Pissaladière is a classic French dish that originated in Nice in the South of France. It is a tart similar to a pizza but the crust is thicker. It is traditionally topped with caramelised onions, olives and anchovies and I have kept to that tradition. You can serve it as an appetiser and I think it is a great dish to serve as a snack to nibble on with drinks.PissaladièreEven if you do not like olives or anchovies. And those are both ingredients that I have no major love for. But the combination of the sweet onions works so well with the saltiness of the olives and anchovy, balancing sweet and salty in the most delicious way.PissaladièreAccording to Jacques Medecin, former mayor of Nice and an authority on its cuisine, the layer of onions on a pissaladiere should be half as thick as the crust. The pissaladière is traditionally made with a yeasted bread type dough (similar to pizza) but I simplified and tweaked the recipe (apologies to mr Medecin and Nice). Instead of the bread base I made a  scone dough, an idea I got from Hilary Biller who is the editor of the Sunday Times Food Weekly.

I added some grated parmesan cheese for added richness to the dough and it worked really well. Caramelising the onions is the part of the recipe that takes the most time. Making the scone dough is easy and then it is just adding the topping ingredients and baking the tart. Best to serve hot with a wedge of lemon as it comes out of the oven but I had it cold after photographing and it was still absolutely delicious.

Pissaladière

The pissaladière will also make a great lunch or dinner, served with a crunchy fresh salad

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Pissaladière

Pissaladière

Ingredients
  

  • Base:
  • 225 g self-raising flour
  • 55 g butter
  • ¼ cup finely grated mature hard cheese like parmesan
  • 120 ml full cream milk
  • Topping
  • 50 ml Baleia Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 750 g large onions peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 fat clove garlic crushed
  • 1 tsp dried mixed herbs
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 100 g anchovy fillets in oil
  • pitted and halved black olives

Instructions
 

  • Pre-heat the oven to 210°C
  • Line a baking tray with baking paper
  • Cook the garlic in the oil over a medium heat until soft
  • Add the onions and herbs and cook uncovered over a medium high heat for about 20 – 30 minutes, stirring occasionally until the onions are golden brown
  • Season with black pepper and set aside
  • Sift the flour into a large bowl
  • Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs and stir in the cheese
  • Add the milk slowly and use a fork to bring it all together to make a soft dough that does not stick to the bowl
  • Roll out into a rectangle on a floured surface and carefully roll the dough onto the rolling pin and unroll onto the lined baking tray
  • Use your hands to shape the dough to cover the baking tray and cut off any parts of dough hanging over the edge
  • Spoon the fried onions on top of the dough
  • Drain the anchovies and arrange in a diamond shaped pattern over the onion filling
  • Stud each diamond with a halved olive
  • Bake for 20-25 minutes until the tart is golden brown and the dough is cooked though.
  • Cut into squares and serve immediately

This recipe first appeared in the Sunday Times Food Weekly

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