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Red Pepper Coques

Red Pepper Coques

A crisp Catalan flatbread made with a retarded dough and a mildly sweet, tangy and spicy onion and red bell pepper topping.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 day 1 hour
Course breads
Cuisine spanish
Servings 4 flatbreads

Ingredients
  

For the Dough :

  • 3 cups all purpose flour or bread flour
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 1/2 tsp instant yeast
  • 1 1/3 cups chilled ice water
  • 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tsp sea salt

For the Red Pepper Topping :

  • 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 large onions thinly sliced
  • 2 large red peppers
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tsp minced garlic
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 2 tbsp sherry vinegar
  • 1/4 cup pine nuts
  • 1 tbsp minced fresh parsley or oregano

Instructions
 

For the Dough :

  • Pulse the flour, sugar, and yeast a couple of times, in the bowl of the food processor. Turn the processor on, and slowly pour in the ice water and process for about 10 seconds. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.
  • Add the oil and the salt to the dough and process for 30 to 60 seconds, until the dough forms a ball. Add a little more flour of necessary to obtain a soft smooth dough consistency. Remove the dough from the processor, and knead by hand for a few seconds, and shape it into a ball. Place it into an oiled bowl, cover, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, and up to 3 days.

For the Topping :

  • If you’re using fresh red peppers, roast them on the flame or in the oven until the skin is charred. Cool, then peel off the skin. Trim the top, remove the seeds and slice into pieces.
  • Heat 3tbsp of the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the onions, red peppers, sugar, garlic, salt and pepper flakes. Cook till the onions are soft and golden brown.
  • Remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the vinegar. Cool completely before using. You can make the mixture in advance and refrigerate overnight.

To Make the Coques :

  • Deflate the dough and divide it into four equal sized pieces. Shape each piece into a tight ball and place, seam side down on your work surface. Cover with oiled plastic wrap. Let rest for an hour.
  • Pre-heat the oven to 250C (500F). Brush two half sheet pans with 2 tablespoons of olive oil each.
  • Place one dough ball on your work surface, and roll it out to about 15 inch by 5 inch oval. Place it on the baking sheet, lengthwise. Repeat with the rest of the dough balls, two per baking sheet. If the dough springs back, let it rest for another 10 to 20 minutes, and re-roll. Dock each about 15 times with a fork. This is important or the bread will puff up a lot.
  • Brush each oblong piece of dough with the rest of the olive oil. Bake the dough for 8 to 10 minutes till it just starts turning brown.
  • Remove the pans from the oven, and spread them with the red pepper and onion mixture. Sprinkle with the pine nuts. Place the baking sheets back into the oven, and bake for about 15 minutes or so, until the flatbreads are golden and crispy.
  • Remove the pans from the oven and let cool on the pans for about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with the oregano or parsley, and transfer to a cutting board to slice and serve.