Focaccia Pizza

Thick, herbed focaccia pizza is topped with your favorite pizza sauce, cheese, and pepperonis for an easy weekend meal!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 25

Resting Time 4

Total Time 4 55

Servings servings

Calories 236kcal

Author Whitney Wright

Equipment

13"x9" glass baking pan

Ingredients

Herbed olive oil

4 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon garlic minced
1/4 teaspoon salt

Focaccia Bread

2 1/4 cups bread flour more as needed
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup lukewarm water

Toppings

12 oz pizza sauce
2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
thick pepperoni slices

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make the Herb Oil

In a very small saucepan or skillet add the olive oil and salt. Stir over medium-low heat until it reaches 150-160°F. Add the dried oregano, basil, and garlic and stir to combine. Remove from heat and let the mixture steep while you make the focaccia dough.

Focaccia Bread

In the bowl of a stand mixer add the bread flour, salt, and yeast. Whisk to combine. Next add the olive oil and water. Mix with the paddle attachment until the ingredients form into a sticky ball. Change to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 5 minutes, or as long as it takes to form a tacky ball. The dough should clear the bottom and sides of the bowl. If yours doesn’t clear the sides of the bowl, add a tablespoon of flour at a time until the dough does so. IF by chance the dough sticks to the bottom of the bowl a little bit, that’s ok. We just don’t want a dry dough.
Transfer the dough to a floured work surface. Pat the dough into a rectangle. Grab both ends and stretch the dough until it’s twice it’s size. Fold it letter style, over itself to return the dough back to a rectangular shape. Spritz the top of the dough with olive oil or nonstick cooking spray. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes.
Stretch and fold the dough again. Spritz the dough with nonstick cooking spray or olive oil, cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 more minutes.
One last time, stretch and fold the dough again. Spritz the dough with nonstick cooking spray or olive oil, cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 more minutes. The dough should rise slightly during this time (but won’t double in size).
Add 2 tablespoons of the herbed olive oil to the bottom of a 9x13” pan. Use a pastry brush or your hand to spread the oil along the bottom of the pan. Transfer the dough to the pan. Spoon the remaining herb oil over top of the dough.
Using your fingertips, dimple the dough, gently inching it to a majority of the pan. The dough doesn’t have to fit into the corners at this time. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 2 hours (or overnight if you wish).
Remove from the fridge. Use your fingers to dimple the dough again. This time making sure the dough goes to the sides and corners of the pan. Loosely cover with the plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour or until doubled in size. About 30 minutes into the proofing, preheat the oven to 500°F.
When ready to bake, remove the plastic wrap, place the pizza in the preheated oven and immediately turn the oven to 450°F. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove the focaccia bread from the oven and add the pizza toppings. Dollop and gently spread the pizza sauce over the partially baked dough, followed by the cheese and pepperoni.
Place the pizza back into the oven and bake an additional 10-15 minutes or until the top is lightly golden brown. And cheese is melted. Remove from the oven, slice and serve while warm. Enjoy!

Nutrition