tomato pieces over the top of the shredded cheese.
- Sprinkle with finely minced fresh rosemary, sea salt and red pepper flakes.
- Bake the focaccia in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the cheese has melted.
- Cut the focaccia bread into pieces and serve.
- Makes 8 servings.
Recipe Notes
- Making sourdough focaccia can take anywhere from 3 to 24 hours. How long it takes the focaccia dough to rise is what will dictate the length of time for this sourdough recipe.
- Place the dough in a very warm draft-free area during the rising times. I placed my dough out in my garage in a safe place. If you have an oven with a proofing setting it will help speed the rising time up.
- You can also place the sourdough in a cold oven with the light turned on. The light bulb will heat the interior of the oven and act like a proofing box.
- Do not place the sourdough focaccia dough near an air conditioner vent that is blowing cold air near your bowl or baking sheet. It will slow down the rising time considerably.
Olive Oil Bread Dip Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon dried basil flakes
- 1 teaspoon crushed rep pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano flakes
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary flakes
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup olive oil
- Directions: Mix all of the ingredients into a small dip bowl. Serve with the focaccia bread.
More Sourdough Focaccia Recipes
Cheese Tomato Sourdough Focaccia
Ingredients
Focaccia Sponge Ingredients
- 1 cup active sourdough starter
- ½ cup warm water
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons honey
- ½ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
Focaccia Bread Ingredients
- 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
Focaccia Topping Ingredients
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 large fresh tomato (sliced thinly sliced)
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary sprigs and finely minced fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes (to taste)
Instructions
Prepare the focaccia sponge
- In a large bowl mix the cup of sourdough starter, warm water, olive oil, honey and ½ cup of flour to make the focaccia sponge.
- Cover the bowl and allow the sponge to rest for 1 to 2 hours or until the top of the sponge is covered with bubbles.
How to make the focaccia bread dough
- Add 2 cups of flour, ¼ cup of olive oil, and 1 teaspoon of salt to the bowl of sponge. Mix with a wooden spoon until a rough dough forms.
- Turn the dough over onto a floured surface. Knead the dough adding small amounts of flour as needed.
- Knead the focaccia dough for about ten minutes or until the dough is smooth and soft. Form the dough into a ball.
First Rise
- Oil a bowl with olive oil and turn the ball of focaccia dough into the bowl covering it with oil to keep it moist. Cover the bowl and place the bowl in a very warm draft free area. See notes.
- Allow the dough to rise until doubled. The first rise can take anywhere from one hour to 8 hours. See Notes
- Once the dough has risen and doubled in size punch the dough down.
- Drizzle olive oil into a 9 x 13 baking sheet that has a lip.
Second Rise
- Press the dough into the baking pan and use your fingers to spread the dough into the pan to the edges. If the dough is very elastic, difficult to spread and pulls away from the sides of the pan allow the dough to rest five minutes and repeat.
- Lightly cover the dough with plastic wrap or a clean dish towel and allow to rise in a very warm draft free area until roughly doubled in size, about an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 450 F. degrees.
Focaccia Toppings
- When the dough has risen drizzle about 1 tablespoon of olive oil over the dough. Sprinkle the top of the dough with sea salt.
- Sprinkle the top of the dough with the shredded cheese.
- Arrange the thinly sliced tomato pieces over the top of the shredded cheese.
- Sprinkle with finely minced fresh rosemary, sea salt and red pepper flakes.
- Bake the focaccia in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the cheese has melted.
- Cut the focaccia bread into pieces and serve.
- Makes 8 to 10 servings.
Video
Recipe Expert Tips
- Making sourdough focaccia can take anywhere from 3 to 24 hours. How long it takes the focaccia dough to rise is what will dictate the length of this sourdough recipe.
- Place the dough in a very warm draft-free area during the rising times. I placed my dough out in my garage in a safe place. If you have an oven with a proofing setting it will help speed the rising time up.
- You can also place the sourdough in a cold oven with the light turned on. The light bulb will heat the interior of the oven and act like a proofing box.
- Do not place the sourdough focaccia dough near an air conditioner vent that is blowing cold air near your bowl or baking sheet. It will slow down the rising time considerably.
- 1 teaspoon dried basil flakes
- 1 teaspoon crushed rep pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano flakes
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary flakes
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ cup olive oil
- Mix all of the ingredients into a bowl. Serve with the focaccia bread.
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