sweet focaccia with fruit and pine nuts

focaccia dolce con frutta e pinoli

8 to 10 servings

Enjoy this sweet bread toasted for breakfast or with a midday coffee. Drained canned apricots can be used in place of fresh, and the fruit can be varied.

• ½ cup warm water (about 110°)
• 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
• 2½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• ⅓ cup sugar
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for pan
• 4 large egg yolks
• 3 tablespoons whole milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 peach, peeled, pitted and cut into ⅔-inch pieces, ½-inch-thick
• 1 sweet-tart apple, such as McIntosh or Cortland, peeled, cored and cut into ⅔-inch pieces, ½-inch-thick
• 3 fresh or drained canned apricots, pitted if fresh, cut into sixths 
• 1 tablespoon pine nuts
• Confectioners’ sugar

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk, mix together water and yeast. Add 1 cup flour and mix on medium-high speed to form a sticky dough, about 3 minutes. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place until mixture has doubled in bulk, 45 to 50 minutes.

Add remaining 1½ cups flour, sugar, butter, egg yolks, milk, vanilla, zest and salt. Attach bowl to mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix on low speed until combined, about 2 minutes; increase speed to medium-high and mix until dough is soft, smooth and pulling away cleanly from sides of the bowl, about 10 minutes. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place until dough has risen by about fifty percent, about 1 hour.

Brush butter to form a 12-inch circle on a 16-by-14-inch baking sheet. Place dough in center of circle and, using your hands, press to form a 12-inch round over butter. Cover dough with fruits and pine nuts. Set in a warm place, uncovered, and let rest until dough has risen by about fifty percent, about 1 hour.

Heat oven to 400°. Bake focaccia, rotating pan halfway through, until puffed and golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from oven, let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then slide onto a cutting board to cool slightly. Generously sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature.