Tomato Basil Focaccia Bread
A Cheesy tomato basil stuffed focaccia bread brushed with garlic herb oil will transport you to Tuscany.
Taking a can of Campbell’s tomato soup and turning it into bread. The secret is to always get the ratio right. All you need to make this bread is two cups of liquid. It’s your choice on how you want to flavor that liquid I now know. This bread mixes, proofs, and bakes like a normal focaccia bread, yet it’s no normal focaccia bread. It’s stuffed with par-dried cherry tomatoes, fresh basil, and a LOT of grated parmesan cheese. A cheesy tomato bread that reminds you of pizza, but is something that stands completely on it’s own.
Creamy tomato basil soup is one of my go-to soups at an Italian restaurant. The garlic butter base with a parmesan tomato broth. I was worried how the tomato soup would affect the texture of the breads final product, but because the soup is so condensed adding extra water does the trick. It does not look very appealing as you start your stretch and folds, but in the end it ends up glowing with an orange hue that just looks so pretty.
Before you bake this you will dry out some of your cherry tomatoes. This is a necessary step to not only rid the tomatoes of most of their moisture which would directly affect the way this bread bakes, but it also reintroduces the tomato flavor because the tomato soup doesn’t really come through too much after it’s baked.
I’ve become obsessed with these tomatoes as they concentrate the sweetness of the tomato while also still providing that familiar burst of tomato flavor.
To finish this focaccia bread off, you brush the whole thing with garlic and herb oil. This will help to soften the bread, but also take this to breadstick level heaven. The raw garlic permeates the bread as it cools leaving you with this rich, cheesy, tomato and garlic-y scent that leaves your house smelling like an artisanal Tuscan bakery.
WARNING, you will want to eat this bread right out of the oven. Please go do something until it cools. The bread needs this time to adequately dry out and properly form.
Serve this bread up with your next spaghetti dinner or your favorite expensive butter.
Tomato Basil Focaccia Bread
For bread:
- 1 (10.5 oz.) can tomato soup plus water
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus more for the tray
For toppings:
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
- 2 cups fresh parmesan cheese, grated
- 1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
For garlic oil:
- 3 garlic cloves, pasted
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Preparation
- In a 2 cup liquid measuring cup, add the tomato soup and heat in the microwave until room temperature. Add warm water until you have 2 cups of liquid.
- Mix the warm tomato soup, salt, yeast, and tablespoon of olive oil in a bowl with a spoon until dissolved.
- Add flour to the mixture until a shaggy dough forms. The dough should be wet and jiggly. You may need to adjust warm water tablespoon by tablespoon.
- Cover mixture with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 250° F and par-dry the sliced cherry tomatoes on a sheet tray cut-side up for 1 - 2 hours or however much time you have. Let cool
- Set up a bowl of warm water for your hands, then execute four stretch and folds from North, South, East, and West over each side of the dough with wet hands for each fold. Then lift the dough and coil the dough under itself. Cover in plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes. Repeat 3 more times.
- Gently add the dough to a greased 9x13 pan and spread half the cherry tomatoes, parmesan cheese, and fresh basil all over the dough. Fold the dough into thirds and flip lengthwise in the pan. Lightly press it into the pan without degassing the dough then drizzle with olive oil, and top with remaining toppings.
- Cover dough with plastic, and let rest for 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 400° F.
- In a bowl, mix together the fresh parsley, garlic and olive oil. Set aside with a pastry brush.
- Dimple the focaccia dough lightly from top to bottom, then top with whatever toppings you’d like. Bake for 20 - 22 minutes or until lightly golden and the internal temp registers 190°F.
- Let rest for 5 minutes, then remove bread from pan. Brush with garlic herb oil and let cool completely on a wire rack.