Very soft focaccia made with potato dough. The tall, extra-soft focaccia with potatoes in the dough and golden onions on top is one of the best focaccias there is. Everyone knows onion focaccia is always delicious, but imagine a tall version, soft as a cloud, almost melting in your mouth with a surface covered in tasty, savory onions. I made it and it was so good it didn’t even make it to dinner. I love making focaccias — they are an economical and tasty last-minute dinner that brings joy and satisfaction to the table, and I particularly love tall, ultra-soft focaccias. But do you know how to make a tall, fluffy focaccia that can win everyone over? The secret for a very soft focaccia is simply adding boiled, mashed potatoes into the dough. One example is my semolina-and-potato dough that I use for rustic, very soft baked goods. The dough I used for this recipe, however, is a bit different from the usual: it contains a higher percentage of potatoes and is mixed quickly in a bowl without stress and is perfect for a moist, very soft, delicate focaccia that lasts even 2 days. I enriched mine with lots of onions, but you can prepare it as you prefer — for example with olives and cherry tomatoes, grilled zucchini, peppers, or anything else you like. Let’s go to the kitchen; you’ll see this potato-dough-and-onion focaccia will make everyone fall in love. Before you start, I suggest taking a look at my special collection dedicated to focaccias and remember that if you want to stay updated on all my recipes you can follow my Facebook page (here) and my Instagram profile (here).

Difficulty: Very easy
Cost: Very inexpensive
Rest time: 2 Hours
Preparation time: 30 Minutes
Portions: 5
Cooking methods: Oven
Cuisine: Italian
Seasonality: All seasons

Ingredients to make potato-dough and onion focaccia

2 1/8 cups cooked, mashed potatoes (cooked, already mashed)
4 cups type 0 flour (for pizza)
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp sugar
2.5 tsp salt
1 1/8 tsp active dry yeast
7 oz water
4 white onions
to taste extra virgin olive oil
to taste salt
1 glass water
to taste black pepper

Tools

Bowl
Baking pan 10 1/4 in (26 cm)
Oven
Parchment paper
Potato ricer
Mandoline slicer

How to make potato-dough focaccia

Peel the onions and slice them thinly — I recommend using a mandoline. Put them in a heavy-bottomed pot, add the water, salt, oil, and sweat them over medium heat, stirring occasionally. When the water has evaporated, let them brown a little and set aside.
Cook the potatoes. You can boil them in a pot of cold water for about 30-35 minutes — they are done when a skewer slides in easily. For a more practical method, rinse the potatoes, place them in a glass bowl, add half a glass of water and cover with plastic wrap. Microwave for 20 minutes at 750W. Let rest a few minutes and they will be ready.
Peel and mash the potatoes while still hot but not boiling. Put them in a bowl and add the flour. Add the yeast, sugar, a little water and mix.
Add the salt, the oil and the remaining water and mix in the bowl.
It will take just a few minutes — just enough to obtain a homogeneous, slightly elastic mixture, not necessarily smooth. Don’t overwork it: with a spatula or spoon gather it to the center of the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled. If the potatoes were not cold, about 60 minutes will be enough to have a nicely risen dough; otherwise wait longer.
Turn the dough out onto a baking pan lined with parchment paper where you have poured a little olive oil. Pour some oil on the surface and spread the dough to cover the entire pan.
Let rise again for 30-40 minutes.
Use your fingers to make dimples in the risen focaccia base, distribute the onions on top, sprinkle with black pepper and bake in a static oven at 392°F (200°C) for 35-40 minutes, lowering the temperature if the focaccia tends to burn.
The potato-dough and onion focaccia is ready; let it cool slightly and enjoy.
Store it in winter at room temperature for up to 2 days, covered with kitchen paper; in summer I recommend consuming it the next day and storing it in a plastic food bag.
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