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Sweet Focaccia with Raspberries and Balsamic Glaze. Raspberry Focaccia with Balsamic and mini Mozarella is on the way to becoming my favorite sweet and savory Focaccia recipe! It is surprisingly easy to make and festive for Valentine’s Day or any other occasion during the year.
Switch up the fruit and make it your own as the seasons change! The flavors are an explosion in your mouth & absolutely delightful! A must-try recipe! It all starts with this easy No-Knead Italian Focaccia Bread.
More focaccia recipes you will love: Apple, Brie, and Herb Focaccia Bread, Tomato Herb Focaccia (Best, Easiest Recipe).
Table of Contents
Sweet Focaccia with Raspberries and Balsamic Glaze
I love and adore Focaccia, the olive oil-rich bread has a delightful crust and a soft pillow crumb. And this sweet and salty raspberry, mozzarella, and balsamic glaze version are amazing!
Raspberry Focaccia with balsamic glaze has that perfect balance of sweetness and savory that everyone is sure to love.
The mozzarella sort of disappears into the depths of the focaccia and creates these delicious pockets of deliciousness!! My kids love this sweet and savory dessert focaccia recipe.
For this recipe, I made the design in a heart shape for Valentine’s Day. You can certainly spread the toppings evenly and spread over the entire focaccia, so it is not any defined shape.
More fun heart-shaped foods: Heart Thumbprint Cookies Recipe with Jam and Best Mini Pies- Valentine’s Day Treat.
Simple Ingredients
- Fresh raspberries
- Mini mozzarella balls
- Drizzle of balsamic glaze (more on balsamic glaze below)
- Flake Salt
What’s the Difference Between Balsamic Glaze and Balsamic Vinegar?
Vinegar is intense, sweet and sour, lingering, and aromatic and when aged, it has complex flavors given by aging in barrels. You can use the Balsamic Vinegar of Modena as a condiment for any kind of food. Meat, vegetables, salads, risotto, ice cream, fruit salads and many others.
Balsamic Glaze is instead a topping for the dishes. It’s a decoration to make your dishes aesthetically more beautiful for the presentation. In fact, thanks to its viscosity, you’ll be able to decorate your plate with shapes, and writings avoiding the liquid “slips away”.
How to Make Balsamic Vinegar From Scratch
The best substitute for the balsamic glaze? Here’s how to make a stand-in for balsamic glaze: mix 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar with 2 teaspoons of maple syrup. Adding sweetness to red wine vinegar gets close to the complexity and roundness in the flavor of balsamic.
It will be a little runnier than the store-bought glaze. When we tried this in a taste test, it did taste remarkably close.
What can I Substitute for Balsamic Glaze?
The sweet and tangy balsamic glaze pairs beautifully with the bright and sweet raspberries. If you don’t have any balsamic glaze on hand try adding a drizzle of:
- Honey
- Pure maple syrup
- Brown sugar
- Molasses (a little goes a long way with this)
Fruit Substitutions
I love the sweet and tart taste of raspberries in this recipe and it is also fun to add a pop of red if you are making this for a special holiday such as Valentine’s Day. You can also switch it up depending on the season and use:
- Strawberries
- Cherries
- Blackberries
- Apricots
- Figs
Serving Suggestions for Sweet Focaccia with Raspberries and Balsamic Glaze
Focaccia bread can be eaten as it is. It can be cut into a variety of shapes, including squares, long skinny rectangles, and triangles.
Since focaccia is pretty thick, focaccia can be sliced in half and used for making sandwiches. It’s also a tasty addition to a bread basket or an accompaniment to a bowl of soup or a salad.
Thickness
Focaccia is sometimes thick (as seen in all of these photos) or sometimes very thin depending on your preference and style.
I prefer my focaccia a little thick so I make it in a classic 13X9 glass baking dish with a height of 2 inches. If you like thinner focaccia you can follow the exact same recipe and use a Cookie sheet with a height of 0.75 inches.
Storing Tips
Storing: The focaccia will keep at room temperature, covered with plastic wrap, for 2 days. Reheat in a 375-degree oven for 10 minutes. To freeze focaccia, cut it into pieces, wrap each piece in plastic wrap, place in a resealable plastic freezer bag, and freeze for up to 1 month.
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BEST Neapolitan Pizza Dough and Visual Guide
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Goat Cheese Salad Recipe with Lemon Olive Oil Dressing
Arugula, Apple, and Pistachio Salad in Parmigiano Cups
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Made with Amore,
Elena
From my Cucina (Kitchen) to your Table- Mangia! Mangia! (Eat!)
Have you checked out my NEW CBE PRODUCTS? Take a look at the 2-in-1 cutting and charcuterie board, gorgeous apron, and unique pasta server that you absolutely need. The wood products are all handmade in Salt Lake City, Utah. They make great gifts as well!
