PISSALADIERE RECIPE – THE QUICK AND EASY (ALYCE) WAY

Hi. This is Alyce speaking. Or Al-ees, as the French say. I chained Jean-Luc to his computer to write. Also so he can’t see me make my E-Z pissaladiére (or the spelling of easy). Pissala is a fish paste made from sardines and anchovies. I’ve left it out. This is supposed to be quick and easy, and I’ve already added more time with the tomatoes — which are a big no-no in J-L’s eyes. Trust me, this is plenty pungent without the paste. Anchovies alone are enough to cross it off a lot of people’s list, especially with onions, garlic and olives as well. But it’s one of the first things Jean-Luc taught me how to make (Chapter 17 of Opposites Attack) so I’ll always have a soft spot for it. He calls it “what your American pizza wishes it could be.” And remember to put a pretzel in your mouth while slicing the onions. Just rest it between your lips. Your eyes won’t tear. 

If you want to do it his way and make the dough, be my guest. This is how I do it. As always, use fresh, local produce if you can. First, you need music. Well, I need music. This is what I listened to while I made this. Of course I had ear buds on or J-L would have stormed out of the house.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients for TWO pissaladiéres (The extra one is for Liliane and her family–Jean-Luc’s sister.)

• 2 pizza doughs already made but not frozen. They look like a big blob. (Some people use phyllo dough.)
• Shallots and onions, about 1-1/2 to 2 pounds. Traditionally this is made with onions but I think it’s better with lots of shallots and a few onions.
• Tomatoes, about 8 large ones or a quart of cherry tomatoes (or mix them like I did). Now, J-L HATES when I add tomatoes but I like them if I have the time. So leave them out if you like.
• 1-3 cloves of garlic (how many depends on how much you like garlic)
• 3 tbl olive oil, more or less (preferably French like Puget or A l’Olivier)
• 2 tbl butter, more or less (J-L thinks it’s very un-French to use butter and, believe me, I’ve cut way back on how much I use. No harm in just a smidge!)
• 2 bay leaves (optional)
• Salt
• Pepper
• Thyme and Rosemary. Fresh (several sprigs) or dried (1 tbl thyme. 1 tsp rosemary) Jean-Luc insists you should only use fresh herbs, with the exception of oregano. I disagree. I decided not to use rosemary in this one because I was rosemaried-out from using it so much lately. A little goes a long way.
• Anchovies. I think the best are from an international market or specialty store, not the supermarche.
• About 25 black or green olives, or both (your preference) that you’ll slice in half. I buy them already pitted. You can guess which ones J-L buys. He comes up with every excuse imaginable to create more time in the kitchen so that he doesn’t have to write.
• A dash of cornmeal
• You don’t really need the Meyers lemons but they’re so pretty and smell divine I put them in the photo

Chop the tomatoes into bite-size pieces or halve the cherry tomatoes. I know seeding is a pain but it really does taste better if you can minimize them. Don’t make yourself crazy about it. Put them in a strainer (otherwise the outcome will be rather soggy). I can hear J-L now. “Put the seeds in the strainer?” No! The tomatoes, you knucklehead.

Chop the onions and/or shallots into thin slices. Heat the olive oil in a large pan (cast iron is my favorite) on a medium flame and add onions/shallots/garlic. Plop the butter in. You can add more if you like. I like a hint of it. Add salt and pepper to taste, and the thyme, rosemary and bay leaves. Stir together. Stop to take a deep inhalation. Orgasmic, isn’t it? Your kitchen will still have this aroma the next day so you better like it.

Lower flame under the skillet and heat oven to 450˚F/232˚C

Continue to caramelize the onions/shallots with lots of stirring. Don’t let them brown. Add the tomatoes. Stir some more. What the heck, squirt half of a lemon in there. Meyers lemons are the best.

Gently rinse the anchovies so they’re not super salty and dry them on a paper towel. They’re very delicate (Who gets the skin off these tiny things anyway? It can’t be a machine, can it? I’m afraid to ask J-L or he’ll spend 20 minutes explaining it. Feel free to google and get back to me.)

Sprinkle cornmeal on either a pizza stone or baking sheet. Roll the dough around in it as you knead it. Then use a rolling pin to flatten it out as much as possible.

Spoon the skillet mixture over the dough until it comes close to the edge. Now you’re going to criss-cross the anchovies then add the olives in between like this.

Bake until the crust is golden brown, about 12-15 minutes. Let it cool a bit before digging in. Wait. You know what I forgot to add? Lavender! The culinary kind. Just a soupçon when you’re caramelizing the onions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you have leftovers, try some in the morning or at lunch with eggs over easy. Gotta run. Jean-Luc just heard the timer go off and will be down in moments to inspect/avoid writing. Let me know how yours turns out!