20 January 2010

Pizza Sfincioni

A few additional notes on this recipe:

I did not use the panko the recipe calls for. Not that I have anything against panko, it is just with all the bread that is always around the house, I don't have much of a need to buy bread crumbs. I used sourdough crumbs made from some stale bread heels I had in the freezer. Chopped the bread into cubes and tossed it in the food processor for a nice, long ride. And I did not even bother to dry the crumbs. By the time they baked in the oven with the oil and herbs, they were plenty dry and crunchy. So no need to run out and buy panko if you have any type of "plain" bread in the house.

And I did not use the "Pizza Dough Flavor" nor the "Pizza Seasoning" (both sold by King Arthur Flour). I simply omitted the "Pizza Dough Flavor". To substitute for the "Pizza Seasoning" in the sauce, I used a tablespoon of dried basil, and a half teaspoon each of oregano and thyme. And added a fresh garlic clove, minced with a garlic press, just before adding the tomatoes to the onions. For the "Pizza Seasoning" in the crumb topping, I used some onion powder, garlic powder, dried oregano, dried thyme and dried basil. How much? Some. Start with a half teaspoon of the onion, garlic, oregano and thyme and a full teaspoon of the basil. Mix together with the crumbs and oil and add more onion/garlic/herbs (and salt?) to taste.

Lastly, the word "Sficioni". Italian, of course, Sicilian, specifically. There are quite a few spelling variations: sfinciune, sfincione, sfinciuni, sfincioni. Using the alternate spelling of "sfincione", I found the pronunciation here, at this totally cool site (I think I could listen to that guy speak all day long).

So now that you can say it and you don't have to make a run to the store for the panko and/or mail-order specialty seasoning mixes, you have no excuse not to make it yourself. Unless... click.

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