Last week, Rick DeLorenzo gave us a DVD called Pie Eyed the Movie. It’s about Trenton-style tomato pies. Inside the jacket there was a recipe to make a tomato pie. I don’t know if it measures up to what Rick makes, but here is the recipe for all to try. If you are interested in buying Pie Eyed the Movie. click here.
Note: Tomato Pie is a type of pizza. It is not like apple pie with tomatoes.
Dough Ingredients:
.25 oz pkt active dry yeast
1/4 tsp granulated sugar
3/4 cup 110 degree water
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
Dissolve yeast and sugar in water; allow to rest for 8 minutes. In a separate bowl, combine flous and salt and pour yeast mixture over flour mixture and mis well with a heavy spoon. Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for 2 minutes.
Sauce Ingredients:
1 can plum tomatoes
(preferably packed in tomato juice rather than a thick puree)
2 medium garlic cloves
3 or 4 fresh minced basil
(or a shake or 2 dried minced basil – to taste)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Empty contents of tomato can into mixing bowl and mash the whole tomatoes into smaller pieces so that the mixture is pulpy.
Add garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper and mix. The sauce can be used immediately, but has a more refined flavor if covered and left in the refrigerator for about an hour. This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for about 1 hour if properly covered.
Preparation and assembly of your Trenton Style Tomato Pie
Dough mixture
Sauce mixture
Equal parts of grated Romano and parmigiana cheese to taste
Grated or slice mozzarella cheese.
Preheat oven to 500 degrees
Start with a ball of dough approximately 3 to 4 inches in diameter or about the size of a medium fist. Roll it out to the size of the pan you are using. (a thin 16″ perforated aluminum pan is recommended) Roll the dough out uniformly to a thickness of approximately 1/16″ taking care not to make holes in the dough. (Sometimes holes are inevitable. If a hole does appear, just pinch the dough around it and close it up.)
Gently place the dough in the pan. You can either trim off the sides of the dough overlapping, or just roll it back until it fits into the pan. For a special treat, take some grated cheese and roll it in the overlapping dough. Brush on a very thin layer of olive oil. (infused oil is great, i.e. Basil, truffle, or garlic oil).
Spread the grated cheese blend around the sides of the dough and very lightly toward the middle. (The cheese and the sauce will gravitate to toward the center during cooking. This is the technique that will keep the tomato pie slice from “drooping” like pizza does)
Sparingly, ladle the sauce mixture around the pie. (Again, not too much in the center of the pie. It’ll spread out while cooking). Now, sprinkle or place the mozzarella cheese lightly over the top. Place pie in preheated oven for approximately 5 minutes.
Using a spatula, gently lift the edge of the pie and check if the bottom is browning. The pie should be a little crispy on the bottom. Don’t panic if the edges become a little brown. That’s good. When the pie is done, slide the pie out of the tray onto a dish or pan. Let it sit for about a minute.
Cut the pie across, then into small triangles.
Serve and enjoy!
