A little late at hopping on the quarantine bread train, but we’re spicing it up a bit! Thanksgiving is right around the corner and turkey might be planned, dessert planned, side planned, but what about the carbs planned? This rosemary garlic focaccia is the perfect side for any meal, and heck, maybe just to snack.

I only recently found out about focaccia a few months ago and knew I had to make it, considering I love love love bread! I mean, pretty much all carbs are just a go-to. If you were like me and tried pronouncing it 13 different times when reading it the first time, here is the pronunciation via dictionary: fuh-kaa-chuh. Also, here is a great link to sound like you know what you’re doing.

Let’s get baking!

What is focaccia?

Focaccia is a luscious flat oven baked bread, that originated in Italy. It is similar to pizza dough, but softer and yummier.

Also, you may wish every restaurant served this as their appetizer, but I’m not challenging Texas Roadhouse or Cheesecake Factory because let’s face it, their bread is the BOMB!

How To Make the Focaccia

Don’t let bread scare you, it’s easier than you think.

1. Start by adding yeast, water, and sugar to a large measuring glass. Let it bubble for a few minutes.
2. In another bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients, including the garlic and rosemary.
3. Add yeast mixture to the dry ingredients and mix with a dough hook until a soft dough forms.
4. Let rise for a few hours.
5. Press the dough into a 9×13″ pan and press your fingers into the dough to create dimples. Drizzle olive oil and rosemary over the top.
6. Bake!
7. Drizzle with more olive oil and enjoy!

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Ingredients You Need

• Water
• Sugar
• Instant Yeast
• Flour
• Rosemary
• Garlic
• Olive Oil
• Salt

Important Tips

• When you make bread, it’s important to knead the dough enough so that the glutens develop. If you under-knead, the dough could be flat. Be careful to not over-knead as well. If you over-knead the dough it could become too tough and dry.
• If you’re not a big garlic fan, feel free to not add as much.
• If you’re not a fan of these flavors, this is a great base focaccia recipe to add other ingredients like cherry tomatoes, cheese, olives…
• You can never have too many dimples in your dough. When you press your fingers in the bread, make sure to add plenty.
• Use plenty of olive oil! You really can’t have too much olive oil when it comes to focaccia. It’s in the dough, it’s drizzled on the dough and then drizzled again once it bakes.
• If you’re saving your bread over a few days, continue to add more olive oil before enjoying.

Basic Tools You Need

Making bread is a piece of cake… heheh, but with some extra tools it’ll be even easier.

Here our are top picks for tools:

• Stand Mixer– This is great for kneading the dough, so you don’t have to do all the work.
• Large Measuring Glass – Just dump a few ingredients in here and it’ll be all good.
• 9×13″ pan – I recently bought a new 9×13 from Marshall’s and let me tell you, it is the best! Non-stick, durable, and only $7. Get it here. Or get it at Marshall’s for cheaper.

Troubleshooting Your Focaccia

If you’re having some trouble with the bread, here are some troubleshooting tips. I’m no pro like Paul Hollywood, but here are a few good tips.

• Did your dough not rise? – Next time, try placing it in a warmer place. Chances are, your dough might not have been placed in a warm enough spot. Your yeast could have also been dead.
• Was your dough too tough? – You might have over-kneaded the dough.
• Did your dough lose the dimple definition? – Not a super big deal, that’s up to the oven. Next time, make sure to press your fingers all the way to the bottom so the dimples go through the dough.
• Is your focaccia soggy? – You might have actually added too much olive oil, start with less and add more as needed.
• Did you overbake the bread? – Depending on the thickness of your bread, you want to keep an eye on it, for fear of burning. I recommend 20-25 minutes.

Love bread as much as us, check out our other bread recipes:

• Lemon Poppy Seed Bread
• Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread
• Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
• Sticky & Sweet Monkey Bread

Did you make this recipe? Let us know below or on Instagram @tuesday.treats or use #tuesdaytreats2016