Pissaladière (Anchovy and Onion Tart).

This is a traditional lunch item from Nice on the Riviera - it can be eaten warm or cold.

Ingredients:

For the dough:
2 cups of all purpose plain flour (not self-rising)
1 large pinch of salt
1/3 cup of olive oil
1/4 cup of lukewarm water (add a bit more if dough is too hard)

Put the flour and salt in a deep bowl and mix. Add egg, olive oil and water and mix with a fork until flour is absorbed. Then knead with your knuckles until a soft, smooth ball forms. Cover bowl with a towel and leave for an hour or two in a warm cupboard. Then you roll it out on a floured surface, thin and large enough to fit a large, flat non-stick cookie pan. Press the pastry into the sheet and prick the surface with a fork. Roll the edges so they don't shrink under the onions.

For the content:

1/3 cup of virgin cold pressed olive oil

3 pounds of white sweet onions (or yellow if you prefer it less sweet ­ weigh them after peeling). Slice very thin, a long task.

5 cloves of garlic, minced fine

1 or 2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon of Herbes de Provence (or a mix of dry thyme, basil, rosemary and oregano)

Anchovies in olive oil (buy them in a jar not a can, preferably Italian)

Black Nicoise olives or Italian oil cured

Salt and fresh pepper (more than you think you need, onions absorb the salt)

The only difficult part of this recipe is NOT browning the onions. Put the olive oil into a thick-bottomed casserole dish on very low heat (I use the lowest low setting on the dial). Add the onions, garlic, herbs, and bay leaf. Cover. Heat for about an houronions will simmer very gently until they look like a stringy puree. Drain well and set aside. Discard the bay leaf. Spread the onions over the pastry, imbed olives in rows and drape anchovy fillets in a criss-cross patternyou will use the whole jar of anchovies. Drizzle top with some more olive oil, and grindings of pepper.

Bake at 350°F in a shallow 12X17" tray for about 30 minutes until the crust is brown. The surface of the onions should not brown or dry out. Remove and let cool.