Recapture Coca

Eva, author of Bake-Street , brings us the recipe for making coca de recapte. A coca full of tradition, which we show with its classic escalivada filling with sardines, but you can adapt it and serve the coca salty or sweet to your liking.

For all those who love pizzas, focaccias and flatbreads, we are going to give you a treat. We have another fantastic option to prepare at home so you can enjoy lunch or dinner in no time: cocas. And to be more exact, we will tell you how to make Coca de Recapte .

The word coca comes from the Dutch word “ kok ” from the time of the Carolingian Empire and has the same roots as the word Cake or Kuchen , which means “cake”.

Its supposed origin is said to have arisen thanks to the need to use up leftover bread dough instead of throwing it away. Women would bake these flattened leftovers, sprinkling sugar on top to serve them as a dessert.

The word “coca” covers a wide variety of preparations. It is used to name flat breads, cakes and/or pies. They are consumed throughout Catalonia, Aragon, the Valencian Community, the Balearic Islands and Andorra. They are usually consumed on holidays such as St. John's Eve, Easter and Christmas. Although we should not rule out, under any circumstances, consuming them the rest of the year. They are delicious.

Salted coca is a simple way to present dishes with tradition throughout the Mediterranean. It is also considered the mother of Italian focaccia and pizza .

There are many different preparations that can be made, both sweet and savoury. On this occasion we will prepare a coca de recapte, which means “provision” that is taken to the countryside for a snack. A crunchy dough on the outside and spongy on the inside , covered with escalivada and sardines marinated in oil and rosemary .

Few things so simple and delicious will make us enjoy them so much.

Opinel glass drip-free oiler and bread knife .

Ingredients

For the dough:

• 250gr of high-strength flour W=340
• 0.6g of dry baker's yeast or 1.8g of fresh yeast
• 2gr of sugar
• 8g of salt
• 175gr of warm water

For the filling:

• 2 red peppers
• 1 large eggplant
• 2 fresh sardines
• Salt
• Olive oil
• Fresh rosemary
• Fresh parsley

Elaboration

First day

We roast the vegetables:

1. Preheat the oven to 190ºC with air.
2. We wash and dry the red peppers and the eggplant.
3. On a baking tray lined with aluminium foil, place the red peppers and the aubergine and place in the oven.
4. We leave it for about 50-60 minutes , it should take on a light toasted color on the outside, the meat should be tender and we can remove the skin without any problems.
5. Halfway through cooking, open the oven, move away from the door because a lot of steam will be released, and carefully using tongs , turn the peppers over to finish cooking.
6. We take them out, put them in a glass bowl , cover them with cling film and let them cool completely overnight. This will make it much easier to peel the peppers.

We clean and marinate the sardines:

1. We gut, remove the guts, and head of the sardines.
2. We scale the sardines. If we don't have a scaler for this, it's not a problem. We place a large colander on the kitchen sink, where all the scales will fall, and we clean the sardines under cold water using our hands. We will scrape against the direction of the scales.
3. We wash very well under cold water and dry with kitchen paper.
4. We open the sardine , remove the central spine and cut it in half lengthwise. Cut the beards with the help of a sharp knife orscissors .
5. Place the sardine fillets in an airtight glass container with the skin facing down. Add salt, add some fresh rosemary leaves and cover with oil .
6. We cover and refrigerate overnight.

We prepare the coca dough:

1. In a medium bowl add the dry ingredients and mix .
2. We add the water and mix until obtaining a homogeneous mixture, that is, until there are no traces of dry flour on the surface ( see photo below ).
3. Cover with film and let rise for 18-24 hours at room temperature .

Second day

1. Our dough will be bubbly, it will have increased in size and will have settled, that is, we will see that it will have a slightly deflated appearance.
2. Sprinkle the work surface with flour, turn the dough out onto it and proceed to pre-shape it.
3. We will fold each of the four ends towards the center, turn the dough over and form it into balls, trying to apply tension.
4. Sprinkle with flour and let rest for 25 minutes .
5. Preheat the oven 30 minutes before placing the coca in. You should do this at 270ºC with heat above and below . If your oven does not reach this temperature, it is not a problem, set it to the highest temperature that you can work with.

