Cooking The Books

Pizzette Fritte Ripiene

I lay in bed recently, having woken up about 6am due to the sunlight, thinking about the fact I'd not deep-fried anything for a while - as you do.  Straight away my thoughts went to buffalo wings, the planned next installment of my fried chicken series that was long overdue.  This thought stayed with me through the first couple of hours of the morning.  I'd got so far as planning a quick 5.30pm supermarket trip for the wings, squeezing it in after work and before I hopped in the car and went to meet the missus for a climbing session, ready for some late night frying.  I was pondering how to treat the wings, did I go with nothing but salt or would a light dusting of flour give the perfect texture, when a random tweet about pizzette fritte ripiene knocked any thoughts of buffalo wings for 6.

If you've not heard of them, and I hadn't, pizzette fritte ripiene are like little mini calzone, tiny folded parcels of pizza dough, sealed to hold their filling but then, and this is the fritte part, dumped in 190C oil until golden.  Pizza already holds a very high place in my food-rankings and I've always said that deep frying improves everything so here was a chance to put it to the test.

Whilst these appear to be the exception that proves the rule (they equal pizza, but could you really improve it?) they are ridiculously tasty.  I'd never fried a bread dough before (and the coating here is just plain white bread) and it takes on the most fantastic texture, a light crunch giving way to dense chew. It seems to soak up very little oil either, remaining remarkably grease-free once drained on kitchen roll.  On the inside the mozzarealla melted as only mozzaralla does, the billowing folds striped with spicy oil rendered from the salami, the edge taken off the richness by the piquant artichokes.  Add the sweet sauce and some salty parmesan and - and I know I'm repeating myself, but - ridiculously tasty.

Pizzette Fritte Ripiene

Makes 10, a snack for 2-3.

Dough

120gr strong flour

70gr water

Big pinch salt

1/2 ts dried yeast

Filling (but you can use what you want)

125gr mozzarella

50gr fiery salami

3 bits of marinated artichoke (this was basically a quarter)

Sauce

The tomatoes from a tin

2 cloves of garlic

Pinch of fennel seeds

Salt

Parmesan to serve

Method

Make the dough, knead till smooth. Leave in a bowl under clingfilm for an hour or two.

For the sauce soften the chopped garlic in a little oil, along with the fennel seeds. Add the tomatoes then simmer for about 30 mins, mashing them up as you go.

Roll the dough out to about 5mm thick and cut into ten pieces, you can go rough and ready but I used a chef's ring.  You could cut into less and make bigger pizzettes too, obviously.

Place a tenth of each of the fillings in the middle of a piece and fold over, sealing well.

Deep fry at 190C till golden, drain well then place a teaspoon of sauce and a sprinkle of parmesan on each before eating.

Turkish Grilled Onion, Pomegranate Molasses and Sumac Salad

My end of London is filled with Turkish ocakbasis, literally filled.  A walk down Kingsland Road (or Stoke Newington High Street, where it changes I'm not too sure), even in winter, is redolent of a British summer, the air filled with smoke and the unmistakable scent of fat igniting as it hits the glowing coals.  Whilst all the restaurants serve the same gorgeous mix of lamb and chicken, off and on the bone, whole or minced into spiced adana, what comes with these kebabs varies between establishments, sometimes within establishments even where one week's grated carrot is another's cucumber, onion and tomato. 

For me the 6 balls plus bonus of this salad lottery is the charcoal cooked onion segments, their sweetness offset with tart pomegranate molasses, sumac adding fragrance and parsley its inimitable freshness.  I thought I'd give it a go at home this weekend and was very pleased with the result, and that was just using the kitchen grill.  If you're blessed with a barbecue I imagine it would be better still and it sits perfectly alongside any flame-grilled meats, Turkish or not.

Turkish Grilled Onion, Pomegranate Molasses and Sumac Salad

1 Large White Onion

A handful of flat-leaf parsley

A tablespoon or two of pomegranate molasses

1/2 ts sumac

Method

Cut the onion into eighths and skewer, either onto metal or bamboo that has been soaked.

Grill or barbecue over a high heat for a few minutes a side until nicely charred and softened through.

Remove onto a plate, breaking the segments up, drizzle with the molasses then scatter the parlsey and sumac on top, adding a sprinkle of salt if you want.

Serve as part of a mezze or any other meal you think it would go with.