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Tomato Onion Foccacia
Victoria Haneveer

Easy Tomato and Onion Focaccia

This great bread makes a wonderful side dish to any Italian meal. It is flavored with tomatoes, oregano and onion, and is perfectly chewy and flavorful. Try it alongside chicken or fish, or as an appetizer.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings: 8
Course: Bread
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
 

  • 2 packets active dry yeast
  • ¼ cup (60 ml) warm water
  • 5½ cups (780g) all-purpose flour (plain flour) and more for handling the dough
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 cups (500ml) warm water
For the Topping:
  • 1 peeled, halved, thinly sliced yellow onion
  • 2 cups (1 pint) halved ripe cherry tomatoes
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ cup (125ml) olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano

Method
 

  1. First you need to prepare the dough.
  2. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water.
  3. Let it sit for 3 or 4 minutes, or until it starts to bubble.
  4. Put the salt and flour into your food processor bowl.
  5. Now stir the yeast mixture into 2 cups (500ml) of warm water.
  6. Run the food processor and pour the liquid through the feed tube.
  7. Process for 30 seconds to make a smooth, moist dough.
  8. If it's too sticky, add more flour.
  9. If it's too dry, add more water.
  10. Now turn the dough out on to a lightly floured board and knead by hand until smooth but still a bit sticky.
  11. Grease a large bowl and add the dough in there.
Let it Rise
  1. Turn to coat it with oil all over then seal with plastic wrap and let it rise somewhere warm for an hour.
  2. While the dough rises, toss the onion, cherry tomatoes, 4 tablespoons of oil and 1/2 teaspoon of salt in a bowl, then let this mixture sit.
  3. Coat your baking pan with more oil, then deflate the risen dough and lay it in the pan.
  4. Press and stretch it into a flat round which fills the pan.
  5. Now remove the onion and tomatoes with a slotted spoon, letting the juices drip away.
  6. Arrange them on the dough, pressing them in with your fingers.
  7. Drizzle the marinating oil over the top of the focaccia.
  8. Let it rise (uncovered) for 20 minutes, then put a baking stone in the oven and heat to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
Cooking the Focaccia
  1. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of salt over the focaccia then bake it for 20 minutes.
  2. Turn the pan back to front and cook for a further 12 minutes or until golden brown.
  3. Take the pan out of the oven, drizzle more olive oil over it and scatter over the oregano.
  4. Let it cool for 15 minutes before slicing.
  5. This is best served at room temperature or slightly warm from the oven.