Tiramisu Focaccia
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This no-knead tiramisu focaccia is made with marbled vanilla and coffee + chocolate dough layers and a creamy mascarpone filling & topping. Make it overnight or same-day!
Equipment
Ingredients
Vanilla Focaccia Dough
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¾ cups warm water (between 105-115°F or 40-46°C)
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon salt (use fine sea salt or table salt)
Coffee Focaccia Dough
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¾ cups plus 2 Tablespoons warm coffee (between 105-115°F or 40-46°C)
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon salt (use fine sea salt or table salt)
- 2 Tablespoons Dutch processed cocoa powder
Marscapone Filling/Topping
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened (one block)
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
- 8 ounces mascarpone, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt (use fine sea salt or table salt)
For the Pan and Topping
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, divided
- 2 Tablespoons Dutch processed cocoa powder
Instructions
Mix the Vanilla Focaccia
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the yeast, sugar, and warm water. Set aside for 10 minutes, until it's foamy on top. (If it's not foamy, check your yeast packet, as it might be expired.)
- Add the olive oil and vanilla, and stir it into the foamy yeast mixture.
- Add the flour and salt, and mix with a large wooden spoon or silicone spatula until it forms a soft, sticky dough.
- Cover the mixing bowl with a dinner plate or plastic wrap (which retains warmth better than a towel) and let the bread sit out at room temperature for 1-2 hours to jumpstart fermentation. Then transfer the mixing bowl to the fridge to slowly rise overnight, for 10-14 hours.
Mix the Coffee Focaccia
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk the yeast, sugar, and warm coffee. Set aside for 10 minutes, until it's foamy on top. (If it's not foamy, check your yeast packet, as it might be expired.)
- Add the olive oil and stir it into the foamy yeast mixture.
- Add the flour, salt, and cocoa powder, and mix for a minute with a large wooden spoon or silicone spatula until it forms a soft, sticky dough.
- Cover the mixing bowl with a dinner plate or plastic wrap (which retains warmth better than a towel) and let the bread sit out at room temperature for 1-2 hours to jumpstart fermentation. Then transfer the mixing bowl to the fridge to slowly rise overnight, for 10-14 hours.
Make the Marscapone Filling
- In a mixing bowl with a hand mixer or in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, whip the softened cream cheese and butter until it’s fluffy, after 1-2 minutes.
- Add the mascarpone and vanilla extract and mix again until it’s creamy, after 30 seconds.
- Add the powdered sugar and salt and mix until it’s light and creamy, after 1-2 minutes. Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
Shape, Fill, and Proof the Dough
- Spread four tablespoons of melted butter on the bottom and up the sides of a 9x13 baking dish.
- Press the vanilla focaccia dough into the bottom of the baking dish. Spread the coffee focaccia dough on top to cover it.
- Spread about one quarter of the mascarpone filling on top of the coffee dough in an even layer, leaving a ½-inch gap around the edges. Return the remaining mascarpone filling to the fridge.
- From a short edge, lift up both the light and dark doughs and fold in half over the mascarpone filling. Then pick up the dough out of the dish, rotate it 90 degrees, and place it back down. Gently press it back out to all the edges.
- Cover the baking dish with plastic wrap and let it rise at room temperature for 3-4 hours, or until the dough has really puffed up and jiggles when you gently shake the baking dish.
It should be a really thin layer, just to coat the dough. If you add too much, you won’t have enough to cover the focaccia on top after baking.
Dimple, Bake, and Add the Topping
- Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C).
- Brush two tablespoons of melted butter over the top of the dough.
- Coat your fingers in a little extra melted butter or olive oil (don't skip this, or else the dough will stick all over your fingers.) Use your fingers to press dimples into the dough spread out 1-inch apart (like you're playing the piano). Press all the way to the bottom of the baking dish.
- Bake for 22-26 minutes, until the focaccia is puffed up and golden. Allow the bread to cool for at least 30 minutes.
- Spread or pipe the remaining mascarpone filling on top of the focaccia. Sift the cocoa powder on top to cover it, then slice and serve.
Notes
- Mascarpone Topping: You can either use a piping bag to create fancy little dollops or spread it on in a flat, even layer with a spatula or the back of a metal spoon. And if the topping feels too firm to pipe or spread after being in the fridge, let it sit out and soften a bit at room temp for 15 minutes.
- Same Day Rise: Mix the two doughs in separate bowls, let them rest for 30 minutes, then complete four sets of stretch-and-folds, spread out by 30 minutes each time. After the final stretch-and-fold, let the dough rise for 1 hour at room temp. Then after spreading, filling, and folding it in the baking dish, let it proof for just 2 hours at room temp again.
- Serving and Storing: If you're serving this for a party, it's best fresh on the same day it’s baked. But when I make it just for my family, leftovers do still hold up pretty nicely in the fridge for a couple of days, since the mascarpone keeps the bread moist. Though the loaf itself firms up a bit in the cold, so let it sit out and soften at room temperature before you dig back in.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 slice (of 16)Calories: 325kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 6gFat: 20gSaturated Fat: 11gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 45mgSodium: 310mgPotassium: 84mgFiber: 1gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 586IUVitamin C: 0.001mgCalcium: 43mgIron: 2mg
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