Pear and Rosemary Whole Wheat Focaccia with Walnuts

Oct 20

Oct 20 Pear and Rosemary Whole Wheat Focaccia with Walnuts

All the best flavors of fall go into this wholesome whole wheat, slightly sweet focaccia. Juicy in-season pears, rosemary infused olive oil, earthy walnuts, a touch of cinnamon...but before I go too far, I need to give credit where credit is due. The combination of flavors is taken from this focaccia recipe in NYT Cooking by Martha Rose Shulman. It had been my plan to make that exact recipe, but then I realized it was written to make a focaccia the size of a sheet pan which is a little large for my small household (focaccia doesn’t keep that well), so I decided to convert my favorite focaccia recip e from King Arthur Baking to these flavors. The added benefit of doing so is that their method doesn't only yield a smaller loaf, it also takes under 2 hours start to finish - including the rise time.

I served this for dessert on it's own, but it would be a wonderful accompaniment to a cheese platter, maybe some brie or take Schulman's suggestion and enjoy it with some blue cheese or gorgonzola. Check out the recipes above or give my Frankenstein version a try. You won't be disappointed!

Pear and Rosemary Whole Wheat Focaccia with Walnuts Recipe:

Yield:
1, 9x13 inch loaf

Difficulty:
Easy

Ingredients:

Dough

1½ TBSP granulated sugar
200 grams all-purpose flour
30 grams fine corn meal
218 grams white whole wheat flour
½ tsp salt
1 TBSP instant yeast
3 TBSP olive oil
1½ cups water (80-100°F)

Another 2 TBSP of olive oil is needed for the pan

Topping

2 tsp roughly chopped fresh rosemary (about 2 ½ stalks)
2 TBSP olive oil
¼ cup chopped walnuts
1 large (or 2 small) ripe but still firm pear, peeled, cored and cut into slightly thinner than ½-inch slices
1 TBSP granulated sugar
⅛ tsp ground cinnamon

Instructions:

Prepare the pan: Spray the bottom of a 9x13 pan with non-stick spray, then evenly drizzle 2 TBSP of olive oil in the bottom of the pan. This will help give the bottom and sides of the focaccia a bit of crunchiness.

Make the dough: Combine all of the dough ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer then beat at high speed with the paddle attachment (not the dough hook) for 1 minute. The dough will be very sticky.

Transfer the dough to the prepared pan, a bowl scraper is useful here. Slightly dampen your fingers and gently pat the dough, spreading it out evenly across the pan. Don't stretch at it, it's okay if it doesn't completely get into the corners, that will happen as it rises. Cover the dough and let it rise for 1 hour until noticeably puffy. It may not double in size.

While the dough is rising, preheat your oven to 400°F and prepare the topping.

Prepare the topping: Combine the chopped rosemary and olive oil in a pan. Heat until it the rosemary starts to sizzle, let it sizzle for 30-40 seconds then remove from heat and let cool. This is a good time to chop the walnuts and peel and slice the pear if you haven't already. Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.

When the dough has risen, grease the tips of your fingers with olive oil and poke holes all over the dough. Place the chopped walnuts in the holes, evenly distribute the pears across the dough, then drizzle the rosemary oil across the top of the entire loaf. You'll probably need to break apart clumps of rosemary to make sure they are evenly distributed. (See image below). Sprinkle any remaining nuts across the top along with the cinnamon sugar.

Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Check a few minutes earlier to avoid overbaking. Remove from the oven then immediately transfer to a cooling rack. Letting it sit in the pan will make the bottom of the loaf soggy. Slice while still warm and enjoy!