Cheesy Whole Wheat No-Knead Focaccia
I know what you’re thinking, “Two bread recipes in one weekend?!” –yep! I’ve been meaning to share this No-Knead Focaccia Bread since I shared this simple Zucchini Lima Bean Soup.
Unlike my last post for Whole Wheat Biscuits, this bread recipe does involve yeast. But to make up for it, it is a no-knead recipe. So technically, the biscuits may have involved slightly more arm power than this one.
This dough comes together rapidly (10 minutes) and only needs to rise for about an hour. It is pretty much impossible to mess up this recipe, so if you’re new to bread making, please try it out and don’t be intimidated!
If you’re going to make this focaccia, I recommend eating it the day of. While it still tastes good the second day around, it loses its crispy crust factor, which, to me, is my favorite thing about baked bread to begin with.
Serve this no-knead focaccia with soup, main course, or slice it to make delicious sandwiches. Perhaps a tomato, mozzarella and basil sandwich?
If you’d like to scale this recipe down, you can always halve the recipe use a smaller baking dish too.
I’ve never been a shower cap girl before, but this shower cap bread trick may have me stealing them from hotel rooms from now on. One of my pet peeves is when I try to cover baking dishes or bowls with plastic wrap and they just won’t stick or stay put for the life of me.
I’m pretty sure some company has caught on to this idea and started selling elastic plastic wrap covers, but this option is free, so I’ll stick with shower caps. It would be a great way to transport dishes or baked goods in the car too!
Homemade bread is definitely becoming one of my favorite things to make in this kitchen. And whenever I see the price tags on everyday baked bread at the grocery store (usually 4-5 dollars a loaf), that thought is confirmed.
Crispy cheese on warm, hot and fluffy homemade focaccia. Can’t get much better than that!
Cheesy Whole Wheat No-Knead Focaccia
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons (60 mL) extra virgin olive oil divided
- 1½ cup (360 mL) warm water 105°F-110°F (41°C-43°C)
- 2 cups (240g) whole wheat flour
- 1½ cups (180g) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 2 tablespoons dried oregano
- 1¼ teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ cup grated sharp white cheddar cheese optional
- Maldon or other flaky finishing salt
Instructions
- Grease a 9 x 13-inch (23 x 33 cm) baking dish with 2 tablespoons (30 mL) of extra virgin olive oil.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the warm water, whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, instant yeast, dried basil, dried oregano, and salt. Beat over high speed for about 1 minute or until all of the ingredients have been evenly incorporated. The dough will be sticky.
- Lightly oil your hands so the dough is easier to work with. Scoop the dough out of the bowl and transfer to the greased baking dish. Press and spread the dough out - it does not need to reach the corners perfectly as once it rises, this will naturally occur.
- Cover the baking dish with a clean shower cap or plastic wrap and set in a warm, dry place and let the dough rest for 60 to 90 minutes, or until it is puffy and has filled out to the edges of the pan.
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C) with a rack in the center position. Once dough has proofed, drizzle the top of the dough evenly with the remaining 2 tablespoons (30 mL) of extra virgin olive olive oil and gently poke the dough with your fingers, distributing it evenly. Sprinkle on the grated cheddar cheese, if using.
- Bake until golden brown, roughly 35 to 40 minutes. Sprinkle lightly with flake salt, such as Maldon. Cut and serve warm.
20 Comments on “Cheesy Whole Wheat No-Knead Focaccia”
60 seconds in mixer?? That was not even long enough to wet the dry ingredients!!
Hi Ruth! If it’s mixed in a stand mixer over high speed, it really shouldn’t take longer than 60 seconds for this dough.
can’t wait to try this! are nutrition facts posted for your recipes?
I’m going to make this today to go with some tomato and basil soup 🙂
Looks amazing!
Thanks Vicky! And thanks for visiting 😉 Love hearing from new readers, even if they’re just stopping by.
<3 Laura
You are inspiring me to start baking my own bread. Focaccia is so darn delicious just by itself. Love the shower cap trick! 😀
LOVE that. Bite the bullet! 🙂 And I completely agree, I could eat focaccia as its own meal. Happy belated birthday!
<3 Laura
Savannah —Thank you so much! I’m pretty happy with how it turned out, though there were definitely near-crying moments during the process of coding it all . Now I’m too scared to change anything for fear of messing it all up! Haha, I told you so 🙂
Ashley–I’m so glad to hear that you tried it and loved it. Love your variation too!
Lynne –The no-knead method saves a bunch of time, since it pretty much does all the rest of the work itself. I love dunking bread in olive oil and balsamic. And I’m pretty sure I may have to make this bread again, so I can do just that.
Joudie’s Mood Food: King Arthur gets the credit, but I love it too! Thanks for visiting 😉
This looks so good! Love the shower cap! 🙂
Wow, this looks delicious. And I like the no-knead method. I like to dip my focaccia in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Yum. Drooling just thinking about it. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Looks amazing! Thanks for sharing, can’t wait to try it 🙂
Yum girl, this looks perfect! I’m a huge fan of homemade bread, especially Focaccia!
Your pictures are beautiful and I love your layout.
oh, and ps, you were totally right about blogging taking over your life, haha, it hasn’t been a week yet but I’m already having so much fun!
Thanks for all comments and feedback everyone! You’re the best.
<3 Laura
This is brilliant!! I’ve never even made bread before, sounds like a good place to start 🙂
I know what you mean about bread prices. I usually buy fresh bread at a bakery that I really like – its somewhere between 1.75 (baugettes) and 3.20…and its fresh. But I love the thought of homemade bread. I can make naans and rotis and all of those Indian breads, but I categorize the two types them separately.
Ooh, I’m so excited! I need to try that naan too. If you don’t want to use cheese, I suggest adding another tablespoon of olive oil on top or you could always use a good quality parmesan too. Let me know if you make it! 🙂
<3 Laura
After nailing Jenna’s naan, I think I’m on a huge bread kick! This one very well may be the next one going down in my kitch 😉
Looks delicious! I love the shower cap trick too. Great idea!
Mmmm I love the smell of bread baking.
Yay! I am so excited to find another blogger who loves baking bread as much as I do. Which makes no sense because I can’t like, eat it, but I still love making it for loved ones. And I’ve been doing that same shower cap trick for a long time! My mom shared it with me:)