Soft Potato Focaccia Bread
A soft delicious Focaccia Bread that’s made with the addition of cooked potatoes. So delicious you will be making it over and over. Perfect as an appetizer or even made into a sandwich.
Italians love their bread. My husband can’t go a day without Fresh Bread with his meal. Whether it’s to wipe up some left over sauce, or a bit of olive oil left in the bowl. It doesn’t matter, he needs his bread! From a simple Ciabatta to a longer rise Italian bread!
So when I decided to try making a focaccia bread with a special ingredient, yup potatoes. I was told potatoes help to make the dough soft but I never imagined this soft and delicious. We all agreed that we would follow the traditional Pugliese way of making focaccia and that would be including potatoes in the ingredients!
Recipe Ingredients
- Potato
- Flour
- Yeast
- Honey
- Salt
- Olive oil
- Water
- Rosemary leaves
- Salt – rock salt
- Zucchini
- Mozzarella – firm mozzarella shredded
- Oregano
How to make Potato Focaccia Bread
Cook the unpeeled potatoes until tender, then peel and pass through a potato ricer, set aside to cool. In the bowl of your stand up mixer add the flour, yeast, honey, salt and potatoes, start to knead.
Then add the oil, continue to knead. Add the water in a slow stream while kneading. Continue to knead for about 3-4 minutes or until dough is smooth.
Move the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead into a ball. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover the bowl with plastic and let the dough rise in a draft free warm area for approximately two hours.
Once the time has passed, form the dough into 2-3 circles and place in prepared pans. Make holes in the dough with your finger tips, sprinkle with rock salt, and fresh rosemary leaves then drizzle with olive oil.
Bake until golden. Eat warm.
For this Potato Focaccia I decided to make two different types of focaccia. I made the traditional rosemary, rock salt and olive oil and another type that is very popular here in Italy during the summer.
A zucchini and cheese focaccia. I shredded the zucchini and the firm mozzarella. First I topped the dough with the zucchini sprinkled a little oregano and salt on top then topped it with the shredded cheese and baked it.
Yes this Focaccia could definitely give my Best Pizza Dough a run for it’s money!
How to Knead the dough by hand
Kneading by hand – In a large bowl mix the flour, yeast, honey and salt (place salt away from the yeast) and the mashed potatoes with a fork. Then add the oil and water, mix again with a fork, then move the dough to a flat surface and knead for 5-7 minutes or until the dough is smooth and elastic, then knead into a ball. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm draft free area for approximately 2 hours or doubled in bulk.
What is the difference between focaccia and pizza?
- Some pizza dough doesn’t contain oil and the focaccia dough does.
- Focaccia dough can contain mashed potatoes.
- Focaccia dough has a longer rising time than pizza.
- Focaccia is thicker, Pizza is thinner.
- Pizza has a tomato sauce, focaccia doesn’t.
- Pizza is made in a brick oven, focaccia isn’t.
- Focaccia bread is baked in a lower temperature oven then Pizza.
- But both are definitely delicious.
What to serve with focaccia
I like to serve a warm focaccia with a hearty beef stew, such as a Meatball Stew or even my Beef and Potato stew. It also goes really well with a simple Pasta and tomato sauce or why not serve it as an appetizer with some grilled eggplant or zucchini and side plate of your favorite cheese! Or make a sandwich, slice it through the middle and add your favorite sandwich fillings.
Can the dough be made in advance?
Yes the dough can be made the night before and left to rise over night in the fridge. Place the focaccia dough in the bowl cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
When ready to bake, remove it from the fridge, let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, then bake as instructed in the recipe.
How to store Focaccia Bread
Store the bread in an airtight container or bag at room temperature, it will keep for two days.
Can the Dough be frozen?
Yes the dough can also be frozen, freeze it after the first rise. The dough will keep for up to six months. Thaw the dough in the fridge, then place the dough in the prepared pan. Let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.
More delicious Focaccia Bread Recipes
- Easy Focaccia
- Homemade Focaccia Pugliese
- Stovetop Stuffed Sweet Focaccia
- Pumpkin Focaccia with Black Olives
- Thin Crispy Focaccia
So if you are looking for a soft tasty Italian Focaccia Bread I hope you give this one a try, and let me know what you think. Buon Appetito!
