MORTADELLA AND FONTINA SLAB PIE || FOR THE NEW YEAR
Breaking news—the CDC says we should spend New Years at home (and get bangs, apparently…), so we just hit a major sale at one of those pop-up Christmas shops to stock up on sparkly straws and banners to make it special. Do I feel like cooking? Not especially—but I do want there to be bubbles and pomp and circumstance, for everyone’s sake. I have just enough energy to make one epic thing from scratch, and this will be it: Mortadella Slab Pie.
Have you ever made a slab pie? Like a giant pop tart, or an epic hand-pie? It’s something I grew up with—my grandmother was an amazing heirloom baker with the recipes for cobbler and sour cherry slab pies all sealed in her head. But even if yours wasn’t, you’ll find tons of recipes for slab pies floating around these days. They’re simpler to make than most round, deep-dish pies (sweet or savory) and perfect for serving a crowd.
This one, above, comes from my friend Stacey Adimando, author of the book PIATTI, and creator of many other amazing things (including many magazine articles, a darling daughter and a future business I can’t wait to get a peek at.) Stacey and I have worked together for years off an on, crossing paths at Saveur, Everyday with Rachel Ray, and Sunday Suppers. We are both NYC transplants to the Hudson Valley (her several years after me…we all find our way eventually). As importantly, we share a love of unfussy good living, the work that goes into sustaining a thriving kitchen garden, effortless entertaining, and— savory slab pies.
Her family is Italian—mine German-Scottish-Irish—but I’d like to think I was Italian in another life, or will be in the next. If nothing else, only to explain my deep affection for Mortadella, the fancy bologna-like charcuterie that often houses lardon and pistachio, cut into thin cross sections (See the second photo, below, if this is new to you). It’s a genius move to layer it into this simple slab pie with fontina and dijon, as sort of Italian ham-and-cheese croissant spin-off that I can readily imagine on a Christmas eve spread, or New Year’s Day brunch, alike. It would go with shaved salad (you know my stance on this) and Martini & Rossi pink sparking wine, (which my dad always served on Christmas and New Years—because he was Italian in another life, too). Lambrusco could work here just as well—something juicy and sparkly.
Give it whirl. We have only 2 or 3 days to indulge before the New Year, New You content hits hard, so let’s make it count.
RECIPE, BELOW.
MORTADELLA AND FONTINA SLAB PIE
This flaky, comforting puff pastry is reminiscent of a ham and cheese croissant, but without the labor of from-scratch pastry, and with tender, mustard-braised fennel. It also features Bologna, Italy’s supreme ham, mortadella, a delightfully floppy pink salumi with visible, delicate morsels of pork fat. You can find mortadella at many grocery stores and certainly Italian markets. The best versions contain little flecks of green pistachio.
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter (½ oz.)
1 medium bulb fennel, thinly sliced into ½ inch long pieces (1 cup)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp. Dijon mustard, plus more for serving
1 large egg
All-Purpose Flour, for dusting
1 sheet frozen puff pastry (7 oz.), thawed in the refrigerator (2-3 hours)
8 oz. very thinly sliced mortadella with pistachios
4 oz. shredded fontina (1 ¼ cups)
Make the filling: In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the fennel and season lightly with salt and pepper; cook, stirring frequently, until softened slightly, 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in the mustard and turn off the heat. Let cool slightly.
Meanwhile, set a rimless metal baking sheet onto the center rack of the oven or overturn a rimmed metal baking sheet (make sure it’s level), and preheat the oven to 400°F.
In a small bowl, beat the egg with 1 teaspoon of water. Set aside
Line a large, flat cutting board with a piece of parchment paper. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the puff pastry to a thin sheet about 14 by 15 inches in size. Carefully transfer the pastry to the parchment-lined board. Starting at one of the shorter sides, top one half of the pastry dough evenly with the mortadella slices, leaving a 1-inch border around the edges. Add half of the cheese, then the fennel mixture, then the remaining cheese. Brush the edges of dough nearest the filling with the egg wash. Then carefully fold the other half of the dough over the fillings, stretching lightly as needed to cover. Crimp with a fork to seal.
Brush the entire top and edges of the dough with the egg wash. Sprinkle the dough lightly with salt and pepper. Score the top surface of the pie a few times with a paring knife to help steam escape while baking.
Carefully slide the pie and the parchment paper onto the preheated baking sheet in the oven. Bake until golden brown on top and bubbling on the inside, and the bottom is solid and slightly browned, 25-30 minutes.
Remove and let cool for 5-10 minutes. Serve warm, cut into squares and with more Dijon mustard on the side.
PREP TIME: 25 MINUTES
TOTAL TIME: 1 1/2 HOURS
SERVES 8
** recipe and images belong to Stacey Adimando and should not be used or pinned without attribution. **
PHOTO // Linda Pugliese