The focaccia with potatoes, bacon, and saffron is the dish I chose to accompany the sparkling Malvasia di Candia Aromatica for the gastronomic challenge
#AromaMalvasia, in which I participate with the Italian Food Blogger Association. The initiative aims to promote knowledge of Malvasia di Candia Aromatica and the agri-food products of the Piacenza hills, intriguing people through recipes. In fact, Piacenza is a territory rich in churches and medieval palaces, enchanting hills cultivated with vines and olives, and exquisite cold cuts, and it is truly a shame not to visit it.
We are talking about a soft focaccia covered with Piacenza potatoes, sliced and seasoned with orange salt and rosemary. I served the focaccia warm, accompanied by freshly sliced DOP Piacenza bacon and a cold Val Tidone Saffron sauce. This simple focaccia proved to be perfect for enhancing the aromatic notes of the sparkling Malvasia di Candia Aromatica, which pairs well with cold cuts and savory dishes, and can be used for appetizers and aperitifs.
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 3 Hours
- Preparation time: 45 Minutes
- Portions: 4
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
I will not mention the DOP Piacenza bacon in the list of ingredients because, although fundamental, it does not represent a true ingredient, but is only the accompaniment of the focaccia. I recommend considering 1.8 oz of bacon per person.
- 10.58 oz all-purpose flour (For me, Terra Antica, from Alta Val Tidone)
- 7.05 oz Manitoba flour (optional. Using only all-purpose flour is fine too)
- 0.18 oz fresh yeast
- 0.35 oz rice malt (or a teaspoon of honey or sugar)
- 1 1/4 cups water (warm)
- 0.71 oz extra virgin olive oil (For me, Piacenza oil. About two tablespoons)
- 1 red potato (Piacenza)
- 0.35 oz fine salt (flavored with orange peel and rosemary)
- 1/2 cup water (warm)
- 2.12 oz extra virgin olive oil (for me, always from Piacenza)
- 0.35 oz coarse salt
- 0.35 oz coarse salt (about a tablespoon)
- 0.28 oz orange zest (untreated)
- 0.18 oz rosemary (fresh)
- 2/3 cup whole milk (or plant-based drink of choice)
- 1 1/4 cups corn oil
- 1 packet saffron (Val Tidone)
- 0.11 oz salt
- 0.18 oz orange zest (organic grated)
Tools
For kneading the focaccia, a stand mixer is very useful, but nothing prevents you from kneading by hand: our focaccia will turn out great in any case.
For whipping the cold saffron sauce, I recommend using an immersion blender and the tall glass provided.
- 1 Stand Mixer
Procedure
Let’s go through the steps one by one:
For kneading, I used the doses and the recipe of the Genoese focaccia, which I have been preparing for a long time in the home oven since I was born in Genoa.
Over the years I have borrowed some secrets from a baker friend and first-class pizza makers and now the result is more than satisfactory.
For this focaccia with potatoes I used a small baking tray (13.8×11.8 inches), to obtain a soft and fairly high focaccia that can be opened like a book and filled.
Therefore, the recipe to follow is this:
• Genoese focaccia in the home ovenWhile the focaccia is rising, let’s take care of the other preparations.
Peel a potato and slice it thinly. Then keep it in ice water, preferably in the fridge.
Wash an untreated orange carefully and, using a paring knife, peel the orange zest without the white part. You will need two rounds, just under half an orange. Wash the soft tips of three rosemary stalks, dry them and place them in the oven with a tablespoon of coarse salt: it will take about an hour at 176°F. After this time, the orange zest and rosemary should be dry (but not burnt) and the salt very fragrant. Once cool, we can blend the ingredients with a small mixer or a seed grinder, and we will obtain the aromatic salt that we will use for the potatoes, in the necessary quantity.
Dissolve the saffron with a few tablespoons of warm milk in a coffee cup.
Then pour the cold milk into the tall glass of the immersion blender, along with a pinch of salt; start blending at low speed while pouring the oil in a thin stream. As soon as the mixture starts to thicken, increase the speed, until you get a sauce very similar to mayonnaise. Then add the saffron and the grated zest of half an orange. Blend again, adding a bit of oil if necessary. Then store the cold saffron sauce in the fridge, well covered, until serving time.
Once the focaccia is spread out in the baking tray lined with parchment paper, make many small dimples using your fingertips. Then flood the dough with the brine, which is prepared by shaking a tightly closed jar containing warm water, salt, and oil.
At this point, drain and dry the potato slices and arrange them in order to cover the surface of the focaccia. Drizzle with oil and place in the oven (preheated to 392°F, fan), for twenty minutes.
After this time, take the focaccia out of the oven: it should be almost cooked, golden and fragrant. Once again, pour over the potatoes a mixture of warm water and oil (this time without salt): about five or six tablespoons will suffice. Then sprinkle each potato slice with aromatic salt and bake for another ten minutes. If necessary, you can turn on the grill for a few minutes, to brown the potatoes. Be careful not to burn the focaccia!
The focaccia is ready. Turn it over with the help of a cutting board, remove the parchment paper, and let it cool face down for a few minutes. Then we can turn it over again, cut it into slices, and serve it accompanied by DOP Piacenza bacon and cold saffron sauce. And don’t forget the Donna Enrica Malvasia di Candia Aromatica: fresh and sparkling, it will be the star of this aperitif.
If you like focaccia, check out my suggestions:
• Focaccia with olive pulp
• Focaccia with sage
• Potato and field herbs focaccia
• Lavender and Lemon: Luglienga focaccia
The Queen’s Thanks
Thank you to AIFB for allowing me to participate in the challenge #AromaMalvasia, guiding me to discover the Piacenza hills and in particular the Val Tidone, a territory rich in agri-food excellence and, above all, at the heart of the production of Malvasia di Candia Aromatica, an extraordinary wine with multiple nuances: sparkling, still, and sweet. Different wines that call for different pairings.
My simple focaccia with potatoes would not have been so good if it had not been prepared and served with the excellent raw materials of Piacenza, which I got to know thanks to the project Emilia Wine Experience. In fact, it is on the occasion of the Valtidone Wine Fest (in particular of the stage dedicated to Malvasia di Candia aromatica, and in collaboration with the Wine and Flavors Route of the Piacenza Hills) that this gastronomic challenge was launched among the members of the Italian Food Blogger Association, with the aim of promoting the knowledge of the Piacenza territory, its products, and its wines.
The Story of My Mystery Box
If you want to discover what was in the Mystery box and, above all, curiosities and news about Piacenza producers, read my article:
The road of the Piacenza Hills in a Mystery Box
in which I recount in detail the products, the wine, and what this experience has been for me.
For further exploration
Do you know Emilia Wine Experience?
“Emilia, land of gastronomic masterpieces where life is tasted and sipped”If you haven’t heard of it, follow the link and visit it: you will discover a portal that aims to collect all the Emilian gastronomic experiences and make them easily accessible to the public through the purchase of a simple CARD.
Do you know what the Valtidone Wine Fest is?
It is a food and wine event in the province of Piacenza, involving four municipalities
of the Val Tidone and taking place on the four Sundays of September. It will take us around the roads of the Piacenza hills, to discover unusual wines and flavors. Visit the link for all the information: September is yet to come.
