Lifted from the IrascibleChef Blog
http://www.irasciblechef.com/impignolata-1-2-3%e2%80%a6/
Impignolata! What the … ?
Impignolata is a savory stuffed baked bread, rolled up like a pinwheel, cut into pie shapes and served hot.
How about we call it sausage bread to make it easy. But why give it an easy name when there’s nothing easy about pronouncing it, spelling it, and especially making it???
Of course Impignolata is easy to eat because it’s so goooood, but it’s not easy to stop eating once you start, unless you run out—which is easy…
Let’s start by making it easy to say: imm Peen Yo l a t a
Finding the exact spelling or standard recipe (other than our family recipe) was close to impossible. I couldn’t imagine trying to find out information about this bountifully filled-baked-bread-wheel outside my family without the Internet. Even on the Internet information was extremely limited, but based on the information available from remaining living family members and slim pickings from the world on the web I’m going to be creating some standards. What I did find out is that Impignolata has Sicilian origins and can have many different fillings.
Starting with spelling, the official IrascibleChef spelling is now: “I m p i g n o l a t a.”
Second, although my family won’t like the sound of this, I’m going to say it anyway—shocker! Like pizza can have many different toppings and still be called pizza, Impignolata CAN have different fillings and still be called Impignolata… (—this is due to my global research and personal experimentation.) Let me also say during an experimental tasting my family did like the taste of my spin on this baked cornucopia overflowing with flavors. My family doesn’t like change. They didn’t even like when I referenced Impignolata as sausage bread, even to people who wouldn’t have a clue what Impignolata was (and since Impignolata is a type of sausage bread I’m not sure what their problem was—Are you getting an idea what I have to deal with…)
Based on all the effort, trouble, and labor, maybe Impignolata means impossible… But let me assure you it’s not impossible and well worth the work! I like to think it means pinwheel because it always has that pinwheel look, whole as well as individual portions.
I will be talking about our original recipe and then give you some ideas of other variations and then you can do what you want including riffing off of mine—up to you!
Ingredients:
- Caramelized onions: sliced and slowly caramelized in margarine (you will find out why if you use olive or canola oil…) the onions are probably the most important ingredient. Requires patience and time to get it right (both the slicing and sautéing.)
- Ground pork and beef: browned and seasoned with FC S&P
- Crackles: *optional—haven’t used them in years.
- Romano cheese: grated
- FC S&P
- Pizza dough: 1 dough per Impignolata rolled out like you were making a thin crust pizza.
- Olive oil: to brush the outside of the Impignolata before baking.
Instructions:
Have all the ingredients prepped and ready in separate containers and assemble like a pizza assembly line.
On the thinly rolled out dough spread assorted ingredients liberally across the entire dough like a pizza without sauce—start with the onions or you will have problems (based on that last instruction you can figure out the order of the rest of the ingredients and try not to make any holes in the dough!)
Starting anywhere roll the dough into one long strudel-esque log and then take one end and (with the seam on the inside as you go) wrap the log around itself forming a pinwheel shape. The dough should stick to itself, but you could use long shish kabob sticks to keep it together (make sure you remove them prior to cutting and eating!)
Cover under a towel in a warm place and let it rise.
Bake uncovered in 395 degree oven until done let cool slightly and cut into a pie shape portion. You want the outside golden brown and crispy and the inside flaky not raw doughy.
*****
You and your critics are your only limitations…
Variations: (Using the pizza dough and caramelized onions as the base and the same assembly and baking.)
Slight variation
- Sausage ground and roasted with fennel seed and garlic
- (Instead of ground pork and beef)
Mexican Flavor:
- Taco flavored meat
- Feta cheese
- Olives
Vegetarian:
- Sundried tomatoes
- Feta Cheese
- Olives
- Mushrooms
Technorati Tags: caramelized onions, Crackles, FC-S&P, Ground pork and beef, Impignolata, IrascibleChef, olive oil, pinwheel, Pizza, Pizza dough, Romano cheese, sausage bread, what is impignolata