Pre-forming and resting the dough

We form the coca:

1. We proceed to stretch the dough on a floured surface, taking care not to manipulate it or flatten it excessively. We must shape it and stretch it carefully and lovingly.
2. We will form a rectangle of approximately 35 x 17 cm .
3. If the dough resists a bit and shrinks, it is because it is tense. Let it relax for about 5-10 minutes, always covered to prevent it from drying out, and continue shaping it.
4. We transfer the coca dough to a board or tray lined with baking paper and lightly sprinkled with flour.
5. We arrange strips of peppers and eggplant alternating.
6. We place the sardines, sprinkle with a little olive oil, flaky salt and fresh rosemary.
7. Before putting the coca in the oven, we turn on the grill at maximum power. Depending on our oven, there will be several options regarding heat power. In my case, I put it at maximum.
8. We bake for about 11-12 minutes or until the coca has a nice golden color.
9. We take it out, sprinkle a little chopped parsley and let it cool for a few minutes on a rack before eating.

Stretching the dough

GRADES

• Is it essential to use high-strength flour for this recipe? Yes. We must work with a high-strength flour that allows us to add high hydration and obtain the results we show you. Just like this variety of flour, it will be able to tolerate long and prolonged fermentation times.
• This dough does not need to be kneaded to develop the gluten , we will only need to mix the ingredients well (until there are no traces of dry flour left) and let it rise slowly .
• You should check the dough after 16-18 hours , especially if it is a hot time of year because it will rise faster. If this is the case, once you have reached this point, you should keep it in the refrigerator until you use it.
• If you want to prepare the dough days in advance or if you are making a larger quantity for later days, after 18-24 hours, put the dough in the refrigerator and let it rest for a maximum of four days . It is not worth freezing the dough due to the short time it takes to prepare it.
• Whenever you refrigerate the dough , you should let it come to room temperature for about 2 hours before you are ready to pre-shape it.
• To bake it, you can use either a steel plate or a baking stone , place it in the middle of the oven and remember to preheat it with it inside. If you do not have either of these two elements, bake it on a previously preheated baking tray.
• Important note regarding baking with the grill . You must respect a baking distance between the coca (especially if it has paper on the base) and the grill. The distance must not be less than 20 cm because there is a risk of the paper catching fire . If your oven does not respect this distance, it is better to proceed with baking without the grill . To obtain a toasted edge, you will only have to prolong the final baking time and the result will still be very good.
• Remember that each oven is different, yours may need more or less cooking time. Keep an eye on it the first time you make it to work out the exact time. It can be around 7-12 minutes in total.
• I have used fresh sardines because I consider that the final result is considerably better. If you use this type of sardine, freeze them beforehand to prevent the possible presence of anisakis.
• If you marinate the sardines you will be able to enhance their flavours. In my case I have opted for fresh rosemary, but you can use any aromatic herbs you prefer.
• Can I use canned sardines instead of fresh ones? Yes, you can, but the result will not be the same. Not even close.
• Don't be put off by the bad reputation of the smell of sardines when cooking them. When you prepare them this way, there will hardly be any smell coming from the oven.
• Can I use another type of preserve instead of sardines? Yes, it is also common to serve it with anchovies . If you choose this ingredient, do not add it before baking the coca . The reason is that it greatly enhances the salty taste and can be uncomfortable to eat. Place them on the coca once we have taken it out of the oven and while it cools on a rack.

Bérard flour scoop , Seigaiha Tokyo Studio porcelain bowl , Mediterránea glass tumbler , Mediterránea glass bowl and glass drip-free oil cruet .

This coca de recapte can solve many dinners or unexpected events, having the dough ready (which we can prepare in advance "just in case") in just over 15 minutes we will be enjoying a wonderful dish.

We're looking forward to seeing yours!