This vegan pumpkin focaccia is the perfect homemade bread for Fall! It’s crunchy on the outside, soft and pillowy on the inside, with a delicious sweetness from the pumpkin. Undetectably dairy-free and eggless too!
My freezer is currently packed full of this deliciousness and I can’t stop eating it. And I don’t plan on stopping for as long as pumpkin season is around!
Focaccia is the perfect bread to make if you’re new to baking. It doesn’t require any fancy techniques or ingredients.
The hardest part of the process is probably waiting for it to rise. But, the patience pays off when you get to dig into a huge slice of pillowy deliciousness.
And of course, it will make your kitchen smell amazing.
The addition of pumpkin purée to this vegan focaccia is what makes it extra special. I made pumpkin purée from scratch using roasted pumpkin, but the canned variety also works.
The resulting flavor is subtly sweet, going perfectly well with the earthiness of the olive oil and the savory veggies. Add a pinch of flaky salt, and the result is out of this world!
How to make vegan pumpkin focaccia
Make the pumpkin purée
Pumpkin purée is very easy to make from fresh pumpkin. Start by preheating the oven to 180 degrees C/350 F.
Cut the pumpkin in half just beside the stem, then remove the seeds and cut it in half once again.
You can now peel it using a vegetable peeler, and proceed to cut into small, bite-sized pieces.
Drizzle the pumpkin with olive oil and bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, until fully softened.
Next, transfer it to a blender or food processor and blend until a purée forms.
Make the pumpkin focaccia dough
Mix together the flour, salt and yeast. In a different bowl, combine water, the pumpkin purée, and maple syrup.
Then, add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until thoroughly combined. At the end, mix in the olive oil.
Now, transfer the dough to a large baking tray lined with parchment paper, and stretch into a large rectangle.
Cover with cling film and allow to rise at room temperature for 3-4 hours, until roughly doubled in size.
Dimple and allow to rise again
Drizzle more olive oil on the focaccia and dimple the dough using your fingers by pressing them almost all the way through.
Allow to rise for 10-15 minutes more. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/350 F.
Dimple and bake
Now the fun part – decorating the focaccia! Arrange the bell peppers, red onion, mushrooms, zucchini and fresh chives on the focaccia.
Sprinkle with sea salt and dried thyme, then bake for 22-25 minutes, until crispy on the outside and golden brown.
Recipe Tips & Substitutions
If you want, you can use canned pumpkin (although roasting it from scratch yields the best flavor). Around 10 oz is required for the full focaccia bread.
Be patient with it! If you want, you can even leave it to rise overnight, or while you’re at work.
Add any other vegetables of your choice as a topping. You can even use extra roasted pumpkin – this is a great opportunity to use your imagination!
As for all baking recipes, I would recommend weighing the ingredients, as this will achieve the best and most accurate result.
Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb pumpkin around ½ a medium pumpkin – choose a sweet pumpkin variety for this recipe
- 5 tbsp olive oil
- 5 cups flour
- 2 tbsp yeast
- 1 tsp salt plus more for garnishing
- 2 cups water
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- ½ large yellow bell pepper sliced
- ½ large red bell pepper sliced
- 1 large red onion sliced
- ½ cup mushrooms sliced
- ½ cup zucchini sliced
- fresh chives small bunch
- 1 tbsp dried thyme
Instructions
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Cut the pumpkin in half just beside the stem, then remove the seeds and cut it in half once again. You can now peel it using a vegetable peeler, and proceed to cut into small, bite-sized pieces.1 lb pumpkin
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Drizzle the pumpkin with 1 tbsp olive oil and bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes at 180 degrees C/350 F, until fully softened.5 tbsp olive oil
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Transfer it to a blender or food processor and blend until a purée forms.
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Mix together the flour, salt and yeast. In a different bowl, combine water, the pumpkin purée, and maple syrup. Then, add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until thoroughly combined. At the end, mix in 2 tbsp olive oil.5 cups flour, 2 tbsp yeast, 1 tsp salt, 2 cups water, 2 tbsp maple syrup, 5 tbsp olive oil
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Transfer the dough to a large baking tray lined with parchment paper, and stretch into a large rectangle. Cover with cling film and allow to rise at room temperature for 3-4 hours, until roughly doubled in size.
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Drizzle 2 tbsp more olive oil on the focaccia and dimple the dough using your fingers by pressing them almost all the way through. Allow to rise for 10-15 minutes more.5 tbsp olive oil
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Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C/350 F.
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Arrange the bell peppers, red onion, mushrooms, zucchini and fresh chives on the focaccia. Sprinkle with sea salt and dried thyme.½ large yellow bell pepper, ½ large red bell pepper, ½ cup mushrooms, ½ cup zucchini, 1 tbsp dried thyme, fresh chives
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Bake for 22-25 minutes, until crispy on the outside and golden brown.
