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Swiss Chard, Dried Cherries, and Bacon Pissaladiere

Simple delicious soup with all the flavors and colors of spring!

Pissaladiere is basically a French pizza. I changed the dough recipe slightly to include whole wheat as a means of intensifying the flavor of the crust. In a home oven its often quite difficult to get a hearty rustic flavor emparted to the crust. Whole wheat has a heartier flavor but it runs the danger of becoming dry and overly crisp. To balance this out I added some all purpose white flour.

I chose the Swiss Chard, dried Cherries, and bacon as toppings to capitalize on the chard which is in season at the moment in Northern California. You can use almost any bitter green like collards, beet greens, or spinach if you can't find chard where you are. I paired up a little sweet and salty to compliment the bitter flavors of the chrad. Again you could subsititute any kind of dried fruit for the cherries like dried cranberries, apricots, or apples.

Ingredients

Conversions to European measurements can be found here!

1 7 gram packet active dry yeast
2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 cup warm water
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose white flour
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup warm water
2 bunches Swiss Chard chopped (thick stalks discarded)
4 cloves garlic crushed
2 small yellow onions halved and thinly sliced
1 cup dried cherries chopped
1/2 pound slab bacon cubed
8 oz plain chevre cheese
1/4 cup olive oil

Procedure

The first thing to do is make the dough. You'll need a couple of hours for the dough because you will need to let it rise and then punch it down then rise again. All told it will take about 1-1/2 to 2 hours.

First off put the sugar, 1/4 cup warm water and yeast into a small bowl. Stir the ingredients together until they are well mixed. Cover with a dry towel or paper towel and set the bowl in a warm dry place. I like to use my oven. Let the yeast sit for about 10 minutes then check to see if small bubbles have started to form on the surface of the water. This process is called proofing and bubbles "prove" your yeast is active. If you don't get any bubbles your yeast is no longer active and should be thrown out.

After proofing your yeast begin by sifting the flours and salt together in to a large mixing bowl (or into a kitchen aid style mixer). Through in all the yeast with its water and a few tablespoons of additional water. Being mixing the dough either by hand or with a mechanized dough hook. Add small amounts of water untill the douhg becomes moist and forms a ball. Knead the dough by hand for about 5minutes longer after forming a ball. If you are using a mixer just let it run for about 2 minutes. Remove the dough from the mixing bowl and set it in a warm, dark place with a moist towel covering it. Let it sit undisturbed for about 45 minutes.

After this hour has passed punch the dough down. Punching dough is pretty much what it sounds like just push your fist into the center of the dough to collapse it. You can flip the dough around if you like. Then cover it again and return it to a warm dark place. Let it sit undisturbed for another 45 minutes.

Preatheat your oven to 450

You can work on the topping while waiting for the dough to rise a second time. Begin by frying off the bacon in a large saute pan. Once the bacon is crispy remove it to a plate coved with a few paper towels to drain the grease. Pour off any excess grease from the pan and then add the garlic and onions. Saute over medium heat for 7-10 minutes or until the onions become very soft and translucent. Add the Swiss Chard all at once and cover quickly with a tight lid. Let the greens steam for a minute or so they will greatly reduce in volume and be more mangable with a spatula or tongs. Saute the greens for about 5 minutes or until completely wilted. Don't overcook try to retain the vibrent green color.

To make the pissaladiere roll the dough onto an oiled baking sheet. I just use my hands; the dough should be very soft and pliable at this stage and you can easily push it around to cover the baking sheet. Once you have rolled out the dough prick it with a fork 10 or so times everywhere except the border. Coat the dough with the 1/4 cup olive oil (except on the border). You can just use your hands to rub the oil around.

Sprinkle the sauted Swiss Chard onto the prepared dough evenly leaving a small border around the edge that has no oil or greens touching. Sprinkle with the bacon, dried cherries, and the chevre cheese. place the whole thing in the top rack of your oven. Bake for 25 minutes. Serve while still hot.