I know it’s hard to believe for many keto beginners, but you really do stop craving bread and other carbs after a while. No really, it’s true!
I’ve been doing low carb for over a decade and I can honestly say that I don’t crave any kind of bread anymore. I’d rather stick with protein and some low carb veggies. And maybe some keto cookies for dessert.
But while I don’t exactly crave it, I do enjoy keto bread from time to time. And this easy Keto Focaccia is one of my family’s favorites. Dipped in olive oil and a bit of sea salt, and you will swear you are at your favorite trattoria back in your high carb days.
It makes a great crust for Keto Breakfast Pizza, and I’ve used the dough to make Keto Breadsticks too!
Why you must make this recipe
I am frequently asked by new followers whether there is such a thing as really good keto bread. The answer to this simple question isn’t quite so simple. It really depends on your perspective.
Let me be very clear and say that I have yet to find any truly good store-bought keto breads. All of them are quite dry and flavorless, in my opinion, and most of them contain questionable ingredients. I think you are best to stay away from these.
But if you’re willing to make your own, and you are willing to let go of your expectations about it being exactly the same as the bread you used to enjoy, then you do have some delicious options.
And Keto Focaccia is one of my most popular creations. It comes as close to the real deal as anything can. And it has only 2.5g net carbs per piece!
Reader Reviews
“This recipe is a total winner! I have been a lifelong bread lover so after switching to Keto lifestyle nine months ago I was REALLY missing it. Until I found Carolyn’s bread recipes. Game changers! This one in particular is so wonderful! So close to what I think of for “real” focaccia. Fantastic texture, great flavor, totally dippable! The rosemary takes it to another level. This will become a weekly recipe for me. I followed the steps exactly and it turned out perfect. I watched her video to make sure I had the right consistency.” — Scarlett
“OMG! Thank you, this focaccia was so good, and with soup, on this cold winter night, yum yum yum! And, a plus, for a weekday, when I run out of hours, I can still manage to get a warm bread with my meal in no time 🙏🏼” — Jessica
“This was awesome. I sliced it and toasted it to have with an egg this morning.
The texture is so close to regular bread. Thank you!” — Amanda
Ingredients you need
- Keto flours: I use a combination of almond flour and coconut flour for the right consistency and structure. It helps avoid that eggy, rubbery texture.
- Protein powder: Yes, this is vital to the recipe, as it helps replace the gluten in this keto bread, so it will rise properly and hold together better. You can also use egg white protein powder.
- Eggs: You will need both eggs and extra egg whites. Using some egg whites made it lighter and more airy, just like real focaccia.
- Fresh rosemary: I love adding fresh herbs to bread. You can use rosemary, thyme, basil or any herb you love.
- Pantry staples: Extra virgin olive oil, baking powder, garlic powder and salt.
Step-by-step directions
1. Whisk the dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, coconut flour, protein powder, rosemary, baking powder, salt, and garlic powder.
2. Stir in the wet ingredients: Add the olive oil, eggs, and egg whites and mix until well combined.
3. Add a little water: Stir in just enough water to form a sticky but cohesive dough.
4. Shape the bread: Turn the dough out onto a baking sheet lined with a greased sheet of parchment paper. Use wet hands to spread to a 9×12 inch rectangle.
5. Dimple the surface: Use your fingertips to dimple the surface of the bread lightly, then sprinkle with sea salt and rosemary leaves.
6. Bake until golden: Bake at 325ºF for 20 to 25 minutes, until the bread is golden on the edges and firm to the touch. Let cool 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Expert tips
How much water do I need? As you can see in the recipe and the video, the amount of water you should use depends on the thickness of the dough, which in turn depends the absorbency of the coconut flour. It should really be quite sticky and soft, but still somewhat cohesive. It shouldn’t run all over your pan like batter.
Use wet hands: Wetting your hands helps to keep the dough from sticking to them as you spread it on the pan. Keep wetting them whenever it feels like it’s sticking.
