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This no-knead poinsettia focaccia bread is so pretty and it looks like something from the display cabinet in a bakery. What you’re going to love is how super-easy this Christmas focaccia is to make. It looks like a work of art and would make a lovely holiday table centerpiece. Bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, and arugula look like poinsettia flowers and you don’t need to be creative at all to make this gorgeous festive bread, as the focaccia recipe is so straightforward.
Poinsettia focaccia bread is so cute and it’s also really simple to prepare, even if you don’t bake a lot. This savory bread is perfect for the holiday table.
Home bakers might also like to try whipping up a banana bread crumb cake, some Italian chickpea flatbread, or some festive panettone.
Why You’ll Love It
A fun project: This creative and fun project lets you cook and get artistic. You can even get the kids to help.
A tasty loaf: Poinsettia focaccia bread is flavored with rosemary and also has bell peppers, cherry tomatoes and arugula, so it looks great and tastes great too.
Not difficult to make: The main steps in this no-knead recipe are mixing and stretching out the dough, pressing the veggies on top to resemble flowers and baking it in the oven.
Christmas Focaccia Bread Art Ingredients
A complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
All-purpose flour: You probably already have this.
Instant yeast: Instant yeast is dehydrated or dried and doesn’t need to be proofed or rehydrated before mixing it with the flour.
Dried rosemary: To add an aromatic flavor.
Red bell peppers: For the poinsettia petals.
Yellow cherry tomatoes: For the poinsettia centers.
Arugula: To look like the poinsettia leaves.
Warm water: To activate the dry yeast.
Olive oil: Inhibits the gluten and helps achieve a tighter crumb and softer crust.
How to Make Christmas Focaccia Art
For more detailed instructions with weights and measurements, jump to the printable recipe card.
Make the dough: Combine the salt, sugar, flour, rosemary, yeast, water, and olive oil with an electric mixer, stand mixer or spatula, in a large mixing bowl. There is no kneading required.
Let it rise: Stretch the dough into a greased sheet pan or baking dish (I used this baking slab). Let the dough rise for an hour in a warm place and wait while the dough develops, and then poke it all over with your fingers.
Add the art: Add the bell pepper triangles and cherry tomato halves to resemble the poinsettias.
Cook the focaccia bread: Sprinkle with salt and bake until golden brown.
The finishing touches: Drizzle with olive oil and add arugula to resemble leaves and serve the delicious bread when you’re ready.
Substitutions and Variations
Gluten-free option: If you want a gluten-free version, use a gluten-free flour.
Another herb: Swap the dried rosemary for dried basil, oregano, thyme, or any other dried herb you like.
Other vegetables: You could use large tomatoes in place of the red bell peppers but they’re a lot softer and juicier so it wouldn’t be as easy. The yellow cherry tomatoes could be swapped for red or orange ones. As for the arugula, feel free to use fresh rosemary sprigs (these add a lovely Mediterranean flavor) or another kind of green leaf instead.
Add garlic: A spoonful of minced roasted garlic in the dough would be really tasty, or you could add garlic powder.
Serving Suggestions
Appetizers: Start your meal with something special, perhaps brie cranberry bites.
Side dishes: Enjoy the focaccia with a sheet pan turkey dinner and cheesy vegetable casserole or a selection of fresh vegetables.
Desserts: How do rainbow cookies sound for dessert, or perhaps chocolate cherry blossom cookies?
How to Store Christmas Focaccia
Store: Focaccia is a yeast bread that only stays fresh for about a day so make it as close to serving as you can for the freshest result. You can keep it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It’s still edible on day two but will lose some of its freshness.
Freeze: You can either freeze the dough or the baked loaf. Either way, ensure you double-wrap it in plastic wrap (and foil too, for good measure) and it should be good for up to a couple of months.
Thaw: Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Reheat: Pop it in a warm oven to heat it up a little.
Top Tips
Water temperature: The warm water you add to the focaccia dough should be between 120°F and 130°F.
Mixing the dough: Either use an electric mixer (I have this one!) with a dough hook or a spatula to achieve a shaggy textured dough.
Making the holes: When poking holes in the dough, coat your fingers in oil or water so the dough doesn’t stick to your fingers.
Holiday Focaccia FAQs
Look for active dry yeast which comes in a package. It’s ideal for no-knead breads and artisan breads with a slower rising time. It’s easier to store than fresh yeast and simple to work with.
Well, yes you could but it looks better added afterwards, since it would just wilt in the oven and make the poinsettia look slightly less healthy!
That’s completely up to you. Enjoy it warm from the oven, let it cool to room temperature, or serve it from the refrigerator. It’s your choice.
Christmas Focaccia Bread Art Recipe
Poinsettia Focaccia Bread
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 2 Teaspoons sea salt
- 3½ Cups all purpose flour
- 1 Teaspoon dried rosemary
- 1 Tablespoon instant yeast, bread-making
- 1½ Cups water, warm, filtered
- 1½ Teaspoons granulated sugar
- 2 red bell peppers, large, cut into triangles
- 1 cherry tomato, yellow
- arugula, optional
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine salt, sugar, flour, rosemary, yeast, water, and olive oil. Mix with an electric mixer, with dough hook attachment, or a spatula until a shaggy dough forms.
- On a 9 x13-inch baking slab or dish pour olive oil and spread until it's evenly coated. Place the dough in the dish and press down until it reaches the corner of the dish. Cover with plastic wrap or a wet towel and allow to rise for an hour.
- Once dough has risen, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Poke the dough all over with your fingers.
- Arrange the bell peppers into 2 flower shapes on the dough.
- Cut the yellow tomato in half and place 1 half in the center of 1 flower and the other half in the center of the other.
- Sprinkle with more salt and bake for 25 minutes on the center rack of the oven.
- Once cooked, drizzle with olive oil and arrange arugula leaves near the flowers to imitate leaves (optional).
Notes
Mixing the dough: Either use an electric mixer with a dough hook or a spatula to achieve a shaggy textured dough.
Making the holes: When poking holes in the dough, coat your fingers in oil or water so the dough doesn’t stick to your fingers.
Nutrition
Whether you’re a pro at making Christmas tree focaccia, Christmas wreath focaccia and cherry tomato ornaments or you tend not to get crafty over Christmastime, you’re not going to have any problems with this easy poinsettia focaccia bread art recipe. The bell pepper, tomatoes and arugula imitate poinsettia flowers and the focaccia bread itself is soft, a little chewy and perfect for the holidays.
Other Recipes to Try
Bella Bucchiotti
Bella Bucchiotti is a Canadian-based syndicated food, travel, and lifestyle writer, photographer, and creator at xoxoBella. She founded xoxoBella in 2015, where she shares her love for food, dogs, sustainability, fitness, crafts, outdoor adventures, travel, and philanthropy to encourage others to run the extra mile, try new recipes, visit unfamiliar places, and stand for a cause. Bella creates stress-free and family-friendly recipes for weeknight dinners and festive feasts.
It looks so pretty and it delivers flavor-wise!