Focaccia is a delicious Italian bread that is kind of similar to pizza. Kids will love getting their fingers into the dough and decorating the top with vegetables! This simple activity brings out creativity in kids and adults alike!
A quick note to the mamas and caretakers of picky eaters
Making garden focaccia is a terrific activity for pickier eaters. With picky eaters, just helping the child interact with a new food or a food they don’t want to eat can be a positive step. Whether you have a picky eater at home or not, encourage your kiddos to touch the different toppings and smell all of the herbs. If they want to taste things as they create, fantastic!!
Plan ahead a little bit
The first thing you’ll need is a recipe. I’ll have one for you soon, but for now, go ahead and find one.
Now, I have 4 babies who will all want to decorate their OWN focaccia. Moms, I’m sure you can empathize. If you have a similar situation you don’t have to quadruple your recipe!! That would be a LOT of focaccia! Instead, when your recipe tells you its time to put your dough on one big sheet pan, divide it into as many pieces as you need and use smaller baking pans. I like 6″ or 8″ cake pans like these. Believe me, it makes for a much more peaceful time in the kitchen. *wink
Next you’ll need to think about your toppings. So many options here, but I try to choose the most colorful options. For example, onion tastes great on focaccia… I choose red onion because it will make a more vibrant addition to our “garden”. I also like to think of shapes. Do I want a huge slice of tomato? or would little grape tomatoes be better for my design or for the size of the focaccia?
Here are a few topping suggestions
Red onions make pretty flowers.
Olives are great for the center of flowers to depict the ground.
Tomatoes are always pretty and, of course, they come in a variety of colors.
Bell peppers can be cut in so many different ways.
Zucchini makes pretty stems or leaves.
Green onions or chives are great flower stems.
Seeds are a beautiful and sometimes unexpected addition.
Herbs… all the herbs… Rosemary, basil and parsley are my favorites for this activity.
Creating your garden focaccia
I like to set out the toppings and decorate my own focaccia alongside my kids. They’ll get the idea pretty quickly and it really is fun for everyone!
Our past focaccia for a little inspiration
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