Queue français in a Sanary-sur-Mer boulangerie to purchase, perhaps, a baguette, Pan Bagnat or Slice of Pissaladière. September 2011

My first taste of Pissaladière, a carmelized onion and anchovy tart, was 15 years ago at the Aspen home of my friend, Sistie. Sistie’s dinner invitations are treasured because she is a terrific chef, a made-from-scratch cook. Her appetizer that Winter evening was this tart, a concoction that requires time, patience and effort (a yeast dough and long caramelizing process).

When she lifted the baking sheet to place the tart on a platter, the sheet tipped and the tart hit the floor.  Besides being a talented chef, Sistie is a fastidious housekeeper. So, another guest, Renée, just scooped up the now-disheveled Pissaladière and plopped it on the platter.  It was delicious. We enjoyed it all-the-more because of its circuitous “oven-floor-table-mouth” journey.

 

 

The Real Deal – a classic Pissaladière.  Photo by Georges Vernon and Margaret Skinner

 

Pissaladière is a treasured Provençal staple and is sold, by the slice, in every boulangerie in the South of France. Because of it’s name,  I think of it as the “Frenchman’s Pizza”. However, its’ name actually derives from the anchovy paste, pissala, that is mixed into the sweet-tasting onion mixture to take it’s flavor ‘up a notch’.

My Version, without the decorative crosshatched-patterned anchovies

 

This is not a recipe for the faint-of-heart. As I said, making Pissaladière is an involved challenge but can be made-ahead, in parts, and thrown together later. Do not substitute puff pastry for the dough.

 

 

 

 

This week, I made this classic French tart, along with a salad and glass of wine, as a light dinner, and served it to my friend (and, good sport), Bill. Although I put anchovies into the onion mixture, I didn’t add the anchovy decorative crosshatch topping, suspecting it might be anchovy-overload for him. Trying to be positive, he remarked five times throughout the dinner how “delicious” the crust was, “just perfect”, he said.

 

Pissaladière is an “acquired” taste, I believe.  Although he is French, he clearly, at this point-in-time, hasn’t reached the “acquired” stage! This is a classic French recipe that every wannabe amateur baker should try and Dorie simplifies this recipe better than any other I’ve seen.

Bonne Chance

 

Along with a green salad, a lovely light dinner

To finish the meal, a perfect autumn dessert, rustic apple tart.