Help! My bread is dry. If your bread comes out dry, you may have baked it a little too long. Keto baked goods can seem very dry even if over-baked by a few short minutes. Next time, try taking it out 5 minutes earlier. It will still be great dipped in olive oil. Or you can cube it and turn it into croutons.
Sunflower seed flour: You can replace almond flour with sunflower seed flour, but your bread is going to be very grey. Make sure you add at least a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to offset the green reaction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Conventional focaccia is made with wheat flour and has about 20g of carbs per serving. But this keto focaccia bread is completely grain free and has only 5g of carbs and 2.5g of fiber. That comes to 2.5g net carbs per piece.
Many keto breads use cheeses for fathead dough, but this keto focaccia can be made dairy free. It consists primarily of almond flour, coconut flour, protein powder, eggs and olive oil.
You can store leftover bread in an airtight container on the counter for up to 5 days or in the fridge for up to 10. You can also freeze the bread for up to 3 months.
Serve it with:
Keto Focaccia Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup (105 g) almond flour
- 1/3 cup (40 g) coconut flour
- 1/3 cup (36 g) unflavored whey protein powder, (can sub egg white protein for dairy-free)
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp (0.75 tsp) salt
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) garlic powder
- 1/2 cup (108 g) extra virgin olive oil
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg whites
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup (59.15 g) water
- Coarse sea salt, for sprinkling
- Fresh rosemary leaves, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Grease the parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, coconut flour, protein powder, rosemary, baking powder, salt, and garlic powder. Add the olive oil, eggs, and egg whites and mix until well combined.
- Stir in just enough water to form a sticky dough. Turn the dough out onto the prepared baking sheet and use wet hands to spread to a 9×12 inch rectangle.
- Use your fingertips to dimple the surface of the bread lightly, then sprinkle with sea salt and rosemary leaves.
- Bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the bread is golden on the edges and firm to the touch. Let cool 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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You say one an sub egg white protein for non dairy…is that powdered egg white or something else?
Thanks!
Powdered egg whites, yes.
Can this be made in a large 12” x 5” loaf pan, or a 7” springform pan like your Keto Instant Pot Bread?
I have not tried it in a loaf pan but you’re welcome to experiment!
Would it be possible to make this with coconut flour only. My sister is allergic to almonds but coconut doesn’t bother her.
Not this recipe, no.
I followed the recipe exactly and I never had a dough, just a batter. I added some water, not much, thinking maybe it will thicken it in some weird way. I went back over everything I did and I did everything right. I had to pour it into an 8×8 square pan and I have it in the oven now. We’ll see what happens. Disappointing.
If that was the case, then you didn’t have enough flour. What brands of almond and coconut flour did you use? And yes… adding water if it was already thin would definitely not help.
I used Kirkland/ Costco brand almond flour and King Aurthur coconut flour. It actually baked up just fine in my 8×8 pan, baked in 25 min. It’s really good, I would make it again, regardless if it turns out as more of a batter. I just miss putting the dimples in the dough, ha, not a big deal.
It should be thick enough to do that so hold back on any added liquid next time.
Hello
Is it possible to use just coconut flour instead of almond flour, only oxalates are a concern right now? If so, how much coconut flour would work? Thanks in advance
No, this recipe requires both flours.
Unfortunately for me, i used the focaccia recipe from your 2017 book which directs us to add the 1/2 cup water. First time making recipes I always stick to the book. My batter of course was liquid. I kept adding flour til i got something to go in the oven! So….2 1/2 cups almond flour, extra corn flour and whey protein, gave us an edible, but more cakey version.Also drizzled olive oil on it. Can anyone verify the recipe without water gives a dough?
If you used coconut flour, your batter should not have been “liquid”, even with the full amount of water. I think something went VERY wrong, if you had to add up to 2 1/2 cups of almond flour. What brand of coconut flour are you using? It’s usually FAR more absorbent than that. Also… my recipe doesn’t call for corn flour.
