Pissaladière is a French-style pizza, traditionally made with caramelized onions, oil-cured olives and anchovies but with no tomato sauce or cheese. Here we’ve replaced the olives with thinly sliced green tomatoes to create a dish with sweetness from the onions, saltiness from the anchovies and tartness from the tomatoes.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
On a silicone mat or floured surface, roll out the thawed puff pastry into a 10-by-15-inch rectangle and place it on a baking sheet covered with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Lightly score a Ÿ-inch border around the pastry with a paring knife and using a fork, pierce the dough in the center several times. Bake until just slightly golden, about 15 minutes.
To make the topping, heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Cook the onions, garlic, thyme, oregano, salt and pepper over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are just turning golden brown, about 30 to 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, slice the tomatoes as thinly as possible. A mandoline works best for this.
When the pastry is baked, spoon the onions into the center, spreading them to the marked border.
Arrange the tomato slices neatly on top of the onions. Brush with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Add the anchovies in a diamond pattern on top of the tomatoes.
Bake until the tomatoes are tender and pastry is golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 pounds yellow onions, peeled and sliced ¼-inch thick
2 cloves garlic, crushed
½ Tbsp. fresh thyme leaves (or ¼ Tbsp. dried)
½ Tbsp. fresh oregano leaves (or ¼ Tbsp. dried)
1½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 medium-sized round green tomatoes
12 to 18 oil-packed anchovy fillets
This article appears in Aug 1-31, 2009.