Taramasalata with Homemade Pitta
Posted: May 9, 2010 at 8:31 pm
Serves 6
Ingredients
- 2½ thick slices of white bread, crusts removed
- 100ml whole milk
- 200g smoked cod’s roe
- 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
- Juice of 1½ lemons
- Sea salt and black pepper
- 275ml light olive oil
- A little milk (if needed)
- Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle
For the pitta bread:
- 450g strong white flour, plus extra to dust
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- 2 x 7g sachets fast-action dry yeast
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to oil the bowl
- 300ml tepid water
Method: How to make taramasalata with homemade pitta
1. First, make the pitta dough. Mix the flour, salt and yeast together in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre and pour in the extra virgin olive oil and most of the water. Stir to bring the mixture together into a ball, adding a little more water as necessary to get a soft, but not sticky, dough. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes until smooth. Put the dough in a lightly oiled clean bowl, cover with cling film and leave to rise in a warm place for about 2 hours.
2. To make the taramasalata, tear the bread into small pieces, place in a bowl, pour over the milk and set aside to soak. Cut away any hard bits of skin from the cod’s roe, then place the roe in a food processor along with the garlic, lemon juice and a good grinding of pepper. Add the soaked bread and blend to a smooth paste. With the motor running, gradually trickle in the light olive oil through the funnel. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper and add a touch more milk if the taramasalata seems too oily. Spoon into a bowl.
3. When the pitta dough has roughly doubled in size, punch it down and knead briefly on a lightly floured surface for a minute. Divide into 12 equal pieces and shape into balls. Leave to prove in a warm place for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200°C/Fan 180°C/Gas 6 and put 2 lightly oiled baking trays inside to heat. Roll each dough ball out into an oval, 2–3mm thick. Transfer to the warmed baking trays and bake in the oven for 6–8 minutes until puffed up and light golden in colour.
4. Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil over the surface of the taramasalata before serving, with the warm pitta breads.