Sfincione....Sicilian Pizza

Romano1970 · Mem Joined: Sep 02, 2009 Posts: 97 Location: Colorado

Here is a recipe that I learned from two of my good friends that moved here 21 years ago from Palermo. It is called a Sfincione....basically a bread and San marzanno tomatos.

Either make your own Dough or go to your local pizzeria and by one or two balls.

Preheat the oven to 400 and roll out the dough on a rectagular sheet. Coat the bottom of the sheet with EVOO. Place the dough on the sheet and let it slightly brown.

While the dough is browning. Take a saute pan and take one red onion slice thinly andsaute for 5 minutes.
Add the two big cans of Cento, San Marzanno tomatos, while they are cooking (for 15 minutes) crush them down into smaller pieces.
Once this is done take 1 to 2 cups of breadcrumbs and add it to the tomatos and onions. This should make a paste like mixture. The consistence of oatmeal.
Take the pizza dough( which should be nicely browned on the edges) and layer the tomato paste on the dough.
You can add anything to the top of this that yo would like. NO cheese though.
Let this bake for another 5 to 7 minutes.Take out and cut into rectangular pieces.
My family and also my friends from Palermo like capers or raisins to it.

Enjoy....

liviomoreno · Posted: Mon Mar 28, 2011 2:59 am Post subject: Re: Sfincione....Sicilian Pizza

That's weird, all the recipes that I've seen require the typical Sicilian cheese Caciocavallo

nuccia · Last edited by nuccia on Tue Mar 29, 2011 3:41 am; edited 1 time in total

I have a neighbor who hates cheese on anything Livio so all the pizza's they make have none. I'll tell you though - I love cheese and would pile it up on my pizza if I could! Unless I make onion pizza - then I just put sauteed onions on it.

But I was talking with my son last night who happens to be in Italy right (and who has decided he is now an expert about Italy). He said that our North American versions of Italian foods, behaviours and cultures are vastly different than in Italy. So I can see how the above recipe has changed. Could be possible the cheese was originally difficult to find in the US or too expensive to purchase so it was modified at some point.

liviomoreno · Posted: Tue Mar 29, 2011 3:31 am Post subject: Re: Sfincione....Sicilian Pizza

Also my father did hate cheese and cheese was banned from the house. During WWII he accepted that my mother would buy some cheese but she could not serve during the meals if he was sitting with us at the table!
Your son is correct: "North American versions of Italian foods, behaviours and cultures are vastly different than in Italy" and this also applies to England...

Romano1970 · Mem Joined: Sep 02, 2009 Posts: 97 Location: Colorado

When we were growing up in NJ, my mother and father stayed away from dishes with sauce most of the time. Most of what we ate was "Dry meals" no sauces. They used to tell us all the time that theyy themselves grew up on seafoods, veggies and meats. mostly in that order. Sauces came mostly on the weekends.

But everything had Olive oil and or Garlic.

Miss those days.