Pull Apart Cheesy Garlic Sourdough Focaccia Bread

Cozy season is upon us and that means you need to make this pull apart Cheesy Garlic Sourdough Focaccia Bread to enjoy with a warm bowl of soup. This bread is ultra soft, full of fresh garlic and tons of cheese. It truly doesn’t get any better!

It is no secret that garlic bread is a universal love language, but when you make it soft and fluffy cheesy garlic sourdough focaccia it is next level! This bread is incredible no matter how you enjoy it. Served along side pasta, soups, stews, or simply enjoyed on its own.

By now, you all know my love for sourdough focaccia bread because it is so easy and basically fool proof! For this focaccia bread, you start by making my classic sourdough focaccia bread dough. Let that rise, then cold proof it as long as you like for extra flavor. Then, cut it into twelve and roll each piece in some fresh garlic herb butter. Lay all of the pieces of dough together, let them proof one last time, then dimple the bread and bake it. Halfway through baking, you layer on a bunch of cheese, then finish it off in the oven until golden and bubbly!

I love this bread so much because it can be served will basically anything! The pull apart style makes it easy for serving and gives you perfectly portioned pieces every time. It is pillowy soft, bursting with flavor and will become a staple recipe in your home.

Tips for Making Pull Apart Cheesy Garlic Sourdough Focaccia Bread

1. Even for focaccia bread, I always recommend using a nice strong fed sourdough starter that has reached its peak. Just like you would for a standard loaf. This will give you the most soft and fluffy texture.
2. When cold proofing sourdough focaccia bread, you can do so for quite a long time. The longer it is in the fridge, the more flavor it will develop. Anywhere from 8-36 hours is kind of the sweet spot in my opinion.
3. After dipping the dough in the garlic butter and placing it in the baking dish, you want to allow for a good couple hours at least, for the dough to get nice and fluffy again. If you do not do this, your focaccia bread will be much less fluffy.

Pull Apart Cheesy Garlic Sourdough Focaccia Bread Ingredients

Sourdough Starter– As mentioned above you want a nice active fed sourdough starter that has reached its peak.

Flour– Use whatever you typically use for your sourdough bread. Unbleached all purpose or bread flour.

Oil– I like olive oil best for the subtle flavor. This helps give that classic soft focaccia texture.

Cheese– You can use almost any kind you like. I like a combination of mozzarella and cheddar.

Garlic– Fresh over pre minced is always best!

Parsley– This is my herb of choice for nice fresh flavor. If you want to add any other fresh herbs, go for it.

Butter– Salted is my preferred but unsalted is fine too.

Salt– Any fine salt you typically use in your bread works.

The Steps

Mix & Bulk Ferment

1. Start by mixing together the water, sourdough starter and olive oil in a large bowl with a wooden spoon or dough whisk.
2. Once mixed, add in the flour and salt and mix until you get a sticky, shaggy dough. I like to use my hands.
3. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and let rest for 45 minutes.
4. After 45 minutes, perform a set of stretch and folds or coil folds. Cover the dough and let rest another 30-45 minutes.
5. Repeat this process 2 more times, for a total of 3 sets of coil folds or stretch and folds.
6. Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel this time and let the dough rise on the counter for about 7-8 hours or until it is not as sticky to the touch, doubled in size and has some bubbles on the surface.
7. Once the bulk rise is done, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 8-36 hours.

Shape & Bake

1. A few hours before you are ready to bake the bread, remove the dough from the fridge, dump it onto the counter and cut it into 12 roughly equal sized pieces.
2. Then, stir together the 1/2 cup melted butter, fresh garlic and fresh parsley.
3. Take one piece of dough and roll it in the garlic butter, making sure you spoon some of those garlic chunks over top. They sometimes like to settle at the bottom of the bowl.
4. Place the piece of dough into a 9×13 pan, then repeat this process until you have all of the dough coated and in the pan. I like to do 4 rows of 3 pieces of dough.

1. Cover the baking dish with a cookie sheet or tea towel and let the dough do a final rise for about 3-4 hours or until nice and puffy again.

1. Preheat your oven to 425F.
2. Dip your fingers in a bit of oil so they don’t stick to the bread, then dimple the bread all over to create that classic focaccia look.
3. Finally, bake the focaccia for 10 minutes then sprinkle all of the shredded cheese over top and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until golden and bubbly.
4. Remove the bread from the oven and allow it to cool for just a couple minutes before removing from the pan and enjoying!

If you give this recipe a try, leave a comment or a recipe review below!

Looking for more delicious focaccia bread recipes to try?

https://cmbarndominium.com/to-die-for-sourdough-focaccia-bread-bruschetta/#mv-creation-74-jtr

https://cmbarndominium.com/hot-honey-charcuterie-sourdough-focaccia-bread/

https://cmbarndominium.com/carrot-cake-sourdough-focaccia-bread-with-cream-cheese-glaze/