Rosemary Focaccia Recipe with Almond Flour

Rosemary focaccia recipe with almond flour is a delicious gluten free and low carb bread. You’ll be amazed at how light and airy it is thanks to beaten egg whites.

I’ve been experimenting with some gluten free recipes lately for a dinner I’m having where a friend can’t eat gluten, and have had numerous failures before perfecting a rosemary focaccia recipe with almond flour. 

Generally I have a pretty good idea if something is going to turn out or not and after a few additions here or there can come up with a recipe I like.  However, this has not been true with gluten free baked goods.  I’m still trying to come up with a good combination of flours and thickeners to get the best consistency.

Once I get the ingredient ratio I like, I still have to make things multiple times to figure out the best technique.  It has been challenging and I have finally given up on baking a few things and will defer to my friends Mellissa at Mama Gourmand and Chandice at My Vivacious Life whose blogs are devoted to gluten free recipes.

This recipe for focaccia with almond flour is not one of the failures, although I’ve made it five times now working out the best combination and technique to make this truly amazing. Hopefully you can avoid my mistakes and make it perfect the first time.

Why you’ll love rosemary focaccia bread with almond flour

• Focaccia bread is a delicious no-yeast bread that tastes good with minimal ingredients.
• You can feel good about enjoying a slice or two as it’s gluten free and low carb.

What is Focaccia Bread

Traditional Focaccia is an Italian flat bread. You’ll find that most Focaccia has dimples on the top made by pressing your fingers into the top before adding olive oil and seasonings. It is typically made with yeast and can be used for sandwiches, pizza or eaten by itself.

For this keto focaccia bread recipe I decided almond flour was my best option.  I tried using a combination of almond and flaxseed meal but didn’t care for the texture or flavor.

The almond flour alone was perfect for me.  It adds a great flavor that you don’t get with white flour without being bitter.  You really do need xanthan gum when not using wheat flour. You can find this in most grocery stores, mine is made by Bob’s Red Mill and a bag will last you a very long time. Most recipes only call for ½ teaspoon.

What you’ll need

• Olive oil – buy a good quality brand for this recipe
• Fresh rosemary – perfect herb for this Italian loaf
• Almond flour – to make this a gluten free bread
• Egg whites – this helps give volume to the bread
• Xanthan gum – this helps thicken the bread since this version is made without yeast
• Almond milk – whole milk will work as a substitute

How to make it

Step 1

Combine a good quality olive oil with fresh rosemary and salt.

Step 2

Combine the dry ingredients and add milk stirring until smooth.

Step 3

Beat the egg whites into stiff peaks.

Step 4

Gently fold in egg whites and place in a glass baking dish.

Step 5

Press the tips of your fingers into the top of the dough and drizzle with olive oil mixture and bake.

The texture of the dough will be sticky and won’t feel like a yeast dough at all. The texture is more like a muffin batter.  When you poke your fingers in the top to give it the signature dimples, it won’t spring back like other dough. My tip to get it as light as possible is to very gently fold in the egg whites.  Mine turned out a little better using a glass baking dish versus a metal one, but both will work.

Recipe Notes

• Beat the egg whites until they are very stiff. If you hold a spoonful upside down, they should stay on the spoon.
• Gently fold the egg whites into the very stiff dough. This may seem impossible, but be patient and use a rubber spatula to gently incorporate the egg whites into the dough.
• Bake in a glass baking dish if possible.
• Use a good quality olive oil to drizzle over the top, otherwise you can get an overpowering bitter taste. 
• Oregano is a good substitute if you don’t have rosemary.
• You can use the same recipe but use diced up pieces of bacon and cheddar cheese for another tasty Italian loaf.

I stored the leftovers in the fridge and warmed them up in the toaster oven. While best right out of the oven, leftovers were almost as good. 

I tried cheese on top and I thought that just covered up the great taste of the bread. My last goal was to try to make this dairy free for my Paleo friends, so I substituted almond milk for the regular milk, and it was a success.  

What is Xanthan Gum

It’s a food additive that is FDA approved and is added to food as a stabilizer or thickener. It’s made when sugar is fermented with bacteria which is dried and made into a powder. When the powder is added to food it creates a solution that will thicken and stabilize whatever it’s added to. It provides the fluffiness that gluten would provide if using flour. It also has some health benefits. If you do much gluten free cooking, then you’ll need this product.

FAQs and tips

Looking for more low carb gluten free recipes

Low Carb dinner ideas

• Queso chicken
• Chicken with tomatoes and cheese
• Marsala steak
• Stuffed peppers with cauliflower rice
• Tequila chicken
• Sun dried tomato chicken

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