Focaccia is a flat oven-baked Italian bread with fresh herbs baked in and coarse sea salt sprinkled on top. It’s aromatic, savory, and divine.
And it’s what the server brought to our table in Phoenix, two days before Christmas, the night before my TV debut. It was sliced all pretty and served with a little bowl of pesto dipping sauce.
Oh man it looked delicious!
I was far too nervous to eat that night, and I didn’t want to mess with grains or gluten. It did, however, inspire me to take a quick picture of it and to put it on my recipe hit list, before the kids happily scarfed it down.
Back home I wasted no time on bringing this recipe to fruition. It was as if the focaccia had been waiting for someone to remove it’s grains and gluten, so it could emerge as a lower-carb, sexier version of it’s former self.
And here it is. This grain-free focaccia bread satisfies the strongest of bread cravings. Really treat yourself by serving with Pesto Balsamic Dressing.
1½ cups warm water
1½ teaspoons (1 packet) active dry yeast
about 3½ cups arrowroot (16 oz bag)
3 cups blanched almond flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
⅓ cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, chopped
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
Place the warm water in a large bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Let stand for 5 minutes, until foamy.
In a mixer, combine the arrowroot, almond flour and sea salt on low speed. Drizzle in the olive oil until just combined. Pour in the yeast water and mix until just combined into a sticky dough.
Form the dough into a ball in the bowl and drizzle olive oil over to coat it. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and set aside for one hour.
Divide the dough into two equal portions. Place a piece of wax paper over a flat surface and gently knead 1 teaspoon of chopped rosemary into each portion of dough. Flatten each piece into a large, thin oval, using your fingers (wet as needed to prevent the dough from sticking). Transfer to baking sheets that have been lightly greased with olive oil. Cover with plastic wrap and place in a draft-free place for half an hour.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Remove the plastic wrap and use your fingers to press dimples all over the surface of the dough and drizzle the top of each focaccia with more olive oil. Sprinkle with the coarse salt. Bake until the focaccia is golden on top, 18-20 minutes. Cut into pieces and serve immediately with Pesto Balsamic Dressing. Enjoy!
Calories: 24
Fat: 2g
Carbohydrates: 1g
Sodium: 158mg
Fiber: 0g
Protein: 0g
Sugar: 0g