Pizza di Scarola

Traditional Neapolitan Recipe

You will need:

Scarola - 200g

Flour (Type '00') - 700g

Salt - 20g

Dried Yeast - 4g

Extra Virgin Olive Oil - small amount

Method

Gently pour the flour and the yeast into a large mixing bowl, and add a small amount of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and water - at room temperature. Knead for approximately 1 minute and then add the salt. Transfer the dough to a pastry board and continue to knead.

Knead until you get an elastic dough (adding a little more oil/water as necessary, but careful to not add too much). Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl - the bowl previously used for mixing is ideal. Cover the bowl securely with cling film and put it in the oven - just with the light on. Leave it to rise. The dough must triple in size. The time needed for this will vary according to how much yeast you have used, and the temperature inside the oven (from 2 to 4 hours).

Oil a 30cm x 22cm pan. Drain the scarola. Roll out the dough into 2 rectangles (about 5mm thickness), one slightly smaller than the other. The larger dough will be the base. Lay it in the pan and spread the scarola on top. Next place the smaller dough rectangle on the top as a lid.

Fold the edges of the larger dougn base inwards and pinch together with the lid, sealing well with the prongs of a fork, and prick the surface. Leave to rise for 1 hour covered lightly with plastic wrap in a place away from drafts.

Brush with a little oil and cook in the centre of a pre-heated oven at 200° (static) for about 30-35 minutes - until golden. Remove from the pan, cover with a cotton cloth, and allow to rest for 15 minutes before serving.

Delicious hot or cold.

Buon appetito.