Gluten Free Focaccia Bread
The gluten free focaccia bread of your dreams! Chewy, soft, perfectly spiced, and you can’t tell its gluten free!
You are going to fall in love with this herbed garlic gluten free focaccia. It’s the perfect way to pick up the last bit of pasta sauce on the plate, or dunk in an olive oil blend before your meal. But the flavor and texture is only half the reason why you will love this. It’s so easy to make with simple grocery store ingredients. In fact, I found everything at my local Kroger!
So good, my sister stole half of my loaf when I was taking pictures for this post!
Free from: wheat/gluten, peanut, tree nut, coconut, corn, soy, dairy (optional), casein (optional), sesame, sulfites, lupin, fish, shellfish, crustaceans, mollusks, mustard
What is Gluten Free Focaccia Bread?
Focaccia bread is a traditional Italian flatbread that can be used as a side to your meal, or as a super delicious sandwich bread.
Most are topped with herbs like rosemary and parsley. I like to kick mine up by adding basil, flaky salt, red pepper flakes, and cheese! Who doesn’t love cheese on their bread? However, this is an optional thing and you can flavor your focaccia any way you like.
By adding cheese you transform this dish into a similar cheesy bread you find at most pizza places around the US. Try dipping it in red sauce or ranch dressing for that pizza take out taste!
How to Make Gluten Free Focaccia Bread
Start by grabbing a large, non-metal, bowl to proof your yeast. A non-metal bowl is preferred as the metal can sometimes prevent the yeast from fully activating! Mix the yeast and warm water (about 110F/44C) and set aside to proof for 10 minutes.
After proofing, add the remaining water, eggs, olive oil, and 1 cup of your gluten free flour. Mix to combine. It should be still pretty wet at this stage.
Need a good gluten free flour mix? Make sure you check out my recipe for an easy homemade gluten free flour!Now add the remaining ingredients in this was so you don’t kill off any of the yeast you just activated!
First place the gluten free flour and potato flour in the center of the bowl. Add the salt to one side (at about 3 o’clock on a clock), the apple cider vinegar to another side (about 6 o’clock), and the baking powder to a third side (think 9 o’clock). Gently mix them all together.
The dough should come together to form a wet dough ball. Place a little more olive oil on top to prevent any sticking and set in a warm place to rise for one hour, covered.
At about the 45 minute mark, start to preheat the oven to 425F/220C.
On a parchment lined baking sheet, divide the dough into 2 loaves or keep into one giant loaf.
This dough is STICKY! Either oil your hands before pressing into place or take a piece of cling film to press. Try to make it about one inch thick.
Sprinkle any seasonings you like and pop in the oven for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, remove from the oven and top with cheese and any remaining toppings if using. Place back in the over or 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
Gluten Free Focaccia Bread Tips
This bread is sticky. Really sticky. I pressed the first one out by hand and even though I used olive oil, my hands were a mess after! So, the second time I sprayed it with a little cooking spray and used a small piece of cling film to press it out. Much easier!
This makes one large bread, or 2 smaller loaves. I tend to like the smaller since you can vary the flavors, making sure everyone is happy!
What I love about this version of gluten free focaccia bread is that it has that chewy texture that I need in my gluten free bread making. This is thanks to a small amount of potato flour in the dough. If you can’t find potato flour in your store, try using instant mashed potatoes instead. Just make sure that they are gluten free!
Allergy Variations for Gluten Free Focaccia Bread
Dairy free: Omit the cheese topping and add a non-dairy cheese topping of your choice. Cheese substitute can be used or you can try things like onions, tomatoes, olives, or extra garlic.
Egg free: While I haven’t tried making it egg free (yet) I think 1 flax egg and an extra teaspoon of baking powder would work. If you try this egg free version, let me know what you did and how it worked out for you!
Ingredients
Gluten Free Focaccia Bread
- 1 1/2 cup warm water, divided
- 1 tsp yeast
- 2 tsp sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 3 cups all purpose gluten free flour
- 1/2 cup potato flour
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp salt
Herb Mixture
- 1/2 tsp each of salt, Italian herb mixture
- 1 tsp each of dried basil and parsley
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
Optional Toppings
- Mozzarella or Parmesan Cheese
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Cinnamon Sugar
Instructions
- In a large, non-metal bowl, mix your yeast and sugar. Add 1/2 cup of water heated to 110°F / 44°C. Stir well and let proof for 10 minutes. Your mixture should have lots of bubbles and have increased in volume. If not, your yeast has died and you need to try again.
- After proofing, add the remaining water, your eggs, olive oil and 1 cup of all purpose flour. Mix well to combine.
- Now add the remaining ingredients. Place first the flour and potato flour in the center of the bowl. Add the salt to one side, the apple cider vinegar to another side, and the baking powder to a third side. This prevents the ingredients from killing the yeast as you gently mix them all together.
- Your dough should come together in a wet dough ball. Pour a little more olive oil on top and let rest, covered in a towel, in a warm place for one hour. I place mine next to my tea kettle after making a cup of tea. You could also preheat the oven to 200°F for 10 minutes, turn off the oven, and let your dough rest in the oven. Just make sure your dough is in an oven proof bowl!
- Pre-heat the oven to 425°F / 218° C. If your dough is proofing in the oven, make sure you remove the dough before preheating.
- On a parchment lined baking sheet, divide your dough into two loaves or keep in one large loaf. Using a piece of cling film, gently press your dough into a desired shape. Press until one inch thick. Sprinkle with herbs or cinnamon sugar.
- Bake focaccia for 10 minutes. After that, remove from oven and top with cheese if using. Place back in over for another 10-12 minutes. Focaccia will be done when the bread is golden brown, it is firm on the bottom, and reaches an internal temperature of over 190°F / 88°C.
- Let rest for a few minutes after baking. Cut into slices and enjoy!
Notes
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe?
Please let me know how this turned out for you! Pop over to the Facebook Page to share your success or tag me over on Instagram with the hashtag #livingbeyondallergies I love to see your creations!
Hello Laura!
Your recipe says potato flour. Did you really mean flour or starch?
Thank you! ))
Hi Natali! Yes, I do mean potato flour for this recipe. If you don’t have that on hand, instant mashed potatoes should also work. Potato starch would be a bit too gummy for this recipe.