French Onion Stuffed Focaccia

Updated at: Sat, 04 Nov 2023 06:06:25 GMT

Step 1

Make the focaccia dough according to recipe instructions. You can use my same-day, overnight or sourdough focaccia recipes for this. Check my Samsung Food profile or the Lace Bakes community on Samsung Food to find these recipes.

Step 2

The caramelised onions need to be ready (and cooled) by the time it’s time to tip the focaccia dough into the oiled tray.

Step 3

First peel and thinly slice the onions. Melt the salted butter in a large frying pan over medium high heat and then add in the sliced onions. Toss to coat the onions in the butter and then turn down the heat to medium. After ten minutes, stir in the flaky sea salt and add in some freshly cracked pepper if you wish to do so. Leave the onions to continue cooking slowly, checking on them and stirring every 3-4 minutes or so. They will slowly develop a rich brown colour as the water evaporates from them as they cook down. If the caramelised onion residue is stuck to the frying pan, just add in a couple of tablespoons of water and scrape them from the pan using a wooden spoon. The onions will drastically reduce in bulk and will have softened and turned a rich golden brown colour when they’re finished. They should taste sweet and slightly salty. Set the onions aside to let them cool down.

Step 4

While the onions are cooling, grate the cheese. I use a mixture of Gruyere, Emmental, Mozzarella and Parmesan. Use whatever combo of cheese you wish to, though Gruyere will give that nutty flavour you come to expect with French Onion Soup!

Step 5

When the onions have mostly cooled, transfer the focaccia into the oiled tray as instructed in the dough recipe. Instead of folding it up straight away, you’re going to scatter 1/3 (75g) of the cheese and 1/2 of the onions evenly over the dough. With oiled hands, fold one side of the dough towards the middle of the blob of dough. Repeat with the other side, a bit like folding a piece of paper into thirds (it will look a bit like a burrito). Rotate the dough in the tray so the length of the dough aligns with the length of the tray and then flip the dough so the seams from the folding are at the bottom and the smoother side is at the top. The caramelised onions and cheese should be nicely encased inside of the dough.

Step 6

Cover the tray of dough using another tray inverted - this prevents the dough from drying out and forming a crust while it rises. If you don’t have another tray, a plastic storage box can work too. Do not cover the dough with plastic wrap or a tea towel, it will stick.

Step 7

Proof at room temperature for 1-2 hours. The length of time will depend on if you used the same-day or overnight method for the dough. Same-day will proof quicker than overnight dough which will be a colder temperature from the fridge. Once the dough mostly fills the tray and it’s floofy and jiggly, you’ll know it’s ready.

Step 8

Preheat the oven to 220C/430F (non fan). If you have a pizza setting on your oven, use that as it helps to crisp up the bottom of the focaccia. I find that adjusting the rack to the bottom position of the oven helps to crisp up the bottom of the focaccia too (for most ovens).

Step 9

Once the focaccia is fully proofed, drizzle a bit of extra virgin olive oil over the entire surface of the dough and then dimple it all over. Sprinkle the dough with some flaky sea salt and then bake on the lowest rack of the oven for 12 minutes.

Step 10

Remove the par-baked focaccia from the oven and then sprinkle half of the remaining cheese over the entire surface of the bread. Evenly scatter the remaining caramelised onions over the top of the cheese and then scatter the rest of the cheese over the onions (this helps to protect them from burning). Add a little freshly cracked black pepper over the top of the cheese.

Step 11

Bake the focaccia for an additional 10-12 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and starting to turn a golden brown colour.

Step 12

Remove from oven, transfer focaccia from the tray onto a cooling rack and let cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting in. Enjoy!

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