Puccette Salentine Alla Pizzaiola

If you’ve been on holiday in Puglia, Italy then you must have tried the Puccette Salentine alla Pizzaiola. They are so typical of their gastronomic culture and difficult to miss at the local pizzerias and takeaway bars. They are perfect little semolina buns packed with flavours, usually made with just black Leccino olives or alla pizzaiola, enriched with cherry tomatoes, onion, black Leccino olives and capers. These are perfect for Aperitivo (the Italian’s Happy Hour), birthday parties and gatherings as they are bite size and delicious. This is a really simple recipe but does require a bit of time for the dough to rest so it does require a bit of planning. Can be kneaded in the morning and baked in the evening or if you want you can knead the previous evening, put the dough in the fridge overnight and then bake for lunch the next day. 

Ingredients

• 370g re-milled durum wheat semolina (+ more for flouring)
• 130g 00 flour
• 400g water
• 2g dry yeast (or 6g of fresh yeast)
• 10g salt
• 100g black olives in brine (or Black Leccino Olives for more flavour)
• 1 onion
• 1 tablespoon salted capers
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• to taste extra virgin olive oil
• salt to taste
• 10 cherry tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons tomato puree

Preparation

Note: If you don't have a planetary mixer, do everything in a bowl easily following the same steps. The dough is very soft so don't worry and don't add flour.

First let's start with the seasoning: in a large pan, cook the finely chopped onion in plenty of oil. After 2-3 minutes, add the cherry tomatoes cut into small pieces and the tomato puree. Add a bit of salt and cook for about ten minutes over a low heat until the sauce thickens and the water evaporates.

During the last two minutes of cooking, add the pitted olives cut in half, the previously desalted capers and oregano to taste. Transfer the sauce to a plate and let it cool completely. In the meantime, prepare the dough.

Pour the 00 flour and the semolina flour into a planetary mixer or into a bowl (if kneading by hand). Add the dry brewer's yeast and mix everything with a spoon. If you prefer fresh brewer's yeast you can dissolve it in a little water from the recipe or crumble it directly into the flour.

At this point add 380g of water taken from the total and operate the planetary mixer with the leaf hook. After a minute, add the salt and the rest of the water. Knead for 4-5 minutes at medium speed (between 2 and 3). You don't need to string it perfectly. If you work by hand, knead for 5 minutes (always add the salt last) and if after these minutes you have difficulty working it, let the dough rest in the bowl for about ten minutes, then take it back and knead it for another 5 minutes.

Pour the dough into a large, oiled bowl and let it rest for 10 minutes covered with a cloth. Then add the seasoning and mix everything together with your hands. To incorporate all the sauce you can make folds in the dough or you can simply knead just long enough to combine the ingredients. Finally, cover the bowl with cling film and leave to rise until doubled. The time depends on the temperature you have in your home so from 4 to 7 hours.

When the dough has doubled in size, preheat the oven to maximum temperature.
Meanwhile, form the pucce by taking a little dough using a spoon. The pucce must not be too small or too large, in short, a nice full spoon.
The pucce do not have a precise shape so you don't have to worry. Prepare a plate full of semolina and then slide the dough from the spoon onto the plate (using your finger or another spoon). Flour the pucce delicately on all sides.

Place them on a baking tray covered with baking paper and bake in a preheated oven in the lowest part. As soon as you insert the pan, lower the temperature to 200°C. Cook for 20-25 minutes. In any case, check the cooking because every oven is different.

Fragrant and delicious!