Jalapeño Popper Focaccia
Serves 1
Directions
- 1Prepare the focaccia dough according to the recipe instructions.
- 2Before the first stretch and fold, scatter 1/3 of the diced jalapeños (equivalent to 1 diced jalapeño) over the dough and then stretch and fold the dough to incorporate them.
- 3Repeat this with another 1/3 of the diced jalapeño for the second set of stretch and folds.
- 4Cover the bowl with a tea towel and proof the dough as instructed in the dough recipe.
- 5While the dough is proofing, prepare the cream cheese mixture by cooking bacon until crispy and reserving the bacon fat.
- 6Dice all the bacon into a fine crumb.
- 7In a bowl, stir together the cream cheese, 50g (1/2 cup) grated cheese, and half of the crispy bacon crumbs.
- 8Transfer the mixture into a piping bag with a wide open tip or a zip-top freezer bag with a snipped corner for piping.
- 9When the dough has finished proofing, prepare the baking tray by lining it with parchment paper and generously drizzling with extra virgin olive oil.
- 10Tip the dough into the tray and gently stretch it out towards the edges.
- 11Pipe half of the cream cheese mixture into the dough.
- 12Arrange half of the sliced jalapeños (2 jalapeños worth) over the cream cheese.
- 13Fold the dough up into thirds (like a big burrito) and flip it over so the smooth side is on top.
- 14Cover with an inverted tray or oiled nonstick parchment paper and proof at room temperature for 1.25-2 hours until the dough has spread out, risen, and is jiggly.
- 15Use oiled fingers to coax the dough to the edges of the tray if it hasn’t spread all the way out.
- 16Near the end of proofing, preheat the oven to 220C/430F.
- 17Mix together the panko, the remaining chopped bacon, the remaining diced jalapeño (1 jalapeño worth), and 50g (1/2 cup) grated cheese.
- 18Sprinkle the mixture over the dough.
- 19Drizzle over about 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat.
- 20Dimple the dough thoroughly.
- 21Arrange the remaining jalapeño rings into the dimples.
- 22Bake for 14 minutes.
- 23Remove the focaccia from the oven, scatter over the remaining 50g (1/2) cheese.
- 24Return to the oven for a further 8-10 minutes until deep golden brown.
- 25Once baked, immediately use a thick straw to poke holes over the top of the bread.
- 26Pipe the second half of the cream cheese mixture into the holes created.
- 27Wait at least 15 minutes before cutting in to enjoy.
Ingredients
- 1 batch focaccia dough
- extra virgin olive oil
- 3 fresh jalapeños
- 4 fresh jalapeños
- 330 g full fat cream cheese
- 150 g cheddar cheese
- 10 strips smoked streaky bacon
- 25 g panko bread crumbs
- flaky sea salt
- 50 g grated cheese
- 2 tablespoons bacon fat
Equipment
baking traytea towelpiping bagzip top freezer bagparchment paperinverted traythick straw
Tips
- Wait at least 15 minutes before cutting into the focaccia to enjoy.