You guys loved my Focaccia bread recipe so now let’s take it up a notch and turn it into a focaccia sandwich. I don’t know about you but my for-you page has been flooded with new and trendy sandwich stores selling thick focaccia sandwiches – honestly the chokehold on my algorithm is insane. So instead of riding 40 minutes for a sandwich, I decided to make it at home and it’s unbelievably easy.

There are a few things to note about this recipe:

1. Dough: it’s a 100% hydration dough – meaning flour and water will be the same in weight (or ratio of 1 to 1) which mean it’s going to be a wet dough! m Much wetter than your typical bread dough – you won’t be able to knead it on your bench so don’t be surprised when it looks like a huge as mess.
2. Resting: you can definitely make and eat this on the same day or, if you don’t have time, you can also let the dough ferment overnight in the fridge and bake it the next time (you’d just need to bring it back to room temp before you bake). The later will produce a much more flavourful focaccia.
3. Roasting peppers/capsicums: there are a number of way for you to do this. I just put mine under the broiler and let it char for 30 minutes. You could also do it with a conventional oven but it’ll take longer, or you could also char it on your stovetop.

Ingredients

Focaccia Bread:
500g bread flour
500g warm water
5g instant dry yeast
10g salt
10g sugar
1tbsp olive oil

Romesco Sauce:
2 red bell peppers/capsicums, halved and remove seeds
1/2 cup almond, roasted
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 cup parsley
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1-2 garlic cloves
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

Rocket/Arugula
Fresh Mozzarella, sliced
Tomatoes, sliced
Balsamic Vinegar glaze, optional

Method

1. FOCACCIA: In a bowl, pour in your warm water, followed by salt, sugar, yeast and oil in this order. Stir until the salt and sugar are dissolved.
2. Add in flour and mix until a very wet dough forms. Cover with a towel and set aside to rest for 10 minutes.
3. Once rested, it’s time to do 4 sets of 4 folds, 10 minutes apart from each set. Remove the towel and wet your hand. Pick up one corner of the dough, gently pull it upwards while shaking and then fold it over the dough. Turn the bowl 90 degrees and repeat 3 more times. Cover with towel and let it rest for 10 minutes. Do the 4 folds, rest 10 minutes, do the 4 folds, rest, 4 folds. So in total, it’s 16 folds over 30 minutes of resting.
4. Once you’ve done your final set of folds, prepare your baking dish with a parchment paper and a generous layer of olive oil. Transfer the dough into the baking dish, fold the dough into thirds, turn 90 degrees and then flip it over so all sides are coated in oil. Gently spread the dough into the corners but don’t force it. Cover with plastic wrap and a tea towel and let rest in a warm area for at least 2 hours. [Or you can put it in the fridge overnight. 2-3 hours before you’re ready to bake, take it out and let it come to room temp].
5. Once you’re ready to bake, drizzle olive oil over the surface. Wet your fingers and gently make dimples into the dough. Sprinkle with salt or any other topping or your choice. Bake at 180C/350F for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Baking time will vary depending on how small/big your baking dish is, larger baking dish will require less time because your dough will be spread out more thin; so just keep an eye on it. Transfer focaccia onto a cooling rack. Cut to portions.
6. ROMESCO SAUCE: Place your capsicum/bell pepper halves onto an unlined baking tray and place it under the broiler for 25-30 minutes until it’s blackened. Let it cool for 5 minutes and then remove the blackened skin.
7. Into a blender, add all the ingredients for the Romesco sauce and blitz until it’s well-blended and smooth.
8. ASSEMBLE THE SANDWICH: Open up your focaccia and spread on some Romesco sauce, followed by some arugula/rocket, tomato slices and fresh mozzarella. {optional} drizzle over some balsamic vinegar and serve.