Soft Potato Focaccia Bread
Ingredients
FOCACCIA DOUGH
- 1 medium potato (Russet or Yukon gold) (150 grams / 5¼ ounces)
- 2¼ cups + 1 tablespoon all purpose flour (290 grams total, if you double or triple the recipe then double or triple this amount)
- 1½ teaspoons active dry yeast
- ½ teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1½ tablespoons olive oil
- ½ cup + 3 tablespoons lukewarm water (165 grams total, if you double or triple the recipe then double or triple this amount)
ROSEMARY TOPPING
- 2-3 sprigs fresh rosemary leaves
- 2-3 pinches rock salt
- 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
ZUCCHINI & CHEESE FOCACCIA
- 1 small zucchini shredded
- ½ cup firm mozzarella shredded
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Boil the unpeeled potato until tender. Drain, remove skin and mash well or pass through a potato ricer.
- In the bowl of a stand up mixer add the flour, yeast, honey and salt (place salt away from the yeast) and the mashed cooled to warm potatoes, start to knead (on #2 speed).
- Continue to knead, add the oil, then pour the water slowly (a slow stream), continue to knead for 3-4 minutes (no higher than #3-4 speed) or until dough is smooth and starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Remove to a flat lightly floured surface and knead into a ball. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm draft free area for approximately 2 hours or doubled in bulk.
- Pre-heat oven to 400F (200C). Lightly oil a pizza pan. I used three 7 inch (19cm) pans.
- Divide dough and place in prepared pans, with finger tips make prints in the dough.
- To make the rosemary focaccia, sprinkle the dough with rosemary leaves, rock salt and drizzle with olive oil.
- To make the zucchini & cheese focaccia, top the dough with shredded zucchini, sprinkle with oregano and salt, top with shredded cheese and drizzle with olive oil.
- Bake for approximately 20 minutes until dough is cooked through and golden. Serve warm. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Updated from August 7, 2019.
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Is this 665 cal per serving? Or for the whole bread?
Hi Kate, it is for 1 focaccia, I made 3 small ones, so each was 655 calories. Take care!
I have made this recipe twice and each time the dough got very sticky after raising. Why? It seemed fine after kneading in my kitchenAid. It wasn’t sticky. The taste is fine.
Hi Christina, focaccia dough is a bit sticky, that’s what makes it light, full of holes and helps it rise. Take care!
Can I use instant potaotes? if so amount and directions. thank yo
Hi Diane, I have no idea, I have never cooked or baked with instant potatoes. To tell the truth I wouldn’t recommend it. Take care!
Hi Rosemary, I made the zucchini focaccia recipe and it was delicious. But, should I have squeezed the zucchini to eliminate some of the water?
Hi Barbara, thanks so much glad you enjoyed it. It would probably be a good idea to squeeze the zucchini to remove excess liquid. Take care!
Can you use leftover mashed potatoes? If so is it about 1/2 cup or more?
Hi Jane, yes I think you could, and 1/2 a cup sounds right. Let me know how it goes. Take care.
Should the mashed potato be left to cool before making the dough?
Hi LaurenAnne, they should be cooled to warm, not steaming hot. I hope you enjoy it. Take care!
Love, love, love this recipe.
Delicious and does not last long. Always get compliments when served and get asked for the recipe.
Thank you for sharing Rosemary.
Hi Paola, thanks so much and you’re welcome, so glad you enjoyed it. Take care and have a great week!
This didn’t cook for me. Even after 50 minutes the bread was still doughy and raw inside. I bake a loaf or two of sourdough every week and have no issues so I don’t think it was my oven. I compared it to some other focaccia recipes I have in the temperature stated in this recipe is far, far lower than others. Most of the other focaccia recipes I use call for the oven to be at 475 or at the very least 450. I might try it again, but I would bake it and a much higher temperature.
Hi N, the bread has been tested and made quite a few times and it does bake at that temperature. If it isn’t done but is browned on top, then cover it with foil and continue baking until it baked through. Hope that helps. Take care!
It’s a very stiff dough…is this correct..
Hi Verna, no it should be a soft dough. If it is stiff you should add a bit more water. 🙂
Hello Rosemary,
I do not have a potato ricer. Is there something else I can use?
I absolutely love all the recipes I’ve tried so far. You are fantastic. Thank you!
Hi Stephanie, thanks so much, you made my day! You could actually use a potato masher or even a fork to mash them. Let me know how it goes. Take care!