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Potato, Sage and Lemon Zest Focaccia

By Melissa Clark

Potato, Sage and Lemon Zest Focaccia
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Total Time
50 minutes, plus time to prepare dough
Rating
4(120)
Comments
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There are a lot of focaccia styles out there. There are thick and fluffy ones, loaded with toppings, and crispy, oily ones with a minimalist sprinkle of salt. Then there’s everything in between.

I decided to stick to this middle ground and bake up something that had crisp edges while still being light and soft in the center.

Baking the focaccia in a cake pan, a trick I learned from the Los Angeles chef Nancy Silverton, does just that. It encourages the exterior of the loaf to turn crunchy as it absorbs heat from the sides of the pan, while allowing the dough to rise nicely in the middle. A cake pan also made for a nice-looking, gently domed loaf, more evenly shaped than the flatter, hand-pressed focaccias I’ve made in the past.

Featured in: A Bit of Kneading but a Lot of Versatility

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Ingredients

Yield:1 (9-inch) focaccia
  • 1ball focaccia dough (see recipe)
  • ¼cup olive oil
  • 3cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
  • 1medium Yukon Gold potato (about 4 ounces), peeled
  • 1tablespoon sage, finely chopped
  • Finely grated zest of 1 small lemon
  • ¼teaspoon salt
  • ½teaspoon black pepper
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (1 servings)

1193 calories; 62 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 41 grams monounsaturated fat; 9 grams polyunsaturated fat; 139 grams carbohydrates; 12 grams dietary fiber; 13 grams sugars; 26 grams protein; 1419 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 450 degrees. Place a small skillet over medium heat and add olive oil. Add garlic and cook until caramelized and golden brown, 2 to 6 minutes. Remove from heat and cool. Using a mandolin or knife, thinly slice potato. Toss with 1 tablespoon garlic oil (reserve remaining oil and garlic), sage, lemon zest, salt and pepper. Pour remaining garlic oil into bottom of a 9-inch cake pan.

  2. Step 2

    Pat dough evenly into pan, leaving a small gap between dough and edges of pan. Chop garlic cloves and press into dough. Layer potato-sage mixture on top. Bake until potatoes and focaccia are golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
120 user ratings
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Comments

Chiara Fantaccini

Hi Melissa, I am Italian and I love our traditonal recipes but I think you are an excellent cook and you give our courses a personal and very contemporary touch. Great!

SheraM

We made 9 of these, smaller, cooked in 8" cake pans for a food swap. We used semolina for part of the flour, but otherwise as written. They were a big hit. The whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

Avi

After 30 minutes in the oven the crust was dry, and the potatoes not cooked enough. Will not make again

Chelbie

Great recipe for a new focaccia baker. They come out of the freezer beautifully. Careful not to pile the potatoes too high as the dough underneath bakes at a slower rate than outside areas. Don’t skimp on the olive. It does make a huge difference with the end product.

James Pagdon

I could see turning this into an New Jersey style italian hot dog Focaccia by adding peppers and onions a few fried hot dogs and mustard. perhaps thats taking it to far from home? I bet it is great done just as the recipe calls for too.

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