Crispy Focaccia Bread with Garlic Herb Oil

Today we are introducing everyones favorite Crispy Focaccia Bread recipe. Seriously, it’s everyones favorite. Long thin crispy focaccia sticks with a slight chew and perfectly crunchy bottom.

Baked in only 5 minutes flat, this focaccia is fast in the oven, easy, and frankly, quite dreamy. Hot from the oven, we’ll brush this crispy flatbread with an aromatic mix of toasted garlic, olive oil, and fresh herbs. Ready to make it?!

Guysss I am so excited about todays recipe!! I have been making this focaccia for a couple years now. It started as a holiday tradition and then we started craving it during the year(weekly, daily?!).

This focaccia recipe isn’t that trendy thick fluffy bread you poke your fingers into. That focaccia is great, and… this is just different! Each piece of this bread is long and thin, and so crispy you won’t know where to stop.

The Story 

Years ago, when I was studying dance at the Jerusalem Academy, I had a night job with a girlfriend at one of  the cities top-rated restaurants. The Eucalyptus, run by chef Moshe Basson, is to this day, one of the only restaurant I recall and literally start drooling about.

A toxicating mix of Middle Eastern flavours, the menu was something I pored over and muttered in my sleep to memorise, and the goose breast with sweet wine and fruit still comes to me in my dreams. And the focaccia!! The pastry and dessert chef, Abu Fadi, was a wonderful old Arab man who made the best chocolate soufflé… and perfect focaccia.

This recipe is an ode to the “house bread” at Eucalyptus, something that pairs perfectly with dips, and is practically begging to be your meal starter.

How long does crispy focaccia take to make?

Each crispy flatbread will only be baked in the oven for 5 minutes!  Because we are baking at a very high heat of 480 F(250 C) this bread doesn’t need a lot of time to bake at all.

BUT the dough does need to rest overnight. Don’t worry!!! I promise, the decision to make this recipe the night before will be the best thing you did for yourself all week.

You will feel relaxed and excited waking up in the morning knowing your bread is ready for you to simply pop in the oven (the dough has been getting more and more flavorful all night while you rest!)

How do you make crispy focaccia?

1.First mix the dough.

I like to use my Kitchen Aid stand mixer, but you can do this by hand as well(it will be a slight arm workout!) We will be using granulated yeast, mixed with water. Let this sit for a minute to start activating the yeast- once you see little bubbles forming on top of the water, you know the yeast is at work.

Add a little sugar, which helps the yeast to do its job, and plain white sifted flour. If what you have on hand is bread flour, you can substitute with that, although I personally always use regular all purpose flour for this focaccia recipe!

Knead for 7 minutes. The last minute, we’ll add the salt and extra virgin olive oil. Olive oil adds a lovely rich flavour to the dough, so no substitutions!

2. Resting Time

The dough is transferred to a greased bowl, covered with plastic wrap and left to rest for 20 minutes.

Then we’ll punch it down to let the air out, and shape it. This focaccia recipe makes 15 long flat breads. They are longer and not so wide- kinda great for personal eating fun! My kids loveee snacking on them.

I use a simple handy kitchen scale to weigh each piece of dough so they are equal. Each will be 50 grams.

You can eyeball it, but totally get a kitchen scale! It’s also great for weighing challah strands when you’re’ making this perfect challah recipe. (this kitchen scale is super cheap and works like a champ. affiliate link!)

Place the balls of dough on a large baking tray lined with parchment paper, cover it with plastic wrap, and place them in the refrigerator for 24 hours, or overnight.

Why Overnight Fermentaion?

This overnight method, which involves the dough going through a long, slow, cold ferment(as opposed to only an hour or two at room temperature) will produce a richer and more flavour- complex final bread. For the best tasting bread, many experts have found that slow and cold fermentation is the best! 

There are ways to get around this- like in the famous Half Hour Challah, which uses more yeast and other ingredients to add flavour in a short amount of time.

