Think of this Pistachio e Pepe Focaccia as a take on cacio e pepe focaccia, but just with a hint of nuttiness, texture and crunch. It’s another elevated focaccia recipe that I’m excited to add to the blog, and even more excited to use to swipe through olive tapenade, or as the base for sandwiches, a side for salads, soups and truly whatever your heart desires!
Focaccia is already one of my favorite fluffy breads, and this flavor felt like a good addition to my ever-growing focaccia family. Pistachios are chopped and mixed into the dough, and a hefty amount of parmesan adds a subtle cheesiness to the pockets of bubbles along the focaccia, making it different in every bite. Which we can only love – it keeps your mouth guessing.
Table of contents
The ingredients for this Pistachio e Pepe Focaccia
This Pistachio e Pepe Focaccia sounds complicated, but I promise it’s more simple than it sounds! This is the perfect bread to impress people with because the pistachios, pepper and cheese really shine. It’s unique and flavorful, and who doesn’t love focaccia? Here’s what you’ll need to get started:
- 9 grams active dry yeast
- 120 mL water at 85°F-95°F
- 780 grams bread flour
- 600 mL water at 85°F-95°F
- 11 grams kosher salt
- 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 85 grams freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 8 grams freshly ground pepper
- 1/4 cup toasted pistachios, shelled
How to make the dough
Focaccia is a beautiful thing. All it really needs is a good amount of mixing to build up gluten in the dough, and then the right amount of time to rest. This bread takes a bit of effort, but mostly patience, making it the perfect bread to make on a cozy weekend or before a dinner party. Here are the steps for making the dough of this Pistachio e Pepe Focaccia:
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, whisk together the active dry yeast and 1/4 cup (120mL) of warm water. Let sit for 3-5 minutes or until it starts to bubble slightly.
- When the yeast is active, add the bread flour, water and salt. Then use the dough hook attachment to mix the dough on low for 2 minutes. It should look very wet, almost like batter.
- Cover the bowl and let it rest for 15 minutes. Add in the cheese, pepper and pistachios. Mix the dough on medium-high for 10 minutes. The dough is ready when you see it start to pull away from the edges of the bowl and cling to the dough hook.
- While the dough is mixed, pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a large bowl. Swirl the bowl around to coat the edges with the oil.
- Place the dough into the bowl and lift it slightly with your hands to make sure that it is surrounded by oil. This will prevent sticking.
- Cover with cling wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place for at least 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
- When the dough has risen, gently use your hands to lift it up from the bowl and place it down again. This will deflate the dough. Do this a few more times until the dough has puffed down slightly.
- Generously oil a half-sheet pan. Plop the dough in the center and gently stretch it toward the edges. It won’t reach all the way (yet!) but do your best.
- Cover and let it rest for 10 minutes to let the gluten relax, then stretch it all the way toward the edges of the pan again.
- Cover and put the dough in a warm place for the second proof. You can also proof it in your fridge for 12 hours if you want to bake the next day. If baking on the same day, let it proof for 1 hour or until it has bubbled up to the top of the sheet pan.
Baking the dough
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and set a rack in the center of the oven.
- When the dough has risen, drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the top. Using your fingers, gently dimple the dough. You can indent your fingers all the way to the sheet pan and watch the dough bounce bubble up.
- Top with your favorite toppings or just flaky salt, and bake at 425°F for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and crusty.
- Serve warm!
Nut alternatives and tips for toppings
Not the biggest fan of pistachios? That’s okay, we can adjust! Although I personally think that pistachios work best for this recipe, there are other nuts that would pair well with this focaccia recipe. Pistachios are semi-hard nuts with a rich, buttery flavor. They’re creamy, crunchy and truly what makes this focaccia recipe special. So, as far as substitutions go, I would go for a nut that has a similar flavor and texture. Here are some examples:
- Almonds (slivers or sliced)
- Cashews (chopped)
- Walnuts (chopped)
If you want to spice up this focaccia recipe even more with extra toppings, I suggest going for ingredients like olives (green or black), sliced garlic or sliced shallots.
Why is everything in grams?
Baking, and bread especially, is a very finicky and exact science. The only way to ensure complete accuracy is through measuring by weight, and not volume. As much as I wish I could give you multiple ways to measure ingredients, in this recipe measuring by cups might cause some volatility and miss-matched results. I want to ensure you get the best results with this recipe (and I want to keep this recipe fool-proof!) so I highly recommend getting a small affordable kitchen scale if you want to move forward with this bread recipe!
