Photo credit: bbcgoodfood

My friend Marialana asked me about Pissaladiere last week. It had been a while since I thought about it. I would describe Pissaladiere as the south of France version of pizza, with an edgier side to it. You got to love those onions, olives and anchovies! Because of its strong flavors, this dish is often used as finger food during cocktail parties, never really as a meal like pizza would be here.

This recipe is borrowed from Epicurious.com (couldn’t put my hand on my own, but this one was close enough)

Pissaladiere

For 6 servings

Ingredients for crust

• 1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into1/2-inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons (or more) water

Ingredients for filling

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 1/2 pounds onions, thinly sliced (about 8 cups)
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 small bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1 tablespoon drained capers
• 20 Niçoise olives
• 16 anchovy fillets

Mix flour and salt in processor. Add butter and oil. Using on/off turns, process until mixture resembles coarse meal. Using on/off turns, mix in enough water 1 tablespoon at a time to form moist clumps. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 2 hours.

Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onions, garlic, bay leaf and thyme; stir to blend. Cover and cook until onions are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes. Uncover and sauté until most liquid evaporates and onions are golden, about 10 minutes longer. Stir in capers. Season mixture with salt and pepper. Cool completely; discard bay leaf. (Dough and filling can be prepared 1 day ahead. Keep dough chilled. Cover and chill filling. Let dough soften slightly at room temperature before rolling out.)

Preheat oven to 425°F. Lightly oil large baking sheet. Roll out dough on floured surface to 11-inch round. Transfer dough to prepared sheet. Crimp edges of dough to form stand-up border. Spread filling evenly over dough. Arrange olives and anchovies decoratively atop filling.

Bake pissaladière until crust is crisp and golden, about 30 minutes. Transfer to platter and serve.

Bon appetit!