My daughter Kipper’s loaded cheesy breakfast focaccia tops fluffy home-made Italian bread with caramelised onions, olives, herbs, and three different cheeses! A savoury morning treat.
Since the start of the school year, my daughter Kipper has been getting the school bus in the morning. This is generally a Good Thing because as well as encouraging her independence it also means that I don’t spend half my morning driving to and from school.
The downside is that she is the first pick-up on the route. The bus collects her from our house at 7:15am. Ouch.
Early starts
None of us are really morning people, so it’s been a family-wide shock to the system. However I think we are developing a routine. I wake her up at 7:00am which gives us 15 minutes to be washed and dressed and on the doorstep with her bag ready. As well as taking a packed lunch, she now also takes a packed breakfast, to be eaten on the bus.
Easy freezy
I typically bake a batch of something that is easily freezable in portions. That way I can take out one portion the night before so it’s thawed and ready to eat at 7:15am. Kipper has been enjoying my sugar-free fruity breakfast muffins, and my pesto and sun-dried tomato savoury muffins, but recently asked for something that, well, wasn’t a muffin! We had a think and decided to make a breakfast focaccia.
Deliciously Italian breakfast focaccia
Kipper has been a big fan of focaccia ever since our trip to Venice a few years ago, where she discovered olive focaccia in a bakery in the old Jewish Ghetto. I asked her what toppings she’d like to try on her breakfast focaccia and she suggested quite a long list!
We ended up with caramelised red onions and garlic, black and green olives, rosemary, olive oil (of course!) and three types of cheese. It looked magnificent and smelled amazing! I had to apologise to DH when he got home from work that the glorious aroma was NOT our dinner.
Breakfast focaccia – ingredients
The bread part of this breakfast focaccia is simple enough, using standard ingredients to make a soft and fluffy base for the loaded toppings. To make a breakfast focaccia for yourself or your family, you will need:
- Flours – a mixture of plain (all-purpose) flour and strong bread flour
- Dried yeast – instant yeast is super easy and convenient!
- Salt – helps to improve the structure of the dough
- Sugar – to feed the yeast
- Olive oil – adds a lovely flavour as well as texture
- Water to hydrate the dough
- Olives – I used a mixture of green and black olives but you can add whichever you prefer
- Red onions – caramelised to glorious perfection!
- Cheese – we used a mixture of cheddar, feta and mozzarella but you can use whatever your favourite cheeses are
- Herbs – rosemary is traditional on focaccia but again, season to taste!
Breakfast focaccia = Morning Motivation
Although it is a little more time consuming than making muffins, the actual active time involved in making this breakfast focaccia is about the same. I think we’ll definitely be cooking up another batch soon, especially as the recipe made eight portions – nearly two weeks worth of breakfasts!
This loaded cheesy breakfast focaccia has definitely softened the blow of those 7:00am starts!
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📖 Recipe
Cheesy loaded breakfast focaccia
Equipment
- Lipped baking sheet approx. 22 x 32cm (8½ x 12½ inches)
Ingredients
- 150 g plain flour
- 200 g strong white bread flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 7 g dry active yeast (1 sachet)
- 2 teaspoon sugar
- 2½ tablespoon olive oil
- 200 ml hand-hot water
Toppings
- 1 red onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
- 5-6 tablespoon olive oil (divided)
- 50 g olives – green, black or a mixture (approx. 20 olives)
- 75 g grated or crumbled cheese – we used a mixture of cheddar, mozzarella and feta
- 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
Instructions
- 150 g (1¼ cups) plain flour, 200 g (1⅔ cups) strong white bread flour, ½ tsp salt, 7 g (approx. 1½ teaspoon) dry active yeast , 2 tsp sugar, 2½ tbsp olive oil, 200 ml (⅞ cup) hand-hot waterIn the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flours, salt, yeast, sugar, olive oil and water. Use the dough hook on a low/medium speed for 5-10 minutes to give a smooth, soft dough. Cover the bowl with a clean tea-towel and set aside to rise for about 1 hour.
- 1 red onion, peeled and thinly sliced, 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed, 5-6 tbsp olive oil (divided)Meanwhile, prepare the caramelised onions. Gently cook the sliced red onion and crushed garlic in 1-2 tablespoon of the olive oil over a low heat. Stir occasionally and continue to cook until very soft and starting to turn golden – about 10-15 minutes. Set aside.
- When the dough has roughly doubled in size (after about 1 hour) knock it back and knead briefly. The dough should be soft and maleable.
- 5-6 tbsp olive oil (divided)Use approx. 2 tablespoon of the remaining olive oil to liberally oil the baking tray. Then pat and stretch the dough into the tray as evenly as possible. Use your fingertips to make deep 'dimples' in the top of the dough, then brush/drizzle the remaining oil over.
- 50 g (1¾ oz) olives – green, black or a mixture, 75 g (⅔ cup) grated or crumbled cheese – we used a mixture of cheddar, mozzarella and feta, 1 tsp dried rosemaryArrange the olives evenly over the surface of the dough and press down slightly. Sprinkle over the caramelised onions, the cheeses, and the rosemary.
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°C (400°F). The focaccia will rise slightly as the oven heats up.
- When the oven is hot, bake the focaccia for 20-25 minutes until risen, golden and aromatic. Remove from the oven and cool for a few minutes in the tray before transferring to a board. Slice and serve immediately or allow to cool and eat at room temperature.
Notes
Nutrition
More delicious bread recipes
If you love focaccia, how about this home-made olive focaccia. Or if you’re in a hurry, you can make quick and easy focaccia in one hour!
And if you like easy homemade breads, why not try
More focaccia recipes from other bloggers
If you’re in the mood for more focaccia, why not try:
Easy focaccia with cherry tomatoes and thyme from Something Sweet Something Savoury
Tomato and rosemary focaccia from the Baking Explorer
Wholemeal olive focaccia from Baking Queen 74
Za’atar and olive focaccia from FabFood4All
Janet Brand
I offered to bring breakfast focaccia bread to my work holiday party. I was sure there was such a thing. So I was thrilled to find this recipe and can’t wait to try it.
Helen
There is such a thing! I hope you and your colleagues enjoyed it!
Janice Pattie
You have certainly cracked the morning routine, that’s a quick turnaround! What a great breakfast to take onto the bus, I bet all the other kids are hugely jealous.
Helen
Thanks Janice. I don’t think the other kids even know about it as I suspect she has scoffed it down before they even reach the next pick-up!
Kavita Favelle
Never thought about focaccia for breakfast but I like it, as well as the thought you can bake and then freeze in portions!
Helen
Thanks Kavita. We are big fans of the savoury bread-based breakfast so it was probably only a matter of time before we came up with something like this!
Sisley White
This looks incredible. I love focaccia so much. I’ve never had it for breakfast before so I’m going to have to try this.
Helen
Thanks Sisley. It’s great at any time of day!
Kat (The Baking Explorer)
Ths looks so tasty, I love focaccia!
Helen
Thanks Kat. It’s certainly proved a popular choice around here 🙂
Lucy
This looks so delicious and I can really believe it would be a good way to get over getting up so early every day! Thanks for including my olive focaccia, there are clearly many twists on this out there.
Helen
Thanks Lucy! It seems to be motivating her so far 🙂
Our next twist is to make a sweet focaccia with a fruity topping I think.