Gennaro’s
Italian Bakery
For me baking is an almost magical process; it never ceases to amaze me that a few simple basic ingredients mixed together and placed in the oven produce such incredible, mouth-watering delicacies the world over craves.
Take cakes, for instance, that mushy mixture made up in a bowl transforms into something wonderful, giving pleasure to many; it may be for a birthday or just simply to enjoy at teatime, but is always a joy.
“…the smells of home baking are heavenly, filling the house with a warm feeling and irresistible aroma no air freshener can ever match!’
Gennaro
Whether you bake or not, are an expert or just like to try a recipe from time to time, I think everyone loves the idea of home baking.
The taste of any home-baked product can never be matched by commercially-produced goods.
Torta Salata Con Fave é Carciofi
Savoury pie with broad beans and artichokes
Savoury pies like this one were often made when I was a child in Italy especially on bread making days when we had leftover dough and whatever produce was around would be used as a filling.
This pie is ideal to make during Spring when fresh broad beans are available, however, it is just as good with frozen ones. If you are using fresh, remember to remove the skin after podding. The addition of preserved artichokes really gives a kick to this dish. And with the added potatoes, this is a substantial meal in itself.
Method
- Dissolve the yeast in the water. Combine flour, salt and butter in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre, gradually pour in the yeast mixture and mix well to form a soft dough. Knead on the work surface for 10 minutes, then form into a ball, cover with a cloth and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees centigrade.
- Peel the potatoes and slice into 1 cm thick rounds, place them on a lightly oiled baking tray, sprinkle with some salt & pepper and drizzle with some more evo. Roast in the hot oven for about 10 minutes until golden and cooked through. Remove from the oven and set aside.
- Heat the evo in a frying pan, add the shallots and broad beans and saute until soft. Remove from the heat and leave to cool. Once cool, combine with the artichokes, prosciutto, egg yolks, milk, parmesan, some salt & pepper to taste. Set aside.
- Take the dough and divide into two. Take one piece and roll out to line a pie dish. Fill the pie with the vegetable filling. Roll out the other piece of dough and cover the pie sealing well so that the filling does not escape. Prick all over with a fork. Bake in the oven for about 35 minutes until golden.
- About halfway through cooking time, brush the top of the pie with some beaten egg yolk. Remove from the oven when cooked, leave to rest for 5 minutes and serve.
- Delicious served hot or cold.
Ingredients
4 – 6 servings
For the dough:
10 gr x fresh yeast
150ml lukewarm water
250 gr strong bread flour
pinch of salt
25 gr butter, cut into pieces and softened at room temperature
For the filling:
300 gr potatoes
2 x tablespoons evo
1 x banana shallot, finely chopped
150 gr broad beans
1 x 285gr jar of preserved artichokes (discard the oil)
70 gr Parma ham, roughly chopped
3 x egg yolks, beaten
3 x tablespoons milk
40 gr grated parmesan
salt & pepper
1 x egg yolk, beaten, for brushing
1 x round pie dish approx. 23cm in diameter lined with greaseproof paper
Dan Jones
