Fougasse aux Anchois

Ingredients: 

For one fougasse around 300g:

• 180g plain flour


• 110ml warm water


• 2g fresh yeast


• 1/2 tsp salt


• 10g roughly chopped anchovy filets


• 1 beaten egg


• Dish of water at the bottom of the oven

• Prep time: approx 1 hour


• Proving time: 2 1/2 hours


• Rest time: 50 mins


• Baking time: 25 mins

Instructions: 

• Make a pile of the flour directly on your workspace, with a 'well' in the middle


• Gently pour in the warm water and work into a dough


• Knead for a full 5 mins until smooth


• Form into a ball, cover with a damp cloth and leave to rest 35 mins


• Crumble in the yeast and work it into the dough for 5 mins


• Add the salt and do the same


• Work in the anchovies, the n form into a ball once more


• Cover with a damp cloth and leave to prove for 90 mins


• Once the ball has doubled in size, fold it in on itself


• Reforrm the ball and leave to rest a further 15 mins


• Roll out the dough into a rectangle approximately 3cms deep


• Place on a baking tray and slash with a sharp knife a few times, then pull at the sides of the rectangle to widen the slashes


• Leave to prove for a further hour


• Thoroughly glaze the fougasse in beaten egg


• Place in the preheated oven for 20-25 mins (don't forget the dish of water), keeping an eye on the colour


• If the fougasse browns too quickly, lower the temperature to 180

Pastry of The Week 3rd September: Fougasse aux Anchois

Well here we are with the inaugural Pastry Of The Week (POTW) as chosen by The Daughter: Fougasse aux Anchois. Thanks. That'll be easy.
Fougasse comes in many forms, some an oiled bread similar to focaccia, some, like Fougasse Aigues Mortes, more of a cake.  The Fougasse aux Anchois is a lattice made from either pastry or dough, I'm not sure; it has a pastry-like texture on the outside, but a doughier inside, with (as you may have surmised) chopped anchovies in it, and is a speciality of the South. It is very salty, crispy on the outside and moist and more bread-like on the inside.  I recommend smearing it with cream cheese, or using it as an accompaniment to a mild soup.
At this point I have no idea how to recreate it, so I will be spending some time researching this week.  Further bulletins as events warrant.
Catch you later, special llamas!

 

Pastry of The Week 3rd September: The Results

Being confused as to the nature of the dough/pastry for the fougasse as made by my favourite boulangerie, I did want to ask the boulanger but he was frantically busy evry time I was in there this week and I have no desire to rub him up the wrong way (oo-er).  I settled for trying a bread-based recipe from a book called 'Tous les Pains' that I bought 5 or 6 years ago and have never got around to using (despite bookmarking several recipes).
Looking at the results, I am now 100% convinced that the fougasse we bought was made with pastry and I will have to find a good time to pick the boulanger's brain.  I'm feeling pretty good about the fougasse I made, however.  It looks ok for a first attempt, and we will find out at apéro tonight how well I did as far as taste.
All-in-all, I could quite cheerfully boot The Daughter around the room for choosing that as the first Pastry Of The Week.  It took hours and hours to make, which is probably why the boulanger does a pastry version.  I will update with a verdict on the taste later.  The Daughter had better bloody well like it......

Pissaladière

Ingredients: 

For the topping:

• 6 tbsp olive oil


• 1 kg onions, peeled and thinly sliced


• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped


• 1/2 tbsp thyme


• 1 bay leaf


• 5 tbsp Tapenade


• 60g anchovy fillets in oil


• Handful of pitted black olives

For the base:

• 7.5g dried yeast


• 1 tablespoon olive oil


• 1 teaspoon sugar


• 1 teaspoon salt


• 300g flour

Prep time: 2 hours

Oven time: approx 20 mins at 220

Instructions:

For the base:

• Put aroung 100ml of warm water in a jug or bowl


• Sprinkle in the yeast, sugar and salt


• Place somewhere warm until it begins to bubble.


• Measure out the flour, drizzle in the olive oil and rub together


• When the yeast mixture is bubbling, pour into a well in the middle of the flour and mix.


• Work the mixture, adding more warm water as necessary to form a dough.


• Knead for appox 10 mins until smooth.


• Place back in the bowl, cover with a cloth and leave to rise for approx 1 hour, until doubled in size.


• Punch down the dough, roll out to roughly same shape as your baking tray


• Lightly brush baking tray with oil, place dough on tray


• Cover and leave to rest 10 mins before adding topping

For the topping:

• Heat the oil in a saucepan with a tight lid


• Bung in the onions and stir until onions are covered


• Reduce heat to minimum and place lid firmly on and allow to simmer, stirring occasionally


• Once onions are softened and transparent, add garlic, thyme, bay leaf and a little salt and pepper


• Cover and cook for a further 5-10 mins, remembering to remove the bay leaf once done


• Spread the tapenade on the base, then distribute the onion mixture evenly over the top


• Place the anchovies evenly over the surface, traditionally in 'x' patterns, adding the olives at the end.


• Bake for approx 20 mins until crust is golden.

Tapenade

Ingredients: 

• 300g olives (remove pits after weighing)


• 3 anchovy fillets


• 1 large garlic clove


• 2 tbsp pine kernels


• 1/2 tbsp capers (rinsed to remove excess brine)


• 120ml extra virgin olive oil (needs to be decent quality as will be consumed uncooked)


• Juice of half a lemon


• Salt and pepper to taste

• Prep time: 5 mins


• Refrigeration time: 24 hrs

Instructions: 

• Place olives, anchovies, garlic, pine kernels and capers into a blender


• Blend until it forms a course paste


• Add olive oil, lemon juice and seasoning and blend for a further 15 seconds or so


• Place in a clean jam jar (or similar), close tightly and refrigerate for 24 hours

Olive Your Guests Will Want The Recipe

Boom! Another quality pun, brought to you by the Queen of Prevarication. ( For someone who wishes to be a published author, I spend a lot of time avoiding my keyboard.)

Today, imaginary readers, I offer you my tried and tested recipe for Tapenade, an olive-based spread for snacks and hors d'oeuvres, as well as for use in other recipes, such as the comically-named Pissaladière.

Tapenade can be made from either green or black olives, but we as a family prefer black. They needn't be expensive ones, tinned ones will do.  Some may find the inclusion of anchovies in the ingredients a little off-putting, but they combine with the others to make a well-rounded, savoury flavour.  It has a strong taste, but one that is redolent of the sunny Mediterranean cuisine that I love. It can be eaten on the day of preparation, but I find it is best made 24hrs in advance to give the flavour time to mature.  Sealed in an air-tight jar and refrigerated it will last up to a week. Serve in a bowl, accompanied by slices of baguette, allowing guests to spread their own according to taste.

Tapenade

Ingredients: 

• 300g pitted olives


• 3 anchovy filets


• 1 large garlic clove


• 2 tablespoons pine kernels


• 1/2 tablespoon capers (rinsed)


• 100ml extra virgin olive oil


• Lemon juice


• Salt & pepper

Instructions: 

• Put olives, anchovies, garlic, pine kernels and capers in a blender and chop til fine.


• Add oil, lemon juice and a generous pinch each of salt and pepper.


• Place in an airtight container (I usually use an old olive jar or similar) and refrigerate for 24 hours to allow the flavour to mature.


• Delicious smeared on slices of fresh baguette or toast.