Sunday, January 12, 2014

Coca - Catalan Pizza

Flatbread

  • 225g strong flour plus extra for dusting
  • 3/4 teaspoon fine salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried yeast
  • 150ml tepid water
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
Place salt and flour in a large bowl, dissolve yeast in the water and add oil to the water. Tip the liquid into the flour and mix in with fingers to form a ball of dough. Tip dough onto a lightly floured board and knead for 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Smear a little oil in a bowl and roll the dough ball around in the oil, cover loosely with clingfilm and leave to rise in a warm place for an hour or 2 until doubled in size. Punch down then divide in half and roll each out very thinly.

Place on a hot pizza stone or oven tray, add topping (below) and bake for 10 minutes at the highest temperature your oven can go until the base is crispy. Remove from heat, drizzle the saved olive oil over the top and serve immediately.

Topping

  • 1 medium aubergine or eggplant chopped into 1cm dice,
  • 1 zucchini - thinly sliced,
  • 2 medium onions - thinly sliced
  • 2 capsicums or red bell peppers, halved lengthwise, seeds removed and thinly sliced,
  • 1 heaped tablespoon finely chopped rosemary
  • 150ml olive oil
  • 3 cloves of garlic - finely chopped,
  • 1 teaspoon fine sea salt.
Sprinkle the aubergine with salt and set aside. Gently saute the onions and a pinch of salt in the olive oil in a heavy based frying pan for about 15 minutes until soft. Add the capsicums and garlic and continue to saute for another 10 minutes until the capsicums are soft and sweet and the onions a golden colour. 

Drain the aubergine and pat dry then add with the zuchinni and rosemary to the onions.Cook for a further 10-15 minutes stirring frequently. Remove the pan from the heat, move the filling to one side of the pan and leave to rest on a slight angle to drain excess oil away from the filling. Don't throw away the oil!