These focaccia muffins with pesto and mozzarella are some of the softest, fluffiest things you can bake – and they vanish almost faster than they come out of the oven.
My girls love them – and when I bake a tray of 12, there isn’t a single one left the next day.
At heart they are classic focaccia – just baked in a muffin tin, which gives them the perfect size, a good rise and a crisp little top piled with melted mozzarella and homemade pesto.
The pesto and cheese are pressed into the dough with your fingertips, exactly as you would with oil on a classic focaccia – and it all bakes up into the softest, moistest little muffins, full of flavour and substance.
They are very easy to make, and they stay soft and fresh at room temperature in an airtight bag. You can also freeze them and take them out as needed – and if they need warming through, both the oven and the microwave do the job.
Focaccia muffins are perfect in a lunchbox, as a snack, as a bread for the table or alongside soups and salads. And with this combination of pesto and mozzarella, you get comfort and flavour in one.
It’s the kind of recipe you come back to again and again – and they really are hard not to get hooked on.
Focaccia muffins with pesto and mozzarella
Ingredients
- 400 ml lukewarm water
- 25 g fresh yeast
- 50 ml olive oil
- 500 g plain flour – tipo 00 or Manitoba
- 1 tsp salt
- 160 g pesto – click here for the recipe
- 175 g mozzarella
- Oil for greasing
Method
- Dissolve the yeast in the water, then add the oil.
- Mix the flour and salt and stir it in a little at a time, then knead the dough, ideally in a stand mixer, until it comes away from the sides of the bowl. This takes anywhere from 8-15 minutes – depending on the power of your mixer.The dough should be loose and sticky, but should still come away from the sides.
- Oil your hands lightly, lift out the dough and shape it into a ball. Return the dough to the bowl, cover and leave to rise in a warm place for about an hour.
- Brush the holes of the muffin tin with oil. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces, shape each piece into a small ball and place them in the oiled holes. Cover with a damp tea towel and leave to prove for 30 to 45 minutes.If the dough is very soft, you can simply use a spoon to lift out dollops of dough and place them in the muffin tin.
- Spoon a generous spoonful of pesto over each muffin and scatter with mozzarella. Now press dimples into the dough with your fingertips, so the dough forms bubbles and the topping sinks slightly into the surface.
- Bake the muffins in a preheated conventional oven (top and bottom heat) at 230°C for about 18-20 minutes – or until golden and baked through.
- As soon as the tin comes out of the oven, use 2 forks to gather the cheese and pesto back around the muffins. A good deal of cheese and pesto will have melted together on the top of the tin – simply divide it between the muffins. (See the video above the recipe if needed.)
- Let them cool slightly in the tin before removing.
- Store them in an airtight bag, and warm them briefly before serving if you like. Focaccia muffins can also be frozen.
Nutrition
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