3. Herb Oil.

To make the herb oil, lightly sautée finely minced garlic in olive oil over a low flame, until the garlic gets nice and fragrant. Let this cool and then add the salt and fresh herbs- parsley, basil, and thyme. If you have rosemary, you can use some of that as well, and if you don’t have fresh herbs, substitute with dried!

4.Baking time! The best time!

When you are ready to eat, preheat the oven to high heat. Heat up a baking brick, pizza stone, or use my favourite home baking bread trick- a baking sheet turned upside down!

This is important to make the bottom of the bread super crisp.

You MUST preheat the baking sheet before placing the focaccia on or they will stick to the pan and be harder to remove. Once preheated(give it ten minutes), it is time to shape the focaccia. 

5. Shaping the focaccia:

One at a time, take a ball of dough and using the middle two fingers on both hands, begin to gently stretch the dough from the centre of the ball. Work slowly so it doesn’t rip.

Once the dough is about the length of your hand, stretch the width by pulling out from the centre. Continue stretching out the length until it is long and thin- around the same length as the short side of your baking sheet. If the dough is sticky, dip your fingers into the olive oil.

The centre of each flat bread will be thinner than the edges. Start, and as you work with each piece of dough you will get better at making them uniform.

I hope you love this Crispy Focaccia Bread like we do!  Remember to leave a review or a nice thought in the comment section below- I love hearing what recipes are your favourites and what is the “matzav” in your kitchen! Lastly, for fun and behind-the-scenes, come and join the fam on Instagram! 

Lots of love, Estee

Crispy Focaccia Bread with Garlic Herb Oil

Thin and crispy flat Focaccia bread with a delectable crunch and perfect chew! Make these with hummus Basar, or serve with dips for the perfect first course to a meal.

5 from 7 votes

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Cook Time 5 mins

Total Time 1 d 5 mins

Servings 15 focaccia flat breads

Ingredients

  

• 3 cups flour all purpose flour or bread flour
• 2 Tbs granulated yeast
• 1/2 Tbs white sugar
• 1 1/4 cups water
• 1 Tbs salt
• 2 Tbs olive oil

Garlic Herb Oil (use fresh or dried herbs)

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic finely minced
• 1/2 Tbs basil
• 1/2 Tbs parsley
• 1/4 tsp thyme
• 1/4 tsp rosemary-optional
• 1/4 Tbs coarse salt
• pinch of black pepper

Instructions

 

• In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix the yeast with 1/4 cup water. Let sit for a minute until bubbly.
• Add the rest of the water, flour, and sugar, and knead for 6 minutes. Add the salt and olive oil and knead for one more minute or two. Scrape the sides of the mixer to get any dough that separates.
• Transfer the dough to a greased bowl, or simply leave the dough in the mixer bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for 20 minutes. Punch the dough down to let the air out, and divide it into 15 balls(each about 50 grams.) Grease them with olive oil on all sides(to prevent sticking), and place on a baking sheet fitted with parchment paper. Wrap the baking sheet in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours, or overnight.

Herb Oil

• In a small pan or pot, heat the olive oil with the minced garlic. Lightly sautée until the garlic is fragrant until just starting to turn golden. Remove from the heat and let cool. Add the herbs and salt and pepper. Set aside.

Preheat, Shape and Bake

• When ready to bake, Preheat the oven to 480 F(250 C). Place a baking brick or simply turn a baking sheet upside down, on the bottom rack of the oven. This makes the bottom of the bread extra crisp!
• Stretch the balls of dough into 8 inch long strips( see photo). Work slowly, as not to rip the dough. The edges will be thicker than the centre of the bread. Place them carefully on the hot upside down baking sheet and gently brush with herb oil. Bake for 5 minutes, until golden.
• While hot, brush the focaccia with more herb oil. Enjoy hot! To reheat(say the next day), simply place focaccia in the oven on high heat for a couple minutes, to regain their crisp.

Keyword bread