Aromatic rosemary, sweet tart cranberries and jammy caramelized shallots give a deliciously festive holiday twist to the classic olive oil scented focaccia!
What if I told ya that making focaccia was easier than spelling it?!?! Would ya believe me??? Well ya should!
It goes like this: it’s hard to make good focaccia today, but real easy to make fresh, hot focaccia for tomorrow!!! The magic ingredient is time to let the dough rise! No kneading whatsoever required.
This focaccia recipe is about to blow your mind! And if you’ve never baked fresh bread… you’re in for a big rewarding treat!!!
Why this Rosemary-Cranberry Focaccia with Caramelized Shallots Recipe Works
- No kneading required! Thanks to an overnight rest.
- Highly hydrated dough! So it spreads itself out in the pan before baking and is extra soft, tender and chewy.
- That holiday flare! The festive color of cranberries transforms the classis focaccia into one with a sweet-tart twist that’s perfect for the Holidays.
- The whole is greater than the sum of its parts! There’s a mix of textures and flavors, with olive oil scented dough topped with the fragrant rosemary, sweet, tart cranberries and savory and jammy melt-in-your-mouth shallots.
The magic combo of flour, salt, yeast, water… that is it! One bowl, spoon later and night later and you’ve just made fresh, crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, bread.
It’s a fragrant, savory and sweet focaccia that’s bursting with Holiday flair!
Let’s Chat Cranberries
Cause cranberries are not just for cranberry sauce! I’ve been trying to learn more about the cranberry industry cause:
I’ve never ever seen them sold at a farmers market
They almost always appear in a plastic bag. Even the organic kind. I’ve only ever seen them once sold in bulk, with a scooper and plastic bag free. Anyone know what up with the cranberry industry?
The sweet-tart fruit deserves some more lovin’ friends and I wanna be a fresh cranberry advocate and support ya to get your fresh cranberry game on!
Check out these other recipes featuring fresh cranberries:
- Fresh Cranberry & Brown Sugar Glazed Pork Chops
- Fresh Cranberry Braised Brisket
- Fresh Cranberry, White Chocolate & Oatmeal Stuffed Cookies
- Cranberry Gingersnap Pie
- Candied Macadamia, Caramel & Cranberry Tart
Now that I’ve cranberry inspired ya, let’s get back to this cranberry focaccia!
How to Make this Rosemary-Cranberry Focaccia with Caramelized Shallots
Mix together your dough ingredients in a bowl just until combined, cover it, let time take care of the rest. Caramelize your shallots, starting on the stove then transferring to the oven, add the cranberries to join the shallots in the oven for the last 10 min baking/roasting. Once dough has risen, spread it out in out in an oven safe skillet and give it some more time to spread out. Once it’s spread, top with the rosemary, cranberry and shallot goodness. Bake and enjoy!
Cooks Tips
- Plan ahead! Letting the dough rise for at least 8 hours in non-negotiable.
- Double-check your type of yeast! This recipe uses instant yeast (as opposed to active dry, a substitution is possible with the appropriate dissolving in water yeast steps).
- Caramelized shallot-cranberry mixture can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in the fridge.
- If ya have a cast iron skillet, now would be an ideal time to use it! Otherwise, any oven safe skillet will do.
- If you’d like a crispier bottom, place the skillet directly on a burner after it comes out of the oven.
- This focaccia is best served warm, with cheese, straight out of the oven. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. Re-heat at 350 until warmed through before serving.
The base for the focaccia recipe is from Serious Eats.
Cranberry Focaccia with Rosemary & Caramelized Shallots
Ingredients
For the Focaccia
- 3 1/4 cups) all-purpose or bread flour 500 grams
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoo) instant yeast
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 3 tablespoons of extra-virgn olive oil divided
For the Rosemary Cranberry-Shallot Topping
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons sherry or balsamic vinegar
- 3 sprigs of thyme rosemary
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 2 1/2 pounds shallots peeled, peeled, halved if large
- 12 oz fresh cranberries 1 bag
- Kosher salt
Instructions
- Combine flour, salt, yeast, and water in a large bowl. Mix with hands or a wooden spoon until no dry flour remains. The bowl should be at least 4 to 6 times the volume of the dough to account for rising.
- Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap, and let rest on the countertop for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours. Dough should rise dramatically and fill bowl.
- Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface. Form into a ball by holding it with well-floured hands and tucking the dough underneath itself, rotating it until a tight ball is formed.
- Pour 2 tablespoons of oil on the bottom of a 12-inch cast iron skillet or large cake pan. Transfer dough to pan, turn to coat in oil, and position seam-side-down. Using a flat palm, press the dough around the skillet, flattening it slightly and spreading oil around the entire bottom and edges of the pan. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let the dough stand at room temperature for 2 hours.
- At the end of the 2 hours, dough should mostly fill the skillet up to the edge. Use your fingertips to press it around until it fills every corner and is evenly spread, popping any large bubbles that appear.
- While the dough is expanding in the skillet, preheat oven to 400°F. In a 12-inch oven-safe skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat until foaming. Add sugar and stir to dissolve. Stir in vinegar, simmer until a glaze forms, about 1 minute. Add shallots, season with salt, and stir until all the shallots are coated. Add the rosemary and thyme; transfer to oven and roast for 20 minutes. Add the cranberries to the skillet with the shallots, stir, and roast for an additional 20 minutes, 40 minutes total, until shallots are browned and tender. Let cool slightly.
- Spread shallot-cranberry mixture all over the spread out focaccia in the skillet.
- Drizzle with remaining tablespoon of olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt.
- Transfer skillet to oven and bake at 400 degrees for about 30-40 minutes, until golden brown. Serve warm, straight out of the oven, with a soft, creamy cheese.
Notes
- Plan ahead! Letting the dough rise for at least 8 hours in non-negotiable.
- Double-check your type of yeast! This recipe uses instant yeast (as opposed to active dry, a substitution is possible with the appropriate dissolving in water yeast steps).
- Caramelized shallot-cranberry mixture can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in the fridge.
- If ya have a cast iron skillet, now would be an ideal time to use it! Otherwise, any oven safe skillet will do.
- If you’d like a crispier bottom, place the skillet directly on a burner after it comes out of the oven.
- This focaccia is best served warm, with cheese, straight out of the oven. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days. Re-heat at 350 until warmed through before serving.
Want More Fresh Cranberry Recipes?
Cranberries aren't just for cranberry sauce — here's the full sweet and savory collection.
- Fresh Cranberry Braised Brisket - sweet, savory, tart, and fall-off-the-fork tender.
- Cranberry Chicken - a juicy skillet dish that tastes like the holidays.
- Cranberry & Brown Sugar Glazed Pork Chops - spicy, tart, sweet, one pan, under 30 minutes.
- Cranberry Gingersnap Pie - magnificently magenta cranberry curd in a spicy gingersnap walnut crust.
- Cranberry White Chocolate Oatmeal Stuffed Cookies - crispy edges, chewy center, lots of holiday flair.
- Cranberry Caramel Tart with Candied Macadamia Nuts - gooey caramel, tart cranberries, and pumpkin spiced candied macadamia nuts in a buttery tart crust.
- Sugared Cranberries - two ingredients, sparkling, done in 30 minutes.
If ya try this recipe, I'd love to hear about it - leave a comment below and let me know, and tag me on IG, @danielagerson, so I can see too.
Keep exploring for more seasonal recipes and colorful produce guides designed to inspire ya to play in the kitchen.
Let’s make waves in the kitchen.
Great recipe for fall👍👍👍👍👍👍
Thanks chefdanielagerson🙏🙏😘
Absolute pleasure Jacqueline!!! Thanks so much for all your super sweet feedback! I really appreciate it :).