How to Make Oven Roasted Tomato Focaccia
This roasted tomato focaccia is a guaranteed hit whether served at home, at a potluck or patio party. The pre-made oven roasted tomatoes with slivers of garlic add incredible depth of flavor.
Focaccia is soft Italian flat bread made with yeast. It’s thicker and softer than pizza and comes with lighter toppings. It works well as a side to a meal, as an appetizer or as sandwich bread. It can be quite simple like Rosemary Focaccia or it can get a little more creative like this Rhubarb and Caramelized Onion Focaccia. Today’s recipe for Oven Roasted Tomato Focaccia falls somewhere in the middle. It’s one of my favorite recipes during tomato season.
I was happy to create this recipe in partnership with CanolaEatWell’s campaign to Eat More Meals Together. This recipe is perfect for sharing, a tasty way to enjoy seasonal tomatoes roasted to glorious perfection in the oven and a great way to pay tribute and support our Canadian canola farmers. I believe, now, more than ever, it’s important to support our local producers and our local economy. Not a big ask considering that canola oil is a super versatile, neutral-flavored oil great for this focaccia and all sorts of cooking and baking tasks.
If you like a visual tutorial, check out my latest video where I step you through the whole process. Watch the whole video or find whatever section you’re most curious about – kneading? prepping the tomatoes? assembling? Look for the text bars on the bottom to figure out where to watch.
https://youtu.be/4IcawQcbOkg
Recipe for Oven Roasted Tomato Focaccia
Oven Roasted Tomato Focaccia
Ingredients
Focaccia Bread
- 21/2-2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 tsp instant rise yeast (1 pkg)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 cup warm water
- 3 Tbsp canola oil divided
Topping
- 1 Tbsp canola oil
- 6-8 tomatoes
- 3 cloves garlic, halved lengthwise
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- 2 Tbsp shredded fresh Parmesan
- 1 tsp Italian Seasoning or dried basil, oregano, marjoram, thyme
Instructions
Focaccia Bread
- Combine 2 1/2 cups of flour, yeast, salt, sugar and onion powder. Mix well.
- Form well in flour. Add warm water and 2 Tbsp canola oil.
- Stir until ingredients are combined and becomes difficult to stir with a spoon.
- Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead for 6 – 7 minutes. Add more flour as needed to prevent stickiness.
- Shape dough into ball and place in oiled bowl turning to coat all sides with 1/2 Tbsp oil.
- Cover loosely with clean towel and let rest for 20 minutes. Prepare Roasted Tomatoes while waiting.
- Using remaining 1/2 Tbsp canola oil, to generously grease a 9×13” (23×33 cm) pan to ensure a nice crispy outside.
- Roll and stretch out dough to fit pan and press out the air.
- Use fingers to poke dimples into dough to bottom of pan.
- Cover with clean towel and let rest 15 minutes.
Roasted Tomato Topping
- Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C) and grease a 9×13" (23×33 cm) rimmed pan with canola oil.
- Wash and slice tomatoes 1/2” (1.5 cm) thick. Place cut side up on baking sheet.
- Tuck garlic halves randomly into middle of tomatoes, not directly on baking sheet to help prevent scorching.
- Drizzle tomatoes and garlic with 1 Tbsp of canola oil.
- Bake at to 400°F (200°C) for 20 to 30 minutes. Check to ensure browning – not charring.
- Remove from oven and let cool slightly.
Assembly
- Once dough has risen and roasted tomatoes have cooled, assemble focaccia.
- Drizzle 1/2 Tbsp canola oil on top of dough.
- Mash roasted tomatoes with a fork and spread evenly on top of dough. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and remaining 1/2 Tbsp canola oil.
- Bake at to 400°F (200°C) for 20 to 25 minutes til dough is light golden brown.
- Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and slice into squares. Serve warm or cold.
Notes
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
What Kind of Tomatoes Should I Use?
My favorite tomatoes for this recipe are paste tomatoes like Roma, San Marzano or Amish Paste. These tomatoes have more substance to them and are less watery than slicing tomatoes. That means they’ll roast up quickly and won’t be too saucy for putting on the focaccia dough.
That said, you can make this recipe with any type of tomato. If you’re using slicing tomatoes, you can scoop out some of the liquid seed sacs and/or just roast the tomatoes a little longer to allow more of the liquid to evaporate.
You can also use cherry or grape tomatoes for this recipe. I recommend you slice them in half and place them cut side up when roasting them.
Why Use Roasted Tomatoes?
I have made focaccia with fresh tomatoes before. It’s good. But holy smokes – pre-roasting those tomatoes really takes it to a whole other level. I have been converted and will only make tomato focaccia with oven roasted tomatoes from now on.
Can You Use Frozen Roasted Tomatoes?
Yes! I just did this and it worked beautifully and tasted amazing. Over the summer I roasted A LOT of tomatoes thanks to a great garden year. I froze some of those roasted tomatoes and yesterday, I thawed them, drained off the excess liquid (will add to soup) and used them on focaccia. MMM!
How to Store & Reheat Focaccia?
Focaccia can be kept at room temperature for two days. Loosely wrap in plastic, beeswax wrap or seal in a container.
To reheat or freshen up focaccia, heat in a 350°F oven for 10 minutes.
More Tasty Focaccia and Bread Recipes To Try
This oven roasted tomato Focaccia is definitely for bread lovers like me. If that’s you, may I interest you in some more bread recipes?
Rhubarb & Caramelized Onion Focaccia – a spring time focaccia
Rosemary Focaccia – quick and easy and oh so flavorful
50/50 Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread
Whole Wheat Soft Hamburger Buns
Sourdough Bread A Beginners Recipe
No Knead Cottage Cheese Dill Bread
If you make this oven roasted tomato focaccia let me know what you think. Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag @getgettys and #MakeitCanola so we can see it and like it!
This recipe was written in paid partnership with the Canola Eat Well. As always, opinions are my own and a sincere reflection of life in my home.
Sign up to get articles by Getty delivered to your inbox. You’ll get recipes, practical tips and great food information like this. Getty is a Professional Home Economist, speaker and writer putting good food on tables and agendas. She is the author of Manitoba’s best-selling Prairie Fruit Cookbook, Founder of Fruit Share, a mom and veggie gardener.
I am short for time right now and need to roast and freeze tomatoes. Do I need to1/2″ slice and roast as in recipe or can I just cut and roast as in your roasted tomato soup recipe? (Saves having special “focaccia tomato” bags in freezer)
Love your site and so happy to find recipes that are not wasteful 🙂
Yes, you can cut tomatoes into quarters and roast then freeze. They’ll be ideal for any use. When you thaw them, you can drain some of the liquid if you find them too liquidy. You’ll be good to go. And thank you for the lovely comment, it means a lot to hear people enjoy the site.
This is the first time I have ever made focaccia Overall, I enjoyed the finished bread, but I think I probably put too much of the topping on. If I were to make it again, I would not use Italian seasoning. I felt that was a little overpowering.
Thanks for providing your feedback, food for thought for others making the recipe.