Ingredients
For the dough:
- 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons warm (110-115°F) water
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast
- 1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2 1/2 cups (11.3 ounces) all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
For the toppings:
- 1 (15 ounce) can crushed San Marzano tomatoes
- 1 clove garlic, finely minced
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 4 ounces fresh Mozzarella cheese, sliced
- Fresh basil
- Pizza toppings
Directions
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In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the water, yeast, sugar, and half the flour. Stir to combine. Fit the mixer with the dough hook and on low speed add in the remaining flour, salt, and 1/4 cup olive oil. Once the dough comes together, increase the speed to medium and knead for 5 to 6 minutes, or until smooth and soft. If the dough is really sticky, add in another tablespoon or two of flour.
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Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, at least 1 hour. OR place the dough in a large plastic bag and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month. If frozen, thaw overnight in the fridge or for a few hours at room temperature. Proceed with the recipe.
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Coat a 9 by 13-inch pan with the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil. Put the dough onto the pan and begin pressing it out with your fingertips to fit the size of the pan. Coax and stretch the dough to fit the entire pan, or just about. Spread your fingers to make little holes all the way through the dough.
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Cover the dough with plastic and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425°F.
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In a medium bowl combine the tomatoes, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. Brush the focaccia with the olive oil on the pan. Spread 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce over the dough. Reserve the remaining sauce for another use (it freezes pretty well). Top with the cheese and other desired toppings. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.
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Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before cutting and serving.
Recipe Notes
You can use the same amount of active dry yeast in place of the instant yeast. Simply allow the active dry yeast to proof for five minutes with the water before adding in.
Do you have a specific 9×13” that you like for this? Thank you!
Hi Staci! This is Tessa’s favorite 9×13-inch pan for pretty much anything! It bakes so well, cleans beautifully, and because it’s a light color, it doesn’t burn or dry out the edges before the middle is done. Glass or ceramic should work just fine here, but they may take longer to bake – learn more about that here. Happy baking 🙂
I made this Focaccia Pizza for dinner tonight. It was my first time ever making pizza from scratch. Everyone loved it. So easy to make, the pizza tasted delicious and the crust was really good. My plan was to take a picture and post it, but everyone grabbed a slice before I had a chance. Next time.
Thank you for this amazing recipe! My family loves it. Perfect crunchy crust! We were tired of flat thin crusts and wanted to try something different. This is the best pizza we have ever had.
Wondering if you could freeze already cooked then just warm and serve??
Hi Marianne! We haven’t tried that, only freezing the dough prior to baking. Please let us know how it goes if you give it a try!
This was delicious and easy to make! The crust was the perfect mix of a soft fluffy interior with a crisp bottom. My husband already asked if I can make it again tomorrow.
Yay! So glad to hear how much you both loved this recipe! Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Wow I made this tonight and it came out great. Thanks for the recipe, video, and tips.
So glad to hear that!
Such a great recipe. My husband and son can’t wait for me to make it again. Very crispy buttery crust from the olive oil.
Hooray! So glad this recipe was a hit with the family.
I am about to make this dough. I have read on the internet some recipes say you can leave the dough in a covered bowl up to 18 hours. Can I do this with this recipe?
Just what I was looking for. Five Yums!
By the way, check out King Arthur Flour’s Blitz Focaccia recipe. Very similar to your recipe, they increased the yeast and flour and with only one rise, it’s totally doable for a weeknight dinner.
Have you ever tried pizza rosa at Palermo’s in LA? I was looking for a similar pizza recipe to it since I was craving it and don’t live in LA anymore and this looks like it could be it. My question is that the restaurant menu says that they use fresh tomatoes – do you know if there is a huge difference in using crushed canned tomatoes and fresh tomatoes?
https://slice.seriouseats.com/2012/05/daily-slice-pizza-rosa-los-angeles.html
I’m midway through but making this recipe and I’m excited to try it but your page has so so so many ads it’s a nightmare to scroll back and forth on my phone (I’d rather keep myself laptop far from flour). I almost feel like I’d rather skip your page in the future just on principle. I guess you’re probably making a pretty good living. Unfortunately my frustration with your page is making me lose my appetite.
I love having mushrooms on my pizza. Can I put raw mushrooms on this pizza and will they be cooked?
Thank you.
Perfect post about focaccia pizza this. We all need a good hearty bread recipe to warm and fill our tummy’s. Great recipe and thanks for sharing it.
This was really delicious!! Thanks for the part about freezing the dough for a later time! Very helpful!
WOW! The flavor was just amazing! I couldn’t stop eating! But, took me three tries to get it right. In the end, I had to use an 8 by 16 inches pan because my dough was getting too much big and as a result was taking 50 minutes to bake, burning the popping a little.
What could possibly be the reason?
I’m brazilian and live in Brazil, by the way.
Hi,
This looks fantastic! I’m curious…will the “fast rise” trick of turning the oven on for a minute, then off, then rising the dough in there work?
Thanks!
You gave me the confidence to try working with yeast for the first time! Oh boy am I glad you did — this is delicious!!!
So happy to hear that, Leah!!
I love the way you make food pizza and biscuits
I saw your post late this afternoon and said “I have to have that!” It just came out of the oven and, YES, it is wonderful. My husband is in heaven too. The ‘crust’ is oh so light. We topped it with artichoke hearts, sliced olives and shallots (and some red pepper flakes for some heat) I used fire roasted tomato’s also. I’m going to make another tomorrow and take it to a pot luck in the evening. Thanks for another killer recipe!
WOW!! How awesome!! So glad you like the recipe 🙂 🙂
This looks delish! I personally love thick, fluffy pizza bases so this is ultra tempting 🙂
Thanks Tessa!
Yum!! These photos have me craving pizza already! 🙂
Dani | http://www.styledvariety.com
Oh thick crust pizza is my fave. I often make focaccia, but I never thought of making it in a pizza form, it looks delicious. Have to try it next time!