No-Knead Focaccia With a Delicious Mediterranean Topping

Perfect for a large crowd, this delicious no-knead focaccia with its bright topping should definitely be on your dinner party menu. Now I know the chill time can be a little daunting, but that’s why focaccia is a great recipe for gatherings! You can prep it a day or two in advance and when it’s showtime, it takes less than an hour to put it all together. Plus, the chill time totally depends on you, I chilled it for 50 hours, which is what worked for me. You might be thinking whether the dough tasted a bit sour after 50 hours of chilling, the answer is nope!
As for the topping, I like to use the focaccia as a blank canvas and experiment with different toppings.

This particular topping with its mediterranean palette has been the biggest crowd pleaser so far! When you’re baking this, your whole house will smell like a pizzeria. There will be notes of toasted walnut, tomatoes, olives, garlic, and of course, tons of herbs! But please use this topping is a guideline. Use what you have and what you like. If you don’t like black olives, which I’ve used alot of, omit it completely or use another type of olive. Don’t like walnuts? How about pine nuts? Not a fan of purple basil? Go with green. Don’t have fresh garlic in season? Use garlic cloves! You get the point, its super customizable and you can even adjust how much topping you want on your focaccia. I’ve sort of loaded mine because that’s how me and my family like it. If you like yours a bit more bare, reduce the topping ingredients by ¼ cup.

Prep Time

20 minutes plus 8 – 72 hours chilling

Cook Time

27 minutes

Serving:

10-12 people

Labels:

Ingredients

Dough:

3 cups lukewarm water
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp instant dry yeast
725g all-purpose flour
1 tbsp salt
5 tbsp olive oil

Topping:

70g walnuts ( around ¾ cups)
80g Sun-dried tomatoes (around ¾ cups, packed)
50g black olives (around ⅓ cup, deseeded, chopped)
80g green olives (around ½ cup, deseeded, chopped)
¼ cup chopped basil, I used purple
½ cup chopped parsley
½ cup chopped cilantro
3 scallions, chopped
2 green garlic stems*
1 tbsp nigella seeds
1 tbsp sesame seeds
¼ cup olive oil + more for dimpling
Seasoning:

1 tsp paprika
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp onion flakes
1 tsp garlic granules
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp black pepper
½ tsp sumac, optional

Since green garlic was in season, I opted for that, but you can also use garlic cloves. For 1 stem, use 1 clove.
I didn’t add salt to my topping as the olives and sun-dried tomatoes were salty enough. Taste your topping and add salt if needed.

Instructions:

1. Start by dissolving the sugar in lukewarm water, then add your yeast and mix. Let it sit in a warm dark spot (like inside a turned-off oven) for 5-10 minutes or until there’s froth on the top.

2. Grab a large bowl and add the flour. Make a well in the center with a wooden spoon and pour in the yeast mixture and 3 tbsp of olive oil. Give it a good mix with a wooden spoon and before everything is well combined, add the salt. Mix for a few minutes until everything comes together. The dough should be wet and sticky, so don’t add any more flour! If you do, it should only be a tbsp or so. Drizzle the remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil over the dough and grease the sides of the bowl. Cover with saran wrap and refrigerate overnight or for up to 72 hours, I refrigerated mine for 50 hours.

3. When you want to bake the focaccia, remove the dough from the fridge and transfer it to a greased large baking sheet with the help of a greased spatula. For a thinner focaccia, I used a 33 x 42 cm baking sheet. Let the dough proof at room temperature for 45 minutes to an hour. In the meantime, we can prepare our topping.

4. For the topping, chop the walnuts and sun-dried tomatoes into medium chunks, and set aside. Wash and dry the herbs and garlic, then roughly chop them. In a pan, add the chopped walnuts, sun-dried tomatoes, herbs, garlic, spices, and olive oil. Give everything a stir and place on medium heat. The topping should only be sauteed for a few minutes or until everything is fragrant and the herbs have turned bright green.

5. Preheat the oven to 220C or 428F. Once the dough is done proofing, lightly sprinkle the topping evenly across. Then lightly drizzle some olive oil and with greased fingers, start dimpling. Gently push your fingers into the dough halfway to create dimples. Lastly, sprinkle the sesame and nigella seeds over the focaccia. Once the oven is preheated, bake the focaccia for 27 minutes. If the baking sheet you’re using is smaller than mine and therefore you have a thicker dough, you will need to bake your focaccia for longer. You can tell it’s ready when the edges are golden brown and the top is lightly toasted.

6. When you take it out of the oven, lightly drizzle it with olive oil again and let it cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting into it. You can serve this with dipping oil like a delicious zaatar oil or with some fresh white cheese and herbs.

This focaccia tastes even better when enjoyed with friends and family.