It’s one of the simplest focaccia bread recipes that barely takes any work to create an unbelievably tasty Italian bread! Perfectly crunchy on the outside, soft in the middle, perfect Focaccia Bread every single time!
💙 MADE THIS RECIPE AND LOVED IT? 💙 Please leave a ⭐️STAR rating and COMMENT below- I love connecting with you! Tag me with your creations on Instagram and find me on Pinterest.
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Sweet Focaccia Bread with Raspberries and Balsamic Glaze
Raspberry Focaccia with Balsamic and mini Mozarella is on the way to become my favorite sweet and savory Focaccia recipes! It is surprisingly easy to make and festive for Valentine’s Day or any other occasion during the year. Switch up the fruit and make it your own as the seasons change! The flavors are an explosion & absolutely delightful! A must try recipe!
- Total Time: 48 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
Ingredients
For the Focaccia
- 1 1/4-oz. envelope active dry yeast (about 2 1/4 tsp.)
- 2 1/2 cups (590 ml) lukewarm water (98 and 105 degrees Fahrenheit, 36.5 to 40.5 Celsius)
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 5 cups (625 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for hands such as, COLAVITA
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, for greasing pan
For the Topping:
- 1 pint fresh raspberries, more for after baking if desired
- 1 cup mini mozarella balls
- Drizzle of balsamic glaze (can also use: honey or maple syrup)
- Flake sea salt, such a Maldons
Instructions
- 1. Place 2½ cups lukewarm water in a medium/large mixing bowl. Add the yeast and sugar. Stir slightly but do not mix. Let sit 5-10 minutes (it should foam or at least get creamy; if it doesn’t your yeast is dead and you should start again—check the expiration date!).
- Add flour and kosher salt and mix with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until a shaggy dough forms and no dry streaks remain. It will seem a little wet. That is normal.
- Pour 4 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil into a big bowl that will fit in your refrigerator. Transfer dough to bowl and turn to coat in oil. Turn over a few times, but do NOT mix in the oil with the dough. Cover plastic wrap and chill until dough is doubled in size (it should look very bubbly and alive), at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours. If you’re in a rush, you can also let it rise at room temperature in a warm place until doubled in size, 3–4 hours. The longer you let it raise in the fridge the more it flavorful it will be.
- Grease your desired baking pan or baking sheet depended on preference (classic 9X13 glass baking dish or 9X13 cookie sheet ) with butter. Add the 1 Tbs olive oil to the baking pan and coat bottom. Take out dough from the fridge, uncover, and punch down one time. Then turn the dough over a few times in the bowl. Move dough to the prepared pan. Pour any oil left in bowl over and turn dough to coat it in oil. Let rise, uncovered, in a dry, warm spot (like near a radiator or on top of the fridge or a preheating oven) until doubled in size, at least 1½ hours and up to 4 hours.
- Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 450°. To see if the dough is ready, poke it with your finger. It should spring back slowly, leaving a small visible indentation. Lightly oil your hands. If using a rimmed baking sheet, gently stretch out dough to fill (you won’t need to do this if using a baking pan). Dimple focaccia all over with your fingers. This is my favorite part! Keep poking away until there are lots of poke marks in the dough.
- Drizzle the top of poked dough with remaining 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil. Add the raspberries and mini mozzarella balls in whatever pattern you desire. Sprinkle with flake sea salt and drizzle with balsamic glaze. Bake focaccia until puffed and golden brown all over, 20–30 minutes. Optional: brush lightly with olive oil at the right after taking it out of the oven. Add more fresh raspberries if desired. Enjoy warm or cold!
Notes
Makes great sandwich bread. Simply cut a slice in half lengthwise and use for a sandwich!
Storing: The focaccia will keep at room temperature, covered with plastic wrap, for 2 days. Reheat in a 375-degree oven for 10 minutes. To freeze focaccia, cut it in pieces, wrap each piece in plastic wrap, place in resealable plastic freezer bag, and freeze for up to 1 month. *I do not recommend freezing the tomatoes. Remove them before freezing.
Short Rise Option: To skip the long rise (12 hours and up to 48 hours), simply let the mixed dough rise at room temperature until doubled, about 2 hours. Then proceed with the recipe, knowing the second rise will only take about 30 minutes.
- Prep Time: 8-24 hours
- Cook Time: 20-30 minutes
- Category: Savory/Sweet
- Method: Italian
- Cuisine: Italian
This recipe is so easy and delicious! We made it for Valentine’s Day this year and it was so fun. The dough is simple and as Elena says, gets better the longer you leave it in the fridge to rise. We left it overnight for 24 hrs. and then decorated and baked it on Valentine’s Day. The raspberries are a great touch and add a fun new flavor to focaccia. The bites with raspberry and cheese were so delicious. Will be using this focaccia recipe again and again!
I am so happy you loved it! The flavors go so well together!
Perfect for Valentine’s Day!