FAQ
Good question! If you want the focaccia to be fresh out of the oven when it’s time to eat, I suggest starting the dough about four hours before you’d like to eat. This will allow the dough plenty of time to rest, and for you to not feel rushed.
Once the dough is transferred to a sheet pan and has rested for 10 minutes, this is when you can store the dough in the fridge and covered with plastic wrap for the next day. The dough can be stored for about 12 hours in the fridge, but not much longer than that or it will overproof.
I suggest storing the bread in an air-tight containter on the counter, away from sunlight. This will keep the freshness locked in the focaccia for longer than a tin foil covering would. When it’s time to eat it again, serve at room temperature or warm it in a toaster oven or (quickly!) in the microwave.
Looking for more focaccia recipes?
Focaccia reigns supreme! (Well, it’s right up there with sourdough.)
And that’s it for this Pistachio e Pepe Focaccia!
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Pistachio e Pepe Focaccia
Equipment
- 1 stand mixer
- A 1-inch tall half sheet baking pan
Ingredients
- 9 grams active dry yeast 2 heaping teaspoons
- 120 mL water at 85F-95F 1/2 cup
- 780 grams bread flour 5 1/2 cups
- 600 mL water at 85F-95F 2 1/2 cups
- 11 grams kosher salt 1 tablespoon
- 60 mL olive oil 1/4 cup, plus more for drizzling
- 85 grams freshly grated parmesan cheese 1 1/2 cups
- 8 grams freshly ground pepper 2 teaspoons
- 1/4 cup roasted, salted pistachios shelled
Instructions
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, whisk together the active dry yeast and the 1/2 cup (120mL) of warm water. Let sit for 3-5 minutes or until it starts to bubble slightly.
- When the yeast is active, add the bread flour, water and salt. Then use the dough hook attachment to mix the dough on low for 2 minutes. It should look very wet, almost like batter.
- Cover the bowl and let it rest for 15 minutes. Add in the cheese, pepper and pistachios. Mix the dough on medium-high for 10 minutes. The dough is ready when you see it start to pull away from the edges of the bowl and cling to the dough hook.
- While the dough is mixing, pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a large bowl. Swirl the bowl around to coat the edges with oil.
- Place the dough into the bowl and lift it slightly with your hands to make sure that it is surrounded by oil. This will prevent sticking.
- Cover with cling wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place for at least 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
- When the dough has risen, gently use your hands to lift it up from the bowl and place it down again. This will deflate the dough. Do this a few more times until the dough has puffed down slightly.
- Generously oil a half sheet pan. Plop the dough in the center and gently stretch it towards the edges. It won't reach all the way (yet!) but do your best.
- Cover and let it rest for 10 minutes to let the gluten relax, then stretch it all the way towards the edges of the pan.
- Cover and put the dough in a warm place for the second proof. You can also proof it in your fridge for 12 hours if you want to bake the next day. If baking on the same day, let it proof for 1 hour or until it has bubbled up to the top of the sheet pan.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and place a rack in the center of the oven.
- When the dough has risen, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the top. Using your fingers, gently dimple the dough. You can indent your fingers all the way to the sheet pan and watch the dough bubble.
- Top with your favorite toppings or just flaky salt, and bake at 425°F for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and crusty.
- Serve warm!
Looks like a perfect pair with a crisp Sauvignon Blanc,
Love a pillow-y focaccia dough and the sponsored pepper-pom pistachios are a legitimately great treat with a spicy-fruity-dirty flavor worth highlighting. I used a large round springform to bake the dough and then crisped the bottom over the stove and in cast-iron.
The IG vid using this as bread for a southern summer tomato sandwich really spoke to me, but the recommended cashew cream — while texturally fantastic and pleasantly mellow in taste, complementing crispy beans or as a palate-cooling swirl in a spicy bowl — was disappointing, muting the nuts and cheese and clashing with the fruitiness while doing nothing special to the tomato.
If readers are against blitzing a small serving of traditional mayo for an application like this, I’d spike single servings of the cream (or better yet tahini with yogurt) with as much bracing citrus or pickling liquid you can stand, fold in minced herbs with green notes (dill, fennel fronds, chives, lovage, et al), consider adding just a pinch of something earthy like smoked paprika, and/or opting for either a firm, highly acidic variety of tomato or the fruity, rich flavor and superior texture of a black/Russian/“krim” cultivar. An unripened green sliced thin into foldable sheets might work just as well.