Recipe: Savory Cheesy Scallion Focaccia Cake (Overnight Recipe)

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This savory, cheesy focaccia features a more moist interior than a normal focaccia and a tender crumb on the inside that teeters the line between bread and a savory cake! Welcome to my latest installment in my journey to making delicious savory foods styled like desserts. You can see other recipes that fit this theme here.

In recent years, when my birthday is about the roll around, I’ve found myself feeling in the mood to bake myself a birthday cake. It’s a desire that comes around a week or so before my birthday, actually, as I am starting to get hyped up for whatever low key and very introverted celebration activities I have planned. I am all about treating myself for birthdays and usually buy myself a bouquet of flowers and a cute new dress, so making myself a little birthday cake is starting to become an extension of that. But there is just one issue with that: I don’t actually like cake!

At least, I don’t like birthday cake like the sweet sprinkle-covered cakes that are usually what people think of when they think of birthday cake flavored things.

It’s my birthday cake, so I can have whatever cake I want. And in past years, I’ve made corn mochi cake, Scandinavian sandwich cakes, or just a slab of focaccia decorated it to resemble a cake with creamy cheeses as the base for the “frosting”. That last one—the focaccia styled like a cake—is something I like to make fairly often, birthday or not. I’ll just make focaccia like normal, and since it already turns out as a snack cake thickness, I treat it like a savory snack cake. I’ll “frost” it with whipped feta or ricotta on top, and then make it look pretty with herbs and edible flowers.

This time around, I wanted something extra cheesy, and decided to try folding the shredded cheese directly into the no-knead overnight dough. Normally when I make cheesy focaccia, I’ll either stuff a layer of cheese in between two layers of dough before the final proof step (resulting in a melty cheese center), or I’ll add the cheese to the top right before baking (for a crisped cheese top). This year, I wanted to treat myself to a savory homemade “cake”, but I also wanted it to be super easy. So I set out to make my very low-effort mini overnight no-knead focaccia, where the ingredients literally just get folded together and left to bubble up overnight in the fridge. But I also decided I wanted it to be cheesy and flavorful, so I just dumped a bunch of shredded cheddar and chopped scallions into the dough too.

I discovered to my pleasant surprise that working the cheese into the dough from the very beginning means that the cheese is fully incorporated into the very structure of the bread, with its extra fat and moisture making for a softer interior. I normally think of focaccia as being golden and sturdy on the outside, with visible air bubbles and a craggy dry interior texture. But for the version in this recipe, the exterior is more pale, it’s springy rather than crisp, and the inside has a much tighter crumb structure. It is not at all dense, but instead it is light and tender and soft, much like a cake!

“Frosting” Your Focaccia Cake

Since I kept the bake time on the shorter side and the dough is holding more moisture from the cheese, this focaccia cake does not have the bubbly, golden-brown, sexy-looking surface for a regular focaccia. For me, this is totally fine because it is meant to be frosted like a cake! You can definitely still eat it as-is; it’s wonderful cut into wedges as soon as it is cool enough to handle and can be gobbled up as a snack or in place of dinner rolls or to sop up anything saucy like pasta. Just don’t expect that typically crisp focaccia look outside.

But if you are interested in making this as a form of savory cake, perhaps to serve as a birthday cake for someone like me who prefers things cheesy and salty over anything sweet, then you have a couple good options for how to really dress it up. After all, this delicious creation deserves to be beautified just as much as any fancy sugary confection—even though it’s actually super easy to make.

Here are two options for a savory whipped cheese topping to go on your focaccia cake:

  • Garlicky Whipped Feta: This slightly tangy, salty option is great for if you want to incorporate tomatoes or vegetables in your cake decoration. To make it, break up 6 ounces of firm “domestic" (American-style) feta, place in a food processor, and add 1–3 garlic cloves and 3/4 tsp extra virgin olive oil. Process until a homogenous paste forms. Add 1/4 cup full-fat Greek yogurt and process until smooth. If the texture is too thick, add 1 tsp yogurt at a time and process again, until the desired consistency is reached. Refrigerate until needed.

  • Salted Whipped Ricotta: I think of this whipped cheese spread as a thicker version of the salted cheese foam topping that you can order at boba/bubble tea shops. This is a good option for if you plan to decorate your focaccia cake with fruit, for a fresh seasonal sweet/savory treat. To make it, start with 4 ounces of whole milk ricotta and thoroughly drain and blot away the excess moisture. Combine this in the food processor with 2 ounces of mascarpone (that has just come directly from the fridge) and 1/8 tsp kosher salt. Process until smooth and airy. Refrigerate until needed.

Either of these options should form a thick, spreadable consistency, with enough for a very generously swooshing on top. Alternatively, they could also be used in a piping bag.

Decorating Your Focaccia Cake

Herbs and edible flowers make for beautiful decorations for a focaccia cake. For the cake shown here in the photos, I also opted to incorporate seasonal fruits. I used peaches, figs, and blueberries. Also shown are herbs (mint and basil) and edible flowers (pansies, zinnias, fennel flowers, sweet alyssum).

How to Make a Savory Cheesy Scallion Focaccia Cake

(Makes one 6-inch mini cake)

Ingredients

1 tsp active dry yeast
1/4 tsp sugar
2/3 cup warm water
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp kosher salt
3–4 scallions, chopped
1/2 (packed) cup grated white cheddar
2+ tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Special Supplies

6-inch cake pan (springform recommended)

Procedure

Combine yeast, sugar, and water and let sit for 10 minutes or until foamy.

Whisk together flour, salt, and scallions in a mixing bowl. Pour in liquid and add grated cheddar and fold together slowly with a spatula until all the dry ingredients become moist; dough will be very sticky.

Add 1 tbsp oil to a container with a lid (at least 4x larger than the dough ball). Grease interior then roll dough ball around until completely slicked in oil. Cover with lid to prevent dough from drying out and refrigerate overnight (or for 2 nights).

On baking day, line bottom and sides of a 6-inch cake pan with parchment paper. (I do this by cutting a strip of paper to form a ring that goes inside the sides of the pan, and a separate circle of paper that sits flat on the bottom. A small smear of olive oil will help the paper stay in place.)

Fold edges of dough in towards the center to deflate dough and form a ball again. Place in prepared cake pan and let rise, uncovered at room temp, until dough looks jiggly and is about 2–2 1/2 inches tall (2–4 hours).

Preheat oven to 425°F. Pour remaining oil over the top and use fingers to dimple the dough, especially in the center. Bake for 20–25 minutes, until edges are slightly golden.

Turn out onto a cooling rack and let cool to room temperature.

If desired, to make it look like a cake, “frost” the top with whipped feta or ricotta (see blog post for details).

This savory focaccia cake is best enjoyed the same day but can be stored in an air-tight container in the fridge overnight.