Thick & Fluffy Focaccia Pizza Recipe: Pizza Bianca & Tomato

If you’re here, it’s probably because you love focaccia so much that you want to turn it into a pizza base — and honestly, that’s a brilliant idea.

If you’ve tried traditional focaccia before, you know it can be quite a filling bread. It’s delicious, but heavier than the thin, airy pizza crust Italians are famous for.

So, is focaccia pizza a good idea?
Absolutely! You just might find yourself satisfied with a smaller slice than usual.

The good news is that I’ve developed a special dough that gives you the best of both worlds: thick and fluffy like focaccia, yet light and airy like pizza. It reminds me of the bakery-style pizza my Sicilian grandpa used to buy me when picking me up from kindergarten — soft, and full of flavor.

In this post, I’ll share my focaccia pizza recipe plus two delicious topping variations: one white and one tomato-based.

If that sounds good, let’s make it together.

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What is Focaccia Pizza? – Traditional Recipe vs My Special Dough

Focaccia pizza is simply focaccia bread used as your pizza crust.

The Italian recipe for focaccia bread usually calls for flour, water, fresh yeast, salt, and olive oil.

The type of four used is a very important decision because it will impact how high and soft your focaccia bread will be.

For a more elasticity and chewy result, it’s usually suggested to use Manitoba flour. It does need more time to be worked and rise. Whereas 00 flour is better for quicker and softer focaccia.

My recipe uses a mix of both flours, similar to the Genovese focaccia.

But unlike any traditional focaccia recipe, it uses butter, milk, and also sugar.

The reason for that is that I am using my special multi-use dough. This dough makes delicious soft and buttery brioche-style dinner rolls, as well as incredible white sandwich bread loaves. 

However, I have tested this dough multiple times to make focaccia pizza and the result was nothing I had achieved before.

The focaccia pizza was thicker, but soft and fluffy, not chewy at all, so light and airy that it’s like you are biting a pillowy cloud of goodness.

If that sounds exactly like the type of focaccia pizza you’d like to recreate, this recipe is for you.

It’s also a great time investment, because once you learn to make the dough for your focaccia pizza, you can also use the same ingredients and method to make delicious Italian dinner rolls and white sandwich bread. And you can batch all three in one go.

How To Use My Recipe

To make the special dough for the focaccia pizza recipe, I suggest you refer to this post. All you have to do is follow the steps until your dough has risen. You’ll find those under the section – How To Make The Bread Dough. That post includes step by step pictures and even a video on how to make the dough. However, if you prefer sticking to one post alone, I will list the ingredients and steps below without the images.

If you want to try the bread rolls, the sandwich bread, and the pizza all at once, all you have to do is make three batches of dough. The ingredients I shared are for one batch. Each batch will give you either 18 bread rolls, one sandwich bread loaf, or one large thick focaccia pizza crust.

You can also split the dough in two and make two less thicker ones. That’s what I did the first time I tried this recipe, and loved it both ways. I don’t however suggest you stretch it too much, otherwise it will not turn out as tick as you likely want it to be.

Once you have made the dough, and it has risen, return to this post, and we’ll turn that dough into a scrumptious focaccia pizza, with two different toppings.

Focaccia Pizza Ingredients

Manitoba Flour – this makes the dough more elastic and it increases its capacity of rising.

00 Flour – this is your classic Italian baking dough, which is easier to handle and also speeds up the baking process.

Using a mix of those two flours gets you the best of both worlds.

Dry Yeast – you could use fresh yeast, but I always prefer dry yeast, especially since I am intolerant.

Sugar – this is an unheard ingredient in the traditional focaccia recipe, but it’s essential to make the dough fluffier and also crusty. It also helps the yeast activate better.

Milk – another uncommon ingredient for focaccia, but remember that the dough is originally a light brioche-bread dough recipe. Substituting the water for the milk gives you a richer dough, which is especially perfect for the two toppings we are going to make.

Butter – the little butter quantity in this recipe adds to the richness and fragrance of the dough, replacing the traditional use of extra virgin olive oil. Don’t worry, we’ll still use some of that in the process and for the topping, because no Italian recipe is complete without a good quality EVOO.

Salt – an essential ingredient of the classic focaccia and any baking recipe.

Extra virgin olive oil – we won’t need it inside the dough, but we will use it to oil the container, and then work the dough later to turn it into a focaccia.

You can find the topping ingredients in the toppings section below.

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Exact Quantities

As I told you above, this recipe makes one extra thick and fluffy large family-style pizza. I used a 9×13 rectangular dish (33×22 cm). You can also use a slightly larger one if you want to stretch your focaccia pizza dough a little thinner.

