Nonna Lisa’s Tiella

Name: Nonna Lisa’s Tiella
Yield: makes 1 large tiella, serving 8 or more
Ingredients: 1 package (2 teaspoons) dry yeast; 1/4 cup warm water; 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for handling the dough; 1 1/2 cups semolina flour; 1 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt; 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar; 3/4 cup cool water plus more if needed; 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for the bowl; 1 recipe Escarole, Olives, and Caper Filling or 1 recipe Octopus Filling (recipes follow); A food processor fitted with the metal blade; A heavy ovenproof skillet with rounded sides, 12 inches across the top, or a deep-dish pie pan, 12 inches or wider (or an authentic 12-inch tiella pan!); A baking stone or pizza stone, if you have one; 2 pounds or more escarole; 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil; 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped garlic; 1/3 cup small capers, drained; 1/3 cup Gaeta olives, pitted; 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt; 1/2 teaspoon peperoncino flakes, or to taste; A heavy-bottomed, high-sided skillet or sauté pan, 12 inches in diameter or larger, with a cover; 4 pounds frozen, cleaned octopus (tentacles about 1/2 inch wide at thickest part); 2 bay leaves; 1 pound ripe plum tomatoes (4 tomatoes); 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil; 1 1/2 tablespoons sliced garlic; 2/3 cup Gaeta olives, pitted and cut in half; 1/4 teaspoon peperoncino flakes; 1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt; 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley; (makes about 4 cups of filling, for a 12-inch tiella)

December 14, 2011

Driving north from Naples to Rome, you are bound to come to Gaeta, and you should make a point of sampling some tiella there. Every time I am in that vicinity, I stop by and enjoy some tiella with Nonna Lisa Corrado, my son-in-law’s maternal grandmother. According to him, she makes the best tiella in all of Italy. Tiella is made in Naples and throughout Italy, but it is a specialty in Gaeta, a beautiful seaside town on the border of Campania (Naples) and Lazio (Rome) regions. So what is tiella? It is a thin-crusted deep-dish pizza, stuffed with different combinations of vegetables and fish—escarole, broccoli rabe, octopus, olives, ricotta and Swiss chard, artichokes, and any other vegetable that is in season. It is topped and sealed with the same dough and baked until golden. Every time I stop for a piece of tiella, Nonna Lisa teaches me another filling. I take notes, and then I enjoy. I now make them at the restaurants and at home in New York, for my son-in-law. He enjoys them with a touch of nostalgia and following are two for you to enjoy.

Recipe notes

Caramelized Onion Pasta

Turn humble onions into this thrifty yet luxe pasta dinner.

Vodka Gochujang Pasta

This pasta has some really big energy about it. It’s so extra, it’s the type of thing you should be eating in your bikini while drinking a magnum of rosé, not in Hebden Bridge (or wherever you live), but on a beach on Mykonos.

Our Favorite French Onion Soup

Caramelized onions, melty Gruyère, and a deeply savory broth deliver the kind of comfort that doesn’t need improving.

Smothered Italian Sausage

This is what I call a fridge-eater recipe. The key here is getting a nice sear on the sausage and cooking the tomato down until it coats the sausage and vegetables well.

Béchamel Sauce

This classic 15-minute sauce is your secret weapon for homemade mac and cheese, chowder, lasagna, and more.

White Bean Turkey Chili

A dash of cocoa powder adds depth and richness to the broth of this easy turkey chili.

Golden Mushroom Soup With Orzo & a Pat of Butter

This is the type of soup that, at first glance, might seem a little…unexciting. But you’re underestimating the power of mushrooms, which do the heavy lifting.

Baked Butter Paneer

I should address the awkward truth that I don’t use butter here but cream instead. You could, if you’re a stickler for tradition (and not a heretic like me), add a big slab of butter to the finished curry.