Sfincione Bagarese

Sfincione Bagarese, a Sicilian bread, is made with a soft focaccia-type dough that is typically topped with anchovies, onions, Tumo or Primo Sale cheese, Ricotta cheese, and a layer of savory breadcrumbs.

Also known as Sfincione Bianco di Bagheria (or Spinchiuni Bianco), Sfincione Bagarese is from Bagheria or Baarìa, a seaside town on the outskirts of Palermo, Sicily.

Aparna, of My Diverse Kitchen, chose this delicious bread as the monthly bake for the Bread Baking Babes’ 14th Anniversary.

Sfincione Bagarese is typically topped with anchovies, Tumo or Primo Sale cheese, and Ricotta cheese. Then a layer of cooked onions is added and finally, a savory breadcrumb mixture is sprinkled over the top. Scallions or spring onion greens are also mixed in if in season.

This all bakes up into a delicious pie that can be served as an appetizer, as an all-day snack, or even a pizza-style meal.

The name Sfincione loosely translates as “thick sponge” describing the texture of the bread. The bread has a spongy crust which is typically about an inch thick.

Sfiicione is believed to have been first made in the 16th century by the cloistered nuns of St. Vito monastery.

Originally, it was a Christmas-time specialty made in December-January. It was also made for feasts of patron saints and special occasions.

Making the Sfincione Dough

There are several components to this bread, but it is not difficult to make. You can dedicate an afternoon to making this Sicilian dish and serve it for dinner, but I decided to break the process up into two days and serve it for lunch the next day.

The process starts with a poolish or pre-ferment.  I typically let a poolish ripen overnight, but this time, I opted to let it ripen for two hours (as the recipe suggested) and slow-ferment the final dough instead.

It seems that sourdough isn’t a preferred dough for Sfincione so this is why I opted to let the dough cold ferment in the refrigerator overnight.

To allow for a longer ferment, I reduced the amount of yeast in the poolish.  I also used white winter wheat flour (home-milled from Clarks Cream wheat) instead of plain flour (as the recipe suggested).

For the final dough, I used finely ground semolina (Bob’s Red Mill Durum Semolina ) and all-purpose flour. I let it ferment on the counter for about an hour, then placed it in the refrigerator overnight.

After the hour ferment,  the dough was ready to use, but I wasn’t so it went in the refrigerator.

I used 1/4 teaspoon of instant dried yeast.  It leavened the dough very nicely, but I think reducing the yeast to 1/8 teaspoon might work even better, especially when slow-fermenting the dough overnight.

Assembling the Sfincione Bagarese

The first layer or bottom is the dough. The anchovies (or sardines originally) are arranged on this. I’m not a fan of sardines or anchovies so I omitted that layer.

The next layer is cooked onions. Then slices of Tuma or Primo Sale are layered over this along with slices (or crumbles) of ricotta.

About the Cheeses

Tuma is a fresh white unsalted sheep’s or cow’s milk cheese while Primo Sale is the same that has been salted and matured for about a month.

Caciocavallo cheese is an aged stretched cheese made from sheep’s or cow’s milk. The name translates to “cheese on horseback” from how the gourd-shaped cheese is tied with rope and hung over a wooden board to drain and age.

Substitutes for Tuma cheese: Primo Sale, unsalted diced Mozzarella, fresh Provoletta

Substitutes for grated Caciocavallo cheese: grated versions of any of the following – Parmigiano-Reggiano, Provolone, Mozzarella, or Pecorino.

Substitutes for Ricotta: Cottage cheese or Fresh Goat’s cheese.

I went a bit rogue with my cheeses.  I used ricotta, goat cheese, and Asiago cheese.

After the onion layer, I dolloped and then spread the ricotta.  I wanted to add the ricotta before the onions, but the dough was too soft to spread directly on it.  I layered some Asiago cheese on top of the ricotta.

The final layer is the breadcrumbs. This layer is a mixture of breadcrumbs, olive oil, salt, pepper, chopped scallions grated Caciocavallo cheese (or goat cheese in my version), and oregano.

The original recipe as presented by Aparna (My Diverse Kitchen), our monthly host, is partly adapted from here and other sources on the net, and makes two 9-inch (23cm) Sfincione.

I cut the recipe in half, reduced the amount of yeast used, made the poolish with whole wheat flour, and gave the final dough a cold ferment in the refrigerator overnight.  I used a 9-inch pie pan, but you can also use a baking pan or bake it freeform for a more pizza-like pie.

