Pastizz-ish

Today, I decided to wing it.

I knew that my other recipe for this week's destination would be pastizzi, a very popular dish in Malta that comes in a few varieties, but I couldn't decide which kind to make. Really, I wanted to prepare them all, but my wife is traveling this week and I didn't want a lot of leftovers not knowing if they'd freeze well.

One kind, pastizzi tal-irkotta, fills these little pockets with seasoned ricotta cheese. Another, pastizzi tal-pizelli, uses spiced peas and onions. There's a third kind, apparently, with anchovies but I found only one mention of those and no recipe. (That's OK, I'm not a big fan of anchovies, anyway.)

So, here's where I improvised. I had some ricotta left over from last week's cooking that needed to be used, but only about 8 oz. and the recipe I pulled from called for 14 oz. Plus, we have some other Mediterranean ingredients open and being shuffled around the fridge, like olives and sundried tomatoes. I grabbed everything we had that sounded like it would taste good together and made my filling from that.

Moreover, I cheated on the dough and used a store-bought crust. You really should check out how the recipe says to make the pastry, however. I bet the steps to incorporate the shortening and margarine produce an incredibly flaky and rich crust. Honestly, though, you can see by the crumbs in the picture that the texture of my cheat was wonderful, but admittedly the dough could've use a little extra flavor.

Anyhoo, the final result was tasty indeed! So much so that I'm going to bring the extras to my girls' night out tonight and share them! I bet the filling would be great with a little roasted garlic, and maybe baked in little mini quiche shells or this way but in bite-sized portions for a tasty appetizer...

Here's how I made them:

8 oz. ricotta
1 small onion, finely diced
1 Tbsp sundried tomatoes, minced
1 Tbsp olives, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
Salt and freshly cracked black papper, to taste
1 egg, beaten or Olive oil

Preheat the oven to 350. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and let the flavors blend at room temperature while you roll out the dough. Form a large rectangle with the dough, roughly 12"x18" and cut it into 6 squares.

Place about 2 Tbsp of the ricotta mixture into the center of each square. Dab a little milk or water around the edge of each square and fold the dough into triangle-shaped pouches. Press the edges together and use a fork to crimp them shut. 

Brush each pastizzi evenly with the beaten egg or oil, poke a vent in each so steam can escape and bake for 35 minutes till golden brown.

Hobz Biz-Zejt

Put simply, Malta's favorite (perhaps national?) snack is a perfect, light, no-cook supper for the dog days of summer like these. Basically just bread with tomato and other fresh, Mediterranean toppings, you can make it as hearty as you like if you're in the mood for something more substantial. Even if you decide to make it bruschetta-style, you can just fire up the grill and it's ready in a flash! No oven required.

This meal is so easy it's barely a recipe. We got a crusty Tuscan sourdough boule from the grocery and a couple juicy beefsteak tomatoes. I toasted thick slices on the grill, brushed with a little olive oil, until it was golden and crunchy on the outside and warm and chewy on the inside.

Then, cut a tomato in half, take out the seeds, and rub the flesh and juice into the bread. You'll end up with nothing much more than the skin in your hand when you're done. At this point, you can add as few or many toppings as you like! Typically, the Maltese top theirs with things like tuna, capers, olives, bell peppers, cheese and pickled onions. I had all those, except for the onions, so I grilled up some fresh ones while I toasted the bread and used those instead.

There are loads of recipes out there for hobz biz-zejt, each with slight variations, and they all sounds just as tasty as the one I picked. So, raid your pantry and let your imagination go wild!

The Temples of Malta

Ġgantija Temples (visitmalta.com)

What are older than the Great Pyramids, Stonehenge and every other ancient stone structure that survives today? The prehistoric Temples of Malta.

Around 7,000 years ago, Malta's earliest inhabitants most likely migrated from Sicily and belonged to an agrarian society that worshipped a goddess of fertility through animal sacrifice and other rituals. From around 4,000 to 2,500 B.C.E., they constructed megalithic temples with trefoil floorplans, apses extending from a central path, small inner chambers where priests and priestesses likely performed ceremonies, incomplete domes with curved walls and pole-and-hide roofing. Many have been declared UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Oddly, in about 2,400 B.C.E., the inhabitants of Malta simply disappeared. There is no sign of pestilence or epidemic, war or catastrophe. One theory: Several drought years may have sent the agrarian society, who raised livestock and grew crops, in search of a better climate and more fertile land.

I'll be preparing my first Maltese dish on Wednesday, so check back then!

Week #25: Malta

We're going to bask in the Mediterranean sun this week as we visit the island nation of Malta.

Malta's rich history spans 7,000 years, from the Neolithic Maltese Islanders through, among other conquerers and patrons, the Carthaginians, Normans, Knights of St. John, French and English until finally gaining independence in 1964.

A three-island archipelago situated about 60 miles south of Sicily and 180 miles north of Africa, Malta - like many countries - boasts cuisine that's heavily based on seasonal ingredients and an eclectic blend of indigenous and colonial influences. Malta is the largest island, followed in size by Gozo and Comino. About 400,000 people call this tiny country home.

There are so many fresh flavors in the recipes I've been researching, perfect for light summer meals. Hopefully, I can narrow down my options to two or three awesome dinners. Stay tuned, folks!