Calabrian Pitta

salad filling

1 cup oil-cured black olives pitted
1 cup green olives in brine drained and pitted
⅔ cup sliced fennel bulb
½ cup marinated artichoke hearts drained
1 small sweet red pepper cored, seeded, and cut into strips
2 garlic cloves minced
½ cup chopped mixed fresh basil, flat-leaf
parsley, and fennel leaves
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Fine sea salt to taste
1 loaf sponge dough bread (see recipe)

meat & cheese filling

¼ pound thinly-sliced Genoa salami
⅓ pound thinly-sliced Prosciutto
⅓ pound thinly-sliced capicolla
½ pound fresh or packaged mozzarella sliced
½ pound thinly-sliced provolone

Put the olives, fennel bulb, marinated artichokes, and pepper strips, in a food processor and coarsely chop. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and add the garlic, chopped herbs, and olive oil. Blend well and season with salt. Cover the bowl and set aside to marinate for several hours.With a bread knife, cut ½-inch lid off the top of the bread and set aside. With your fingers, pull out the interior crumb of the bread, leaving about a ¾-inch-thick shell. Reserve the inside of the bread for another use, such as homemade bread crumbs.

Spread half the marinated salad ingredients evenly in the bottom of the bread shell. Layer the meats and cheeses alternately on top of the salad. Spread the remaining salad over the top. Replace the bread lid. Wrap the bread tightly in aluminum foil. Place a heavy weight such as a cast-iron skillet or two clean bricks on top of the bread and refrigerate it for at least 6 hours or, even better, overnight.

An hour before serving, remove the foil and place the pitta on a serving plate. With a bread knife,

cut it into wedges while it is still cold (this will ensure neatly cut wedges). Let come to room temperature before serving.

Variation: Instead of flat layers of meats and cheeses, make rolled layers

by rolling slices of the cheeses and meats together into cylinders.

Sponge Dough Bread

Mother Dough
½ teaspoon active dry yeast
¾ cup warm (110° to 115° F) potato water
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

Second Dough
3½ to 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1¼ cups warm (110° to 115° F) potato water
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 teaspoon olive oil

In a medium bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water and let it proof for five minutes; chalky-looking bubbles will appear on the surface. Stir in the flour and mix well. At this point the mother dough will be the consistency of heavy pancake batter. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let the sponge rise for at least 3 hours or even overnight.

When the mother dough is ready, it should smell yeasty, look fluffy and light, and have a myriad of

bubbles appearing on the surface. The mother dough is now ready to be combined with the additional yeast,

water, flour, olive oil, and salt to make the second dough.

To make the second dough using a Fontana, heap 3½ cups of the flour on a work surface.

Add the salt and use your hands to mix the flour and salt together. Make a hole in the center of the flour with your fist.

Pour the water into the center, add the yeast, and stir with your fingers to dissolve the yeast. Let the yeast proof as above, then add the mother dough and the olive oil and mix well with your fingers. Working in a clockwise fashion, begin bringing flour from the inside of the wall into the yeast mixture with your fingers.

When a rough, shaggy mass of dough is formed, begin to knead the dough, adding additional flour as needed to make a smooth ball of dough that does not stick to your hands. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, then cover the dough with a towel and let it rest for 5 minutes. Repeat the kneading and resting 3 more times. Each time, you will notice that the dough is easier to knead than the previous time. This is because the flour is gradually absorbing the water in the dough and allowing the gluten in the flour to relax. The dough should become soft and no longer sticky, and it should move on the work surface with ease.

Spray a large bowl with olive oil spray or coat with butter. Put the dough in the bowl, turn to coat with the oil or butter, and cover the large bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise for about 1½ hours, or until doubled in size.

The dough is now ready to be used. It can also be frozen, which is useful if you want to use only half of the dough. Spray a heavy-duty plastic bag with vegetable oil spray, put the dough in the bag, squeeze out the air, and seal the bag. Freeze for up to 3 months.

To make the second dough in a bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water and let proof as directed above. Stir in the olive oil and the mother dough. Using your hands, mix in 3½ cups of the flour, about 1 cup at a time, until a shaggy dough is formed. Add the salt with the third addition of flour. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and begin kneading, adding additional flour as needed until a smooth ball of dough is created that is no longer sticky. Follow the directions above for kneading, resting, and rising.