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It's so easy to make this wonderful gluten free focaccia bread! It's light and airy with a crunchy top and bottom crust. Focaccia is flavored with olive oil, rosemary, sea salt, and a light sprinkling of parmesan cheese.
It's been a busy week for me and I missed my usual Wednesday post. My son shipped off to Navy boot camp on Monday and that's all I've been able to think about since.
It's definitely a mom's duty to worry about your kids, but this worry is a whole different ball game. I know he'll do well and I'm the proudest mom ever!! But I still need to hear from him to make sure he's okay. Unfortunately, that won't be for another few weeks.
To go along with my son leaving, my daughter just recently moved out. At least she's only about 15 minutes away. To top it all off, Scott is traveling again and is only here for about 6 days. He's leaving right before Easter. It's gonna be a pretty quiet house, just me and my fur babies (dogs).
I'll just have to immerse myself in recipe testing until I go to Disney World next month (woohoo!). This Disney trip is a short one with my daughter that was a college graduation gift to her.
Stay tuned for posts about what I eat at Disney!! If you've never been, you'll find they treat those of us with food allergies/sensitivities like royalty. It's literally the best place on Earth to vacation when you have issues with certain types of foods.
What Exactly IS Focaccia Bread?
Focaccia bread has always been one of my favorites. It's an Italian flatbread that can be used as a side or even as a sandwich bread. I first encountered focaccia bread at a local bakery and deli. They made the most wonderful sandwich with focaccia bread, and I've been hooked on it since.
The most traditional flavor used in focaccia bread is rosemary and I LOVE rosemary! But if you don't, feel free to substitute any favorite herb of your choice OR no herb at all.
How Do I Make Gluten Free Focaccia Bread?
This bread has to be one of the easiest breads I've ever made. Using my gluten free English muffin dough, I literally "threw" it together in less than five minutes!! And I might be so bold as to say that it was one of the best focaccia breads I've had! I served it to my family with spaghetti and meatballs and no one knew it was gluten free. We all loved the crunch of the outside and the soft, chewy inside.
After dumping the dough into a well-oiled skillet, add the rest of the olive oil on top. With your fingertips, dimple and push the dough out to the sides of the pan. See this video for my gluten free pan pizza to see how easy it is to spread this in a pan.
Allow the dough to proof for about 30 minutes. It won't double in size, just look puffed. Sprinkle chopped fresh rosemary, sea salt, cracked pepper, and freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano all over the top.
Bake the bread for approximately 30 minutes. Cut into triangles and serve warm with pasta, or use as a sandwich bread (see notes below). *
Can I Make This Dairy Free?
Absolutely!! Several readers have said they've substituted the milk with dairy-free milk, such as soy or almond, and the butter with a dairy-free alternative, such as Earth Balance, or even olive oil. The olive oil will change the taste just a bit.
Gluten free focaccia bread is yet another way for us to enjoy bread. As a side to a great spaghetti meal or as a sandwich bread, focaccia is flavorful and so easy! If you're just starting out baking gluten free breads, start with this one 🙂
Gluten Free Focaccia Bread
Kim
It's so easy to make this wonderful gluten free focaccia bread! It's light and airy with a crunchy top and bottom crust. It's flavored with olive oil, rosemary, sea salt, and a light sprinkling of parmesan cheese.
4.26 from 258 votes
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Prep Time 5 minutes mins
Cook Time 30 minutes mins
Inactive Time 2 hours hrs
Total Time 2 hours hrs 35 minutes mins
Course bread, Side Dish
Cuisine Italian
Servings 2 round loaves, depending on size of skillet or pan
Ingredients
Gluten Free English Muffin Dough
- 3¼ cups (455 g) Kim's gluten free BREAD flour blend
- 1 tbsp plus 1 teaspoon (29 g) granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoon rapid rise (instant) yeast
- 2½ cups (600 ml) milk
- 4 tablespoon butter, melted
Focaccia Bread
- about ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 tablespoon freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
In a large bowl, weigh bread flour, sugar, salt, and yeast. Whisk to combine. Using a stand mixer with the beater blade or a handheld mixer, turn on low and slowly pour in the milk and butter. Increase speed to medium and beat for 5 minutes.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 2 hours. You can use it immediately after rising, or refrigerate the dough for up to 7 days.
Pour about 2-3 tablespoon of the olive oil into the bottom of a 12-inch cast iron skillet* (See notes below)
Dump half the dough** on top of the olive oil and add about 2-3 tablespoon more on top of the dough. Using your fingertips, dimple the dough and gently spread it to the sides of the skillet/pan. Cover and let rise until a little larger in size, about ½ an hour.(It won't be doubled in size).
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. When dough has risen, sprinkle the rosemary, sea salt, cracked pepper, and Parmigiano Reggiano over the top and bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.
Serve warm with pasta or use as a sandwich bread by slicing pieces in half horizontally.
Notes
*if you don't have a 12-inch cast iron skillet, any oven-safe skillet or shallow pan can be used. Keep in mind that you will need to adjust the baking time accordingly. For example, if your skillet is smaller than 12 inches, you'll need to bake the bread longer because it will be thicker. If your skillet is bigger than 12 inches, you'll need to bake the bread for a shorter time.
**the full recipe of dough makes 2 12-inch focaccia. Or you can use the full recipe to make one large loaf of focaccia . Double the amounts of the olive oil, rosemary, sea salt, pepper, and cheese and spread the dough into a large (half) sheet pan to the edges. Bake as directed above.
Bread will keep wrapped at room temperature for a few days, or it can be frozen for up to two months.
For dairy free, use dairy-alternative milk, such as soy or almond, and butter alternative, such as Earth Balance, or you can substitute the butter with an equal amount of olive oil in the dough. This will change the flavor slightly.
This same dough is also used to make my gluten free pan pizza, which is incredible. Check it out here:https://www.letthemeatgfcake.com/best-gluten-free-pan-pizza/
Keyword bread, easy, focaccia bread, Gluten Free
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