Simple Focaccia dish

focaccia bread with kalamata olives on a marble slab garnished with fresh basil

Get ready for a soft, fluffy, and downright tasty experience with this Slow Cooker Simple Focaccia Recipe! It’s packing all the flavor you adore in regular focaccia but with a magical secret ingredient that slashes the time and effort in half. Serve it up warm and watch it become the star of the show alongside all your go-to meals!

What Is Focaccia?

An Italian recipe, focaccia is a type of flatbread that is made with flour, oil, water, yeast, and salt. Typically, the dough is kneaded, left to rise for hours, and then baked in an oven. A popular street food, focaccia can be found being served both sweet and savory and is sometimes even stuffed with ingredients like sausage and cheese.

Is Focaccia Just Pizza Dough?

Although similar in taste, texture, and ingredients, they are not quite the same. You see, focaccia contains more yeast than pizza dough and is also often punctured before baking. This results in a much more tender and fluffy texture, similar to a bread loaf.

frozen dinner rolls arranged in the bottom of a parchment line slow cooker

overhead image of partially baked dinner rolls in the bottom of a slow cooker

Surprisingly Simple Focaccia Ingredients

This simple focaccia is breaking all the rules with its super short and sweet ingredient list. The secret? We’re skipping the whole from-scratch dough saga and going straight for dinner rolls! Yep, you heard it right. Here’s the lowdown on everything you’ll need:

Dinner Rolls – Our secret ingredient and the key to making simple focaccia, using pre-made dinner rolls means the dough is already done for you. We recommend using simple rolls that have not been flavored with additional seasonings, and don’t forget to make sure they’re frozen! Otherwise, your focaccia will be hard and overcooked.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil – Not only does it add incredible savory flavor, but using olive oil also helps create the golden brown exterior we love.
Herbs & Spices – For an out-of-this-world taste we include a handful of herbs and spices including rosemary, thyme, oregano, salt, and pepper.
Olives – Totally optional, we love to sprinkle in olives for a boost of healthy fats and flavor. We like black olives finest, but feel free to experiment with whatever you have on hand!

dinner rolls that have been partially baked and pressed down with fingers in a slow cooker

baked easy focaccia with olives in a slow cooker

How to Make This Simple Focaccia Recipe in the Slow Cooker

We grew up eating warm from-scratch focaccia and still love it to this day. However, between work, chasing after the kids, and just doing life, spending all day in the kitchen is a luxury we don’t always have time for. But fear not, we’ve got your back with a little creativity! Enter our slow cooker simple focaccia – it’s a trip down memory lane to warm from-scratch goodness but with a genius shortcut that slashes time and effort in half. Here’s how to do it:

Line the slow cooker with parchment paper.
Place the rolls in a single layer at the bottom, making sure they are not touching.
Cover, and set on warm for 1.5-2 hours or until they are double in size.
Drizzle the olive oil, and use your fingers to puncture the rolls.
Sprinkle herbs, seasonings, and olives on top.
Cook on high for 1 ½ hours. Then, turn the heat OFF for 30 minutes.

Storage

Trust us, you won’t have any leftovers. However, if you do, this simple focaccia recipe can be kept at room temperature or in the freezer!

Room Temperature: Store your bread in an airtight for up to 2-3 days!

Freezer: Slice your simple focaccia into individual pieces. Then, lay them on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and place them in the freezer for up to 2 hours. Next, wrap each portion in parchment paper, and transfer them all to a sealable bag. Press out as much air as possible, and store your bread for up to 2 months.

To Reheat: We love to reheat this simple focaccia in the air fryer or toaster. However, you could also warm it in the oven at 375° until it is heated through.

Common Questions about Slow Cooker Focaccia

How do you keep focaccia from sticking to the slow cooker?

Lining your slow cooker with parchment paper is the most reliable way to prevent sticking when making focaccia. Create a parchment sling with extra paper hanging over the edges to make removal simple once the bread is done. Some recipes also suggest lightly oiling the parchment paper for extra insurance against sticking, which has the added bonus of contributing to that characteristic focaccia flavor!

Can I make a sweet version of slow cooker focaccia?

Yes, you can make memorable sweet variations of slow cooker focaccia! Try adding a few tablespoons of honey or maple syrup to the dough, and top with cinnamon sugar, thinly sliced apples, or berries before cooking. Sweet focaccia makes a wonderful breakfast bread or afternoon snack with coffee. Consider adding orange or lemon zest to the dough for a citrusy twist that pairs perfectly with fruit toppings.

How is slow cooker focaccia different from oven-baked?

Slow cooker focaccia typically has a softer exterior than oven-baked versions since slow cookers create a more humid cooking environment. The bread will have a pillowy, tender texture throughout rather than the crispier crust you’d get from high-temperature oven baking. If you want a crackly crust, you can pop it in the oven for a few minutes to finish it!

Can I add herbs to my slow cooker focaccia dough?

Absolutely! We love rosemary, thyme, and oregano, but you can create your own custom blend, too!

Simple Focaccia Serving Suggestions

In all honesty, we eat this bread on its own – typically right out of the slow cooker! It’s THAT good. But hey, if you’re in the mood to share or make a meal out of it, this bread is like a social chameleon. It gets along famously with pretty much anything. Here are some faves:

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closeup focaccia bread with kalamata olives on a marble slab garnished with fresh basil

More Simple Bread Recipes

An simple focaccia hack, this No Knead Focaccia Bread Art looks great and tastes even better.
No Knead Cheesy Focaccia Bread is irresistibly tasty and customizable to fit all your needs.
Buttery, cheesy, salty, crackly, and so much more, this Olive Cheese Bread is unbelievably good!
This Spinach and Artichoke Bread Ring is the reliable appetizer for game days, holidays, and more.

a whole loaf of slow cooker easy focaccia with olives

the Ayyem kitchenServings: 14 servings

Prep: 5 mins
Cook: 4 hrs
Total: 4 hrs 5 mins

Made in the slow cooker, this Simple Focaccia Recipe is a comfort food recipe the whole family will love! Email

Ingredients

12-14 frozen dinner rolls
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
2 tablespoons fresh oregano
1/2 cup Kalamata olives
Kosher salt to taste
Black pepper to taste

Instructions

Line a slow cooker with parchment paper.
Arrange the frozen dinner rolls in the bottom of the slow cooker, leaving space between them. NOTE: The smaller the slow cooker, the fewer rolls will be used.12-14 frozen dinner rolls
Cover and set on warm for 1 1/2-2 hours or until double in size.
Drizzle with olive oil, and use fingers to press the dough down. Sprinkle herbs, seasonings, and olives on top1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, 2 tablespoons fresh thyme, 2 tablespoons fresh oregano, 1/2 cup Kalamata olives, Kosher salt to taste, Black pepper to taste
Cover and cook on high for 1 1/2 hours. Then, turn the slow cooker OFF, and let stand covered for 30 minutes.
Remove the focaccia from the slow cooker, slice, and serve!

Equipment

Crockpot 8qt

Notes

Depending on the slow cooker, cook times may vary. You’ll know the focaccia is done when it is crisp and golden on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside. We highly recommend checking on it after 1 hour when it is on high. If it starts to brown too much, switch to low.