Sfincione Bagarese

---

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

No reviews

• Author: Bread Experience

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

Description

Sfincione Bagarese, a Sicilian bread, is made with a soft focaccia-type dough that is typically topped with anchovies, onions, Tumo or Primo Sale cheese, Ricotta cheese, and a layer of savory breadcrumbs.

---

Ingredients

Units MUS Scale 1x2x3x

For the Poolish

• 75 g plain flour (I used whole wheat flour from white winter wheat)
• 75 g water
• 1/4 tsp instant yeast
• 1/4 tsp sugar

For the Dough

• All the Poolish from above
• 75 g all-purpose flour
• 125 g semolina flour (I used finely ground)
• 150 g water (more or less)
• 15 g olive oil
• 8 g salt

For the Onion Layer

• 1 large onion, sliced or chopped
• 10 to 15 g olive oil
• Salt to taste, if desired

For the Cheese Layer:

• 5 to 6 anchovies in oil (I omitted)
• 150 g Tuma or Primo Sale cheese, sliced
• 200 gm Ricotta cheese

For the Breadcrumbs Layer

• Chopped scallions
• 2 to 3 slices of fresh bread
• 50 g grated Caciocavallo cheese
• Salt to taste
• Red chili flakes or crushed pepper to taste
• 1/2 – 1 tsp dried oregano

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

---

Instructions

Make the Poolish

1. In a medium bowl, mix together flour, dry yeast, sugar, and water until a sticky dough is obtained. Add more water if necessary to achieve this.
2. Cover loosely with a plastic film and leave to rise for about 2 hours. The poolish should be somewhat bubbly and have doubled in size.

Make the dough

1. The dough can be mixed by hand or in a machine. Mix together the flours, water (more or less as required), oil and poolish. The dough will be sticky.
2. Let the dough rest for 20 minutes. Sprinkle the salt over the dough and dissolve with a bit of water. Work the salt into the dough and knead until it is soft, very pliable and smooth.
3. Shape into a round and place in a bowl. Cover the bowl loosely and leave it to rise till double in volume. About 2 hours.
4. Alternately, allow the dough to rest for 1 hour, cover tightly, and place in the refrigerator overnight.

Cook the onions

1. While the dough is rising, get the toppings ready. Heat the oil in a pan and add the sliced onions. Sprinkle a little salt (if desired) and cook the onions on low to medium heat until they turn translucent and soft. Do not brown or caramelize them. If they turn too dry, sprinkle a little water while cooking them. Take the pan off heat and let them cool to room temperature.

Prepare the breadcrumb mixture

1. Run the bread slices (with or without crusts) in a food processor to make the crumbs. Put the breadcrumbs in a bowl.
2. Mix together with the oil, salt, red chili flakes (or crushed pepper) chopped scallions/spring onions, oregano and grated cheese. The texture should be of loose but moist crumbs.

Assemble the Sfincione

1. If you allowed the dough to cold ferment in the refrigerator, remove it and let it warm up to room temperature before assembling the pie.
2. Gently knead to deflate the dough. Press it out into a roughly 9-inch circle (or oval) using your fingers. If the dough feels sticky, oil your fingers lightly.
3. Place in the prepared pan or pie dish. Let the dough rise again, for about an hour till almost double in thickness and quite puffy.
4. Top with anchovy (if using), then the cooked onions. Next comes the Ricotta and Tuma/ Primo Sale cheeses. Make sure to cover the surface of the dough evenly. Finish layering by spreading the breadcrumb mixture on the top.

Bake the Sfincione

1. Place the assembled pie in a preheated 250C (480F) oven on the bottom shelf and bake for about 10 to 12 minutes. The underneath of the bread should become golden and crisp.
2. Move the pan to the middle shelf of the oven and bake for another 10 minutes or so, until it is crisp and golden brown on the top as well.
3. Remove from the oven and let cool. Slice and serve.
4. Leftovers can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.
5. Reheat leftovers at 325 degrees F in foil for 10 to 15 minutes.

Notes

Substitutes for Tuma cheese: Primo Sale, unsalted diced Mozarella, fresh Provoletta

Substitutes for grated Caciocavallo cheese: grated versions of any of the following – Parmigiano-Reggiano, Provolone, Mozarella or Pecorino.

Substitutes for Ricotta: Cottage cheese or Fresh Goat’s cheese.

• Category: Bread

Happy Baking!
Cathy