1 cup and 1 tablespoon Manitoba flour
2 and 3/4 cups 00 flour
1 sachet dry yeast (7 gr)
1/4 cup white table sugar
60 gr melted butter
1 and 1/4 cup room temperature milk
1 teaspoon salt
Italian Extra Virgin Olive Oil for greasing

How To Make Focaccia Pizza

How to make the dough

• In a large bowl, combine the flours, sugar, and yeast (make sure the yeast is fresh and unopened).
• Stir in the milk with a spoon, then switch to a dough cutter once the mixture thickens.
• Melt the butter briefly in the microwave and add it to the dough. It must be warm, not hot.
• Mix well, then add the salt and knead for up to 5 minutes. You can do this in the same bowl with your cutter.
• Oil the same bowl you’ve made the dough in, and place the dough ball back in it. If you’d like a thinner focaccia pizza crust (it will still be thicker and fluffier than the usual pizza), you can divide the dough into two balls, and place each into a separate oiled bowl.
• Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in the oven (light on, heat off) for around 2 hours, or less if the weather is warm.

Remember that you can refer to my original bread dough recipe for a more in depth step by step process with images of the dough making.

How to turn the dough into a pizza

Once your dough is ready and has risen, the rest of the process is really simple and quick.

1. Oil your dish or dishes, depending on whether you are making both toppings, or multiple pizzas of the same type. You can also use parchment paper, but the bottom of the crust won’t get crispy.
2. Delicately flip the risen dough out of the bowl and onto the oiled baking dish.
3. Oil your hands lightly, and use your fingers to delicately extend the dough. 

Don’t forget to watch my video below.

PS: If your dough has trouble extending further, no worries, as this is fairly normal. You can either make a smaller and thicker pizza. Or you can cover it with cling foil and leave it for about 10 minutes. After that time, the pizza should be easier to handle and spread.

4. Once you’ve spread your pizza to cover the entire dish or less, place it again in the oven (turned off, and light on), and leave it to rise for another 30 minutes to an hour.
5. After that hour has passed, it’s time to top your pizza. Refer to the next section.

Focaccia Pizza Toppings: 2 Variations

These are my favorite pizza toppings.

Topping Ingredients for Tomato Pizza

This is the classic Italian pizza but bakery style. I added eggplant to mine but you don’t have to, if you don’t like them. I am listing extra optional ingredients to add to your pizza if you don’t like it too simple. Mine didn’t include those others.

• Tomato Passata (I use Mutti) seasoned and oiled or make my tomato sauce recipe below.
• Italian Extra Virgin Olive Oil (I use this one)
• Salt and Pepper
• Your favorite Italian herbs
• Your favorite Italian cheese – I like to use both grated and sliced parmesan; you could use mozzarella, mozzarella and parmesan, or any other Italian cheese like provolone, or asiago.
• Optional fried eggplants
• Optional basil leaves
• Optional cotto ham
• Optional hard boiled eggs
• Optional black olives

How to make it:

When topping my pizza with tomato sauce, I like to be very generous with the sauce and then massage the sauce into the pizza with my clean hands, creating small finger dips, like you would do with the oil for a classic focaccia bread.

Layer all your favorite ingredients above in the order listed or your preferred order, and bake the pizza in a pre-heated oven at 180 degrees Celsius (356°F) for 20 to 30 minutes. It’s best to bake at the bottom level of your oven.

Topping Ingredients for Pizza Bianca (White Pizza)

This is my favorite white pizza recipe combination. If you haven’t tried it before, I really urge you to, as it’s simple but delicious.

• Italian EVOO
• 2  large potatoes boiled
• Salt and pepper
• Your favorite blue cheese (or any other creamy or highly melting cheese you like)
• Your favorite herbs – rosemary, or thyme, or chives (I prefer not to use any to make the blue cheese the star of the show)

PS: If you’d like some protein, you can also use one or two Italian sausages, with the skin removed and crumbled.

How to make it:

Start by drizzling a generous amount of EVOO onto the focaccia pizza dough, then use your clean fingers to create small dips into the dough, like the classic focaccia bread.

Then, layer all the ingredients above in the order listed, and bake the pizza in a pre-heated oven at 180°C (356°F) for 20 to 30 minutes. It’s best to bake at the bottom level of your oven.

More Italian Pizza Toppings Ideas

1. Try an aglio olio pizza with oil, lots of minced garlic, salt and pepper, and the addition of pecorino cheese. You could also add sausages.
2. Try a carbonara style white pizza with crumbled hard boiled eggs, bacon cubes, lots of black pepper, and parmesan.
3. Try a four cheese pizza with mozzarella, blue cheese, fontina, and parmesan, or your favorite cheeses.
4. Try a tuna, onion, and olives pizza on a red tomato base.
5. Try a salad style focaccia pizza with or without tomato sauce as the base, bake it, and then add fresh rucola, parma ham, big parmesan shavings, more oil, and balsamic vinegar.

