Easy No-Knead Focaccia with Comte Cheese and Rosemary

180 min

4 servings

Hey everyone! Today, I'm sharing a super simple recipe for focaccia topped with Comte cheese and fresh rosemary. The aroma of rosemary and fresh-baked bread filled my entire house while I was making this - I bet my neighbors could smell it wafting out too! We don't eat a lot of bread at home, but focaccia is one thing we can never resist. Last week, we traveled to Italy and tried some authentic Italian dishes, so I wanted to recreate something cozy and delicious. Is it hard to make? Not at all! This version doesn't even require kneading - just mix the ingredients with a wooden spoon, let it rise, fold a few times, and bake. It's the easiest focaccia I've ever prepared!

Servings: 4

Ingredients

Flour: 400g (about 3 1/3 cups) all-purpose flour
Water: 320g (320ml or about 1 1/3 cups) room-temperature water
Instant dry yeast: 1 tsp (same in both systems)
Honey: 1 tsp (same in both systems)
Olive oil: 50ml (about 3 tbsp + 1 tsp) for the dough, plus extra for drizzling (about 2-3 tbsp)
Salt: 1 tsp (same in both systems)
Comte cheese (or your favorite semi-hard cheese like Gruyère or Cheddar): 100-150g (about 3.5-5 oz), cut into small cubes
Fresh rosemary: 2-3 sprigs, leaves stripped or small branches for poking into the dough

Cooking Instructions

Mix the dough:

In a large bowl, combine the flour, water, yeast, honey, 50ml (3 tbsp + 1 tsp) olive oil, and salt. Stir everything together with a wooden spoon until just combined - no need to knead! The dough will be sticky and shaggy, that's perfect.

First rise:

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and let it rest in a warm spot for 40 minutes. The dough should start to bubble and rise a bit.

Fold the dough:

After the first rise, wet your hands (to prevent sticking) and gently fold the dough over itself from each side (top, bottom, left, right - like folding a letter). Repeat this folding process every 20 minutes for a total of 6 times (about 2 hours total). This builds structure without kneading.

Shape and top:

Grease a baking sheet or 9x13-inch (23x33cm) pan generously with olive oil.
Transfer the dough to the pan and gently stretch it out to fit. Drizzle more olive oil over the top.
Use your fingers to make deep dimples all over the surface. Scatter the cubed Comte cheese into some of the dimples, and poke small rosemary sprigs or leaves into others.

Final rise:

Cover loosely and let it rise for another 30 minutes in a warm spot. You should see air bubbles forming on the surface - that's a good sign!

Bake:

Preheat your oven to 200°C (about 390°F). Bake the focaccia for 25 minutes, or until golden brown on top and the cheese is melted and bubbly. Let it cool slightly before slicing.

Chef's Note

Voilà! Your delicious, airy focaccia is ready. Serve it warm with a salad, soup, or just on its own. If you try this, let me know in the comments how it turned out - I'd love to hear! Buon appetito!