Peach Focaccia With Thyme
- Total Time
- 45 minutes, plus 2 to 3 hours’ rising
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 1½cups warm water (110 to 115 degrees)
- 1(¼-ounce) package active dry yeast (2¼ teaspoons)
- 6tablespoons/75 grams granulated sugar
- ½cup/115 grams unsalted butter (1 stick)
- 3¾cups/515 grams bread flour
- 1teaspoon kosher salt
- 1large egg, lightly beaten
- Nonstick cooking spray, as needed
- 2large peaches or other stone fruits (about 12 ounces total), halved, pitted and sliced into ¼-inch-thick wedges
- 1tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, plus 6 sprigs
Nutritional analysis per serving (18 servings)
187 calories; 7 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 27 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 4 grams protein; 112 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
- Step 1
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the warm water, yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, melt ¼ cup/60 grams butter and set aside.
- Step 2
With the mixer on low, add the flour, salt, egg, 3 tablespoons sugar and melted butter. Continue until the dough is almost completely smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. The dough will be very sticky, but no need to add extra flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave it in a warm, draft-free spot until it has doubled in size. (This could take anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours.) Gently punch the dough down, scrape the sides down and cover again. Let the dough rise one more time, about 30 minutes.
- Step 3
Toss the peaches with the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and the thyme leaves. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Melt 2 tablespoons butter and spread evenly on a rimmed baking sheet. Tip the dough onto the prepared sheet and use your fingers to stretch it out to a large oval, roughly 10-by-15 inches. Allow the dough to rise, uncovered, in a warm spot to about ¼ inch above the edge of the pan.
- Step 4
Without deflating the dough, use your fingers to make dimples all over the surface. Gently top the dough with the peaches and the sprigs of thyme, leaving any extra liquid from the fruit in the bowl. Bake until golden brown, puffed and set, 20 to 25 minutes.
- Step 5
While the foccacia bakes, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, and gently brush melted butter over the focaccia. Let cool slightly in the pan on a rack, then slip the focaccia out of the pan onto a cutting board, cut into squares and serve warm.
- This bread is best the day it’s made. Save any leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Heat leftovers in the oven before serving.
Private Notes
Comments
I added a few slices of prosciutto with the peaches and a stem of rosemary from the garden. Excellent recipe that’s got me thinking about my next toppings!
I think you can eliminate at least 3 tablespoons of sugar from this recipe and it'd still come out delicious. I also substituted sugar with honey for a slightly healthier option :)
As others said: excellent. I ended up using a 12 inch diameter cast iron skillet so my bread was pretty thick-but people raves about it. We served it with an array of cheese and honey and the hands down winner was the combo with blue cheese. I also made this the night before and put in the fridge after the first rise. Then I moved it straight to the pan for the final rise. Made it super easy to bake on my schedule.
Needed to chime in here as I didn’t love this recipe as much as other commenters for a few reasons. I think in the future I’ll use a more standard focaccia recipe but grab the stone fruit topping. I thought it turned out like a nice bread, but not what I expect from focaccia: it was rather dense, with not enough fat or salt to be snackable. And the peach amount was really scant, so the impression was kind of dry. Also recipe wise, felt a bit frustrated how some steps had time estimates but the last rise did not. Hard to plan on serving something warm out of the oven when that’s omitted.
This recipe is very adaptable and forgiving. Due to errors and a few intentional tweaks, I can’t really review the recipe accurately other than to say that you can mess it up and still get something tasty. I didn’t read the instructions properly and added all of the butter to the dough, but it still turned out fine. I did tweak the recipe a bit to make a sweeter bread. Instead of thyme, I used nutmeg and cinnamon. I also topped with a bit of brown sugar. My end was result was basically a big, bread-y peach kolache.
Made a directed on a humid day, very runny and flat. But the peach thyme mis was delightful.