Cooking & Storage Tips

Here are a few tips to help you achieve a soft and fluffy focaccia pizza recipe:

1. Follow the dough making recipe to a T, and make sure your dough has risen. In my original post, linked above, I shared all the tips to help you out in case your dough doesn’t rise. I doubt that it will happen to you, as I have tried this recipe so many times, in different weather, and with different brands of flours, and it has always risen.

2. Don’t skip the extra 1 hour rising time, if you really want extra thick and fluffy pizza. I skipped it once and the pizza was still soft and fluffy but not as thick, which is great if that’s what you want.

3. Don’t overcook the pizza as that will likely make it drier and not fluffy. This is not meant to be a crispy pizza, dough will have a slightly crispy bottom and side, if you use the right dish and skip the parchment paper.

My tomato pizza got slightly burnt at the top because I cooked it at at top level of the oven for the last 10 minutes. I suggest you cook yours in the lower level or cover it with foil for the first 15 minutes.

4. Speaking of dishes, I use a regular stainless steel baking dish. I prefer the long rectangular shape for this style of artisan pizza, but you can use a round one.

5. If you want the best results, oil your dish with plenty of good quality Italian EVOO, and skip the parchment paper.

6. Make sure your topping ingredients are high quality, as that will impact the overall focaccia pizza taste.

7. Don’t overwhelm your pizza with too many toppings and flavours, as that takes away from this simple bakery style pizza. When I mentioned my grandpa buying me a similar style pizzetta (small pizza), that one was simply a Margherita, with a delicious tomato sauce, salt, and mozzarella cheese. Keep it simple, so you can truly taste that incredible dough you’ve made!

8. I truly doubt you’ll have leftovers with this one, but if you do, you can store them like you do with your normal pizza. Then, the next day, reheat it in the oven, not the microwave. I store mine on a plate in my fridge without some foil, but you could cover yours with a more sustainable option, or even store it in a tupperware. I have never tried freezing pizza, so I can’t tell you what the result would be.

Focaccia Pizza FAQ

In case I didn’t answer all your questions throughout the rest of the post, I will answer a few more here. For more questions, you are welcome to join my newsletter, and send me an email that way. To join, simply scroll up or down this post, and you will find a sign up box. I send one weekly newsletter every Sunday.

Can you use focaccia as a pizza base?

Yes! Focaccia can be transformed into a fantastic pizza crust, but the outcome depends on the type of focaccia dough you start with. A traditional focaccia will give you a denser, heartier base—almost like a deep-pan pizza. If you use a softer, higher-hydration focaccia dough, the result is a fluffy, pillowy focaccia pizza. Both are delicious, just slightly different in texture.

Is focaccia dough the same as pizza dough?

They’re similar but not identical. Focaccia dough typically contains more water and olive oil, which makes it softer and more airy inside, with a crisp golden surface. Pizza dough, by contrast, is less oily and usually stretched thinner for a lighter, crisper crust.

What cheeses melt well on focaccia pizza?

Mozzarella is the classic choice for that stretchy melt, but you can also use provolone, fontina, or scamorza for extra creaminess. For more character, add stronger cheeses like gorgonzola or taleggio, or sprinkle pecorino romano or parmesan after baking. Combining a good melting cheese with a sharper one creates the best balance of texture and flavor.

What is the best flour for focaccia pizza?

The best results come from a blend of two flours: manitoba flour and Italian 00 flour. Manitoba gives strength and elasticity to the dough, while 00 flour keeps it soft and tender. This combination allows the focaccia pizza to hold toppings well without becoming heavy.

What pan is best for focaccia pizza?

A sturdy, dark baking pan—such as cast iron or steel—is ideal because it holds heat and helps form a crisp, golden crust. If you don’t have one, a standard nonstick baking sheet brushed with plenty of olive oil will also give you a good result.

More Italian Recipes

If you liked this recipe, please give it a heart and share it with a friend or two who love pizza.

I’d like to extend the invitation to join my newsletter one more time, because that’s where I share easy, almost weekly recipes I cook regularly. Some of them are inspired by my childhood, while others are interpretations of recipes I have tried during my time exploring Italy.

Try these other Italian recipes on the blog:

Italian Sausage Soup Pasta
Italian Pumpkin Bread Recipe With Amaretti Streusel
Italian Mustaccioli Chocolate Cookies
Italian Ricotta Cookies – 3 Flavors

I hope you love your focaccia pizza recipe as much as I do!

A presto,
Alessia