Classic Provencal Pissaladière

Classic Provencal Pissaladière

from thespruceeats.com

A classic Provencal Pissaladière is a favorite French dish, no wonder when made of onion confit, puff pastry, anchovies, and olives.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 6 yellow onions (chopped)
  • 2 teaspoons demerara sugar (raw sugar)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
  • 1 sheet Puff pastry (thawed)
  • 20 canned anchovy fillets (drained)
  • 20 black olives in oil (drained)
  • 2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil (preferably French)
  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme (chopped)

Directions

  1. 1

    Gather the ingredients.

  2. 2

    Preheat oven to 350 F.

  3. 3

    Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.

  4. 4

    Add the onions and demerara sugar and sauté, frequently stirring, until the onions become tender and start to turn golden at this point, be very careful not to burn the onions as this can leave a very bitter taste to the whole dish.

  5. 5

    Sprinkle the cooked onions with salt, pepper, and thyme.

  6. 6

    Stir the mixture and transfer the skillet to the preheated oven.

  7. 7

    Cook for 20 to 30 minutes, occasionally stirring, until the onions are wilted, very soft, and are a medium gold throughout, again check for burning.

  8. 8

    Add the vinegar during the last 5 minutes of cooking.

  9. 9

    Remove from the onions from the oven and set them aside to cool while preparing the pastry for the pissaladiere.

  10. 10

    Raise the oven temperature to 425 F.

  11. 11

    Press the thawed pastry into a rectangle on a 12-inch by 18-inch baking sheet, building it up a bit around the edges.

  12. 12

    Spread the pastry with the onion confit, leaving 1 inch of dough uncovered around the edges of the pastry.

  13. 13

    Arrange the anchovy fillets and olives on the pissaladière in a criss-cross pattern then place an olive into each rectangle pattern to make an attractive looking tart.

  14. 14

    Bake the tart for 15 to 25 minutes in the center of the heated oven until the pastry has puffed up, turned golden, and crisped.

  15. 15

    Remove the pissaladière from the oven and sprinkle the olive oil and fresh thyme across the hot surface of the tart.

  16. 16

    Cut it into rectangles and serve very warm or at room temperature. Enjoy!