Get the Recipe: Focaccia Pizza
This same-day focaccia pizza bakes up crispy, bubbly and cheesy in a cast-iron skillet. Topped with lots of cheese and pepperoni.
Ingredients
For the focaccia dough:
- 2 cups (250 g) bread flour, spooned and levelled
- 7/8 cup (201 g) lukewarm water, about 105F
- 1 teaspoon (3.5 g) Instant yeast , *see Note 1 below for using Active dry yeast
- 1/2 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon honey , or white sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon fine table salt
For the pan:
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
For topping before baking:
- 13 oz (398 ml) pizza sauce, (about 1 1/2 cups) *see Note 2 below
- 6-8 torn fresh basil leaves, or 1 tsp dried basil leaves
- 2 - 2 1/2 cups (160-200 g) shredded Italian cheese blend, well-packed, *see Note 3 below
- 20-25 slices pepperoni
For garnish:
- Additional chopped fresh basil
- Freshly grated Parmesan
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Tip! Use a kitchen scale and weigh the ingredients with the weight measurements for best results.
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the kneading hook, mix together the lukewarm water, instant yeast, olive oil, honey and salt. Add the flour and stir together until well combined. The dough will be very sticky! Cover the bowl with a tea towel and let rest for 15 minutes.
- Stretch and fold the dough (*see the Notes section below for how to stretch and fold the dough). Cover the bowl again and rest for another 15 minutes. Do another series of stretches and folds. Cover with the towel again and let rise for one hour.
- Add the oil to the bottom of a 9-inch round or square metal baking pan or a 10-inch top-diameter cast iron skillet. Use a brush to spread the oil evenly over the bottom and sides of the pan. Scrape the dough into the greased pan, then stretch and fold the dough in the pan, top over bottom, bottom over top, then flip it over so that the smooth side is up. Roughly shape the dough into a round, but don't stretch the dough to fill the pan. It will spread on its own as it rises. (**See the step-by-step photos to see how much of the pan it should fill before it rises.) Use a large baking sheet upside down and placed on top of the baking pan as a cover and let the dough rise for 1 1/2 hours. (Alternatively, cover the baking pan with plastic wrap.)
- Place a pizza stone, baking steel or heavy metal baking sheet into the oven on the middle rack of the oven. (This will catch any bubble-overs and will also add additional heat to the bottom of the pizza to cook the bottom crust nicely.) Preheat the oven to 430F (non-convection/not fan-assisted), allowing the stone, steel or metal pan to heat in the oven.
- After the dough has risen, drizzle the top of the focaccia with a bit of olive oil, then spoon the pizza sauce over the top of the dough. Oil your hands and use your fingertips to make lots of dimples in the dough. Scatter the torn basil leaves over the sauce. Add the shredded cheese, scattering evenly over the top, then tucking a bit extra around the outside edges of the pan. Add the pepperoni, overlapping slightly as needed. (Keep in mind that the pepperoni will shrink, so add a bit more than you think you need :) Drizzle the top with a bit more olive oil.
- Place into the oven on top of the stone, steel or baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes or until puffy and bubbly. Remove from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes. Run a knife around the edge and use a flexible spatula to slide underneath the focaccia and slide it out onto a cutting board. Garnish with additional chopped basil, some freshly grated Parmesan and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Cut into wedges or squares and serve warm.
- Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Reheat in the microwave or place on a baking sheet and put into a 350F oven loosely covered with foil until warmed about 10 minutes. Leftovers can also be frozen. Wrap well and freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
How to stretch and fold the dough: You can stretch and fold the dough right in the mixing bowl. Run your hands under cold water and then grab the dough around the edge of the bowl. Pull the dough straight up to stretch it, then lay it down across the top of the dough. Rotate the bowl a quarter turn and repeat the stretch and fold. Rotate the bowl another quarter turn and stretch and fold two more times, for a total of 4 stretches and folds around the bowl.
Note 1: For Active Dry yeast, add the yeast to the lukewarm water and the honey (or sugar). Stir and let stand 10 minutes before adding to the bowl with the other dough ingredients.
Note 2: I love Mutti pizza sauce which comes in a 398ml can. I use almost all of it on top. It will seem like a lot, but it is needed to balance the bread layer.
Note 3: Look for an Italian blend of pre-shredded cheese. The one I used had a combination of pizza mozzarella, provolone, romano and emmental. I love the variety of flavours. You could also shred your own cheese and or use just pizza mozzarella if you prefer.
Be sure to read the notes above this Recipe Card, for more tips on making this recipe. You'll find substitution suggestions and step-by-step photos, that you might find helpful.
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 399kcal, Carbohydrates: 36g, Protein: 18g, Fat: 20g, Saturated Fat: 8g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 9g, Trans Fat: 0.1g, Cholesterol: 43mg, Sodium: 983mg, Potassium: 297mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 582IU, Vitamin C: 4mg, Calcium: 254mg, Iron: 1mg
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