Ligurian Thin Crust Foccacia

By klodge76

Italian appetizer recipe from the Sunnyside restaurant in Warren, RI

Ingredients

• For the Foccacia:
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp white wine vinegar or lemon juice or cider vinegar or white wine
• 1/2 cup cool water
• For the filling:
• 1 1/2 cups leeks, white and pale green parts only, cut into thin half moons and wash well. Disgard tops.
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Salt to taste
• 1/8 tsp of ground nutmeg
• Several grindings of the peppermill
• 1/2 cup mascarpone or ricotta cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano

Details

Servings 6

Preparation

Step 1

For the Foccacia:
1. Add flour and salt to workbowl of a food processor and pulse to combine.

2. Add olive oil and vinegar and pulse.

3. Add water and process until a ball forms. Remove the dough from the food processor, divide into 2 balls, rub with additional olive oil and let rest on your counter, covered for 2-3 hours.

Note: The dough can be made a day in advance and stored in the refigerator overnight. It must be room temperature before cooking.

For the filling:
1. Slowly stew the leeks in a small covered saucepan with the olive oil, salt, nutmeg and pepper. Stirring occassionally, the leeks should take 20-30 minutes to soften and become fragrant. Turn off the heat and let the leeks cool.

2. Combine the mascarpone and parmigiano in a small mixing bowl and stir with a fork to combine. Season with a pinch of salt to taste, if desired.

To serve:
1. Preheat the oven to 450F

2. Generously oil a large cookie sheet or pizza pan

3. Sprinkle flour on a smooth surface (or use a piece of parchment paper) and roll out one ball of foccacia dough to a circle about 16" in diameter. The rolled out dough should be as thin as possible. Place the rolled out dough on the prepared oven pan.

4. Dot the top of the dough with the leeks and the ricotta-parmigiano mixture.

5. Roll out the second dough and place it on top of the foccacia. Crimp the edges together and using very clean scissors, make several small incisions in the top of your focaccia to let steam out.

6. Brush the top with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt and bake for about 10 minutes until the dough is golden brown.

7. Remove the oven and serve hot.