Nothing but potatoes, flour, milk, and cheese to bring to the table a kind of really tantalizing savory pie. It’s the frandura, a humble dish typical of the Ligurian culinary tradition, particularly from Montalto. As always when I prepare regional recipes, I’m anxious. I expect comments telling me that I got this or that step wrong, that I forgot this or that ingredient, that I used something that shouldn’t have been used. So let me know if I was pretty close to the original recipe. I’ve read many and they all had the same procedure but different quantities of ingredients. The only variation I introduced is the use of type 1 flour instead of 0 or 00 flour generally used. I really like type 1 flour in rustic preparations, and that’s why I used it here as well. However, if you prefer, you can substitute it. In this case, check the quantity of milk because you might need a bit more.
Other rustic preparations with potatoes you shouldn’t miss:
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Cheap
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 6 people
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients for the frandura
- 21.2 oz potatoes (weight net of waste)
- 1.2 cups type 1 flour
- 0.85 cups milk
- 2 tbsps extra virgin olive oil (+ more for the baking pan)
- A few sprigs marjoram
- 2.5 oz grated parmesan (or pecorino)
- salt
- black pepper
Tools
- Potato peeler
- Mandoline
- 1 Bowl
- Hand whisk
- 1 Baking pan 28 cm diameter
Preparation of the frandura
Peel the potatoes, wash them, pat them dry with kitchen paper, and slice them thinly with a mandoline.
Grease a 28 cm diameter baking pan with oil, arrange the potato slices inside, and season with salt to taste.
Put the flour in a bowl with the salt. Then gradually add the milk and mix with a hand whisk.
Also add the oil and coarsely chopped marjoram. Mix everything well until you obtain a smooth batter without lumps.
Pour this batter over the potatoes, leveling it and trying to fill all the empty spaces.
Sprinkle the entire surface with the grated cheese and season generously with freshly ground black pepper.
Bake the frandura in a preheated static oven at 392°F for about half an hour or until it is nicely golden. I read recipes that indicated a time of 15 minutes, but in my case, the perfect cooking was at 28 minutes. You can try using a fan oven (which I didn’t do but could be even better).
Take the frandura out of the oven and let it cool for a few moments before serving. Enjoy! Paola
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