No corn flour, sorry, that must have been one of those auto fill corrections. Bob’s Red Mill, expiry 2023 for coconut flour. I used total 2 1/2 cups almond flour with extra coconut flour til i got a dough because i didn’t want to throw initial batter away. Next time i will use your modified recipe, i believe 2020, and not add any water til the end, bit by bit.
Cheers
Do you store this bread in the fridge? How long is it good for?
You can store on the counter for up to 5 days, and in the fridge for 10.
I have a question, can you use pea protein powder instead of whey? Thanks
As long as it’s not green (some of the pea and hemp proteins are!) it should work
Hi, don’t have whey protein, but have plenty of extra egg whites from other keto recipes. Can I sub in the egg whites and use less water?
Thanks
No… you can’t sub a dry protein powder with wet egg whites, it throws off the wet-to-dry ratio. Although you could experiment and leave out any additional liquid… I just can’t guarantee the results.
I made this tonight. First time making any of your bread recipes. It was lighter – and airy – first time ever for me, on keto. That’s the great part.
But – maybe it’s supposed to be slathered with butter – it came out just a bit dry, to where I had to take a drink of water.
How can I make it just a tad more moist?
NOTE that I didn’t have fresh rosemary, so instead of 2 TB fresh, I used 2 tsp of rosemary dried spice. I wonder if that made a difference…
It may have been a bit over-baked. Keto baked goods can seem very dry even if over-baked by a few short minutes. But real focaccia is meant to be for dipping into olive oil and this is too!
Of course – thanks! I’ll try it again soon 🙂
Drizzle with olive oil! Yum!
Hi how do I change it to uk metric please? Or how much would a cup be in grams thankyou
I’ve just added the button to change it in the recipe!
Hello again. Quick question: I can’t find unflavored whey protein powder in any local shops, and until I’m convinced its going to give me the results I want for baking, I can’t afford to blow what they’re asking for a 2.5-3kg container of unflavored WPP, plus the shipping cost, here in Israel. I DO have some vital wheat gluten my sister brought me on her visit a little while ago. Can I use that instead, and if so, how much to replace the 1/3 cup of WPP?
On a side note, I’ve tried several of your recipes already and love them. Keep up the good work.
Oh.. and any ideas on a Keto Matzo? 😎
I am sorry, I don’t really use vital wheat gluten so I can’t say if it would help. I may need to think more about the matzo!
Yes you can sub vital wheat for whey powder. I use vital wheat in place of the protein powder and a teaspoon yeast in this recipe and it’s fantastic!!
Is it possible to replace almond flour with sunflower seeds flour? Thank you
Yes but it’s going to be very grey. And you need to make sure you add at least a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to offset the green reaction.
Great recipe, thank you! I followed your ingredients exactly, but did not need any water, as my batter/dough was very moist. I used a wet spatula to shape it roughly, then second sheet of oiled parchment paper and a rolling pin to spread it out to 9×12”, using my pan rim as a guide. Before baking, I sprinkled it with finely grated Romano cheese, rosemary leaves and finely crushed fresh garlic. Distracted by that, I forgot to add the coarse salt, but did so after it came out of the oven. Mine did not rise as high as yours. Delcious!
Yours sounds delicious!
Your recipes are THE BEST. Thank you for helping me live lower carb! So…I drove an hour round trip from my mountain house to the closest town for protein powder yesterday, and my natural food store only had sweetened, flavored protein powders. Ugh. I really want to make this focccia and know it needs the protein. Can collagen peptides act as protein powder in this case? It *seems* logical that they would work, but a rather pricey mistake if they don’t. Thoughts?
I see that in your recipes when you call for protein powder, it is whey protein. Can I use unflavored pea protein powder instead?
It’s not always whey… often it’s egg white. The pea protein may work but I haven’t tried it myself.
HI, is the recommended egg white protein from It’s Just pasteurized? can be also used raw in smoothies or just for cooking?
Yup, sure can!