Red Tomato Pesto
You’re probably used to standard green pesto using herbs, garlic, Parmesan, etc. But have you ever tried red pesto before? It’s just as delicious and gets is beautiful red color from sundried tomatoes and roasted red bell pepper. We thought that this would pair perfectly with focaccia to create unique and interesting Red Tomato Pesto Focaccia Bread.
There are a few ways to make pesto. The most traditional way would be to use a mortar and pestle (here is the one we have). However, this method can take some time and since this recipe is already a bit on the long side, we opted for a faster way. We used our immersion blender but you can also use a food processor or standard blender.
Regardless of which method you choose to make the red tomato pesto, the trick is to slowly and continuously incorporate the olive oil as you blend it. This way, it turns into an emulsion with the perfect consistency.
Focaccia Bread
What is Focaccia Bread?
I’m sure you’ve tried or at least heard of focaccia bread. But for some reason, if you haven’t, focaccia is a type of flat rectangular leavened bread that comes from Italy. Sometimes it’s topped with something (like red pesto in this case), sometimes it’s just topped with salt.
It has dimples in the dough made by poking it with your fingers before it bakes. In fact, this is our favorite part of the recipe- very fun!
There are many different types of regional variants of Focaccia such as Venetian, Ligurian, and Genovese (there is even a sweet type of focaccia). However, the general concept is the same: a flat bread with dimples in the dough made with your fingers.
How to cut Focaccia Bread
There are two main ways to cut/slice focaccia bread. If you want to use it as bread for a sandwich, you can slice it lengthwise.
However, if you want to eat it alone (or if you want to use it in a dipping sauce), cut it into rectangular or square strips.
How to store Focaccia Bread
With this recipe, you’ll probably end up eating it pretty quickly. But if not, there are ways to store it. It’s probably best to store it at room temperature in an airtight container and will last for several days. You can also store it in the refrigerator but it might loose its light airiness. Finally, you can also store it in a container in the freezer for long term storage.
But ultimately, we probably recommend the first option (room temperature).
Other Bread Recipes from GradFood
If you enjoyed this Pesto Focaccia Bread recipe and you’re into baking, check out a few of our other bread recipes and let us know what you think of them in the comments below!
Red Tomato Pesto Focaccia Bread
Ingredients
Red Tomato Pesto
- 1 7 oz can sundried tomatoes
- 1 jarred roasted red pepper
- 4 garlic cloves
- ½ cup basil leaves
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese
- Olive oil
- 1 tsp salt
Focaccia Bread
- 3 ¾ cups bread flour
- 1.5 cups warm water
- 1 packet rapid rise yeast
- 2 tsp honey
- 1.5 tsp garlic salt
- 1.5 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp fresh rosemary
Instructions
- In a measuring cup (or other small container), mix together the warm water, honey, and yeast. In a large bowl, combine the flour and garlic salt. After 5 minutes, pour the liquid into the flour bowl. Mix with a spoon until combined and then knead dough for ~10 minutes. Pour in olive oil and knead for another few minutes or until combined. Place the dough in an olive oil-coated bowl lightly covered by saran wrap and let proof for 30 minutes in a room temperature/slightly warm place (such as an oven with the light on).
- After 30 minutes, perform the “stretch and fold technique” where you gently stretch one corner of the dough out and then fold it on top of the center. Repeat this 4 times (creating four corners essentially) and re-cover letting it sit for another 30 minutes. Repeat this stretch/fold technique another 2 more times (separated by 30 minutes each time).
- Now, grease all sides of a 9×13 baking pan with olive oil and place dough in the center. Gently stretch the dough across the bottom until it fills up the entire pan. Loosely cover the dough and let proof in the pan for 45-60 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the red tomato pesto topping by combining all ingredients in a blender (or immersion blender). Start blending while you pour in olive oil (will require several tbsp) until it is fully blended and resembles pesto consistency.
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
- Once dough has proofed in the pan for an hour, use your fingers to create a bunch of dimples in the dough and then scoop over dollops of pesto (we used ~80% of it and reserved the rest for another recipe but feel free to use it all for extra flavor) and sprinkle over the rosemary. Drizzle the dough with a few generous splashes of olive oil. Optionally, you can top with a pinch of coarse salt (sea salt or coarse kosher salt works the best).
- Bake in oven for 25 minutes and then immediately remove from pan to let cool on a cooling rack. Serve warm or room temperature.
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