Pizza Ebraica (Sweet Roman-Jewish “Pizza”)

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If you’ve been to the Jewish Ghetto in Rome, you might have come across Pizza Ebraica before. For those unfamiliar, Pizza Ebraica isn’t pizza at all. It’s actually a kind of cookie – a rather large cookie! Pizza Ebraica is a specialty from the Roman-Jewish culinary repertoire. (Which is a treasure trove of delectable delights!) It is a very rustic cookie, filled with nuts, raisins, candied fruit, oil, white wine, flour, almond flour and little else. It is surprisingly delicious.

Pizza Ebraica (Ebraica meaning Hebrew) is one of those dishes that I had read about before traveling to Rome and needed to try. I read constantly about Italian cuisine and have a huge list of dishes that I dream about sampling on my travels. This was one of those that I finally got to try two years ago. Ever since then, I’ve been kind of obsessed…

L’Antico Forno Boccione

Pizza Ebraica was supposedly created at the Antico Forno Boccione, in the Jewish Ghetto. It’s one of the few places in the city that has them. This completely nondescript bakery (meaning no signage anywhere…) is constantly flooded with people. In fact, if you don’t get there early enough, they frequently run out of things. They sell a variety of pastries such as Crostata di Ricotta e Visciole (a tart with sheep’s milk ricotta and sour cherries) and this rather bizarre Pizza Ebraica. Why bizarre? Well, it has to be one of the ugliest pastries I’ve ever seen in my life. It looks burned. (Nearly everything in the entire bakery looks burned!) However, that doesn’t stop the crowds, nor does it take away from how addictive these cookies are.

Rustic and delicious…

Due to their appearance, I can’t say that I was expecting much when I bought my first one. I don’t always love traditional desserts with candied fruit and nuts. Looking at these clunky, somewhat burnt cookies, I expected to like them even less! How wrong I was. I don’t know what it is about these cookies, but they are absolutely satisfying and utterly craveable! So much so that I can’t go to Rome without getting at least one or two. My husband adores them as well. The crispy, bitter, burnt bits on the outside are perfectly countered by an almost underdone interior. The effect is heavenly. The addition of salt in the dough adds the extra joy that one gets from combining sweet, nutty and slightly salty flavors. The contrast works perfectly to create something delectable. Looks aren’t everything!

Pizza de Beridde

Also called Pizza de Beridde, according to my research, these cookies were traditionally eaten at the celebrations of a baby boy’s ceremonial circumcision. Beridde seems to be a dialectal term for Brit Milah or Berit Milah, otherwise known as a bris. Nowadays, you can enjoy them whenever you want. Yippee!

The Recipe

Since I don’t get to Rome as often as I would like, I have wanted to try a recipe at home for some time now. Unfortunately, the original recipe is top secret. They are not about the publish this one it seems! I have had only one other sample of a Pizza Ebraica from a small bakery in another part of the city and the cookie was so disgusting that I had to throw it out. Hence, my quest to reproduce the cookie from Boccione as best I could.

After reading many recipes online and in some of my books, such as Joyce Goldstein’s Cucina Ebraica, I’ve come up with a version that I think comes pretty darn close. I have added no new twists on this classic and adhere strictly to what Boccione has in their cookie. It was my birthday this past weekend and we celebrated in Rome. To help me in my quest, I bought a Pizza Ebraica at Boccione so that I could test the recipe with the original nearby for a proper taste test. I’m very pleased with the results.

As I mentioned, the recipe is pretty darned simple. There is no leavening or egg, nor dairy of any kind. It’s completely vegan. Some recipes say to use butter, but that’s a no-no. Others mention candied orange, pumpkin, vanilla or lemon zest. I tasted none of those things in the original, so didn’t add them. Many recipes out there had a sweet wine in the dough but I tried that and it changed the color of the cookie and the flavor was overwhelming. White wine was just what I needed. When you make this recipe, get the best candied citron and cherries that you can find and chop them very coarsely. They should be rather chunky.

Enjoy the recipe! It’s perfect for people who don’t like sickeningly sweet desserts. If you’ve had Pizza Ebraica give these a go – you’ll feel like you’re in Rome. Happy baking!

L’Antico Forno Boccione – Via del Portico d’Ottavia, 1, 00186 Roma RM

Note: If you are visiting Rome and want to go to the bakery, they are closed on Saturdays. Check their hours before making the trek there.

Pizza Ebraica

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Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 4.2/5

( 17 voted )

Ingredients

• 200 grams (7 oz) almond flour
• 300 grams (10.5 oz) 00 or unbleached all-purpose flour
• 150 grams (5 oz) sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 125 ml (1/2 cup) neutral oil, such as sunflower
• 160 ml (5.4 oz) dry white wine
• 100 grams (3.5 oz) raisins
• 100 grams (3.5 oz) candied citron, 1/3" cubes
• 75 grams (2.6 oz) candied cherries, half green, half red, 1/2" chunks
• 125 grams (4.4 oz) unpeeled whole almonds
• 75 grams (2.6 oz) pine nuts

Instructions

1. Soak the raisins in the white wine for 15-20 minutes to plump them up. Drain the raisins, keeping the wine and set both aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 250 C/480 F. 
3. Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, mix the flours, sugar and salt until combined. You may do the entire process by hand if you don't have a mixer.
4. Next, add the oil in a thin stream until the mixture is a bit crumbly. 
5. Slowly add about 3/4 of the wine until the dough is moist and holds together. Add more or all of the wine little by little to get the correct consistency, keeping in mind that the dough should not be sticky. You might not need all of the wine.
6. At the lowest speed, add the raisins, candied fruit and nuts. Stir only until combined.
7. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and place the mixture on the parchment. Form a rectangle just over an inch high and approximately 9 1/2" x 7" (24 cm x 18 cm). Cut the rectangle in half crosswise and then lengthwise into 4 equal rows, forming 8 large cookies. With a chef's knife, lightly score the cookies 1/8" (3 mm) deep in 1/3" (8 mm) intervals on the top of all of the cookies, crosswise. Slightly separate the cookies and smooth all of the sides and edges. Each cookie should be about 5" x 1 1/2" (13 cm x 4 cm).
8. Bake for 10 minutes on the lowest shelf, then switch to the top shelf for another 7-10 minutes. You want the cookies to be crunchy and slightly burned on the outside and very moist and tender on the inside. If the raisins look completely burned, that's what you're going for! Let cool completely and enjoy with espresso or tea.

Notes

You will need a scale for this recipe. Most scales work in both grams/kilograms and ounces/pounds. I recommend using grams as it's easier and more accurate.