Salted Pizza Bites / Crescentine

Name: Salted Pizza Bites / Crescentine
Ingredients: 2 cups King Arthur™ Unbleached, All-Purpose Flour; 3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature; 1 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary needles; 2/3 cup dry white wine; 4 cups vegetable oil, sunflower, peanut, or canola; Coarse sea salt for sprinkling on top; Ingredients

Not everything at Nannini’s, Siena’s famous pastry shop, is sweet; there are savory offerings too, like mini vegetable and cheese tarts, sandwiches with every type of meat and cheese or vegetable filling imaginable, and crescentine, small pizza-like bread studded with flecks of rosemary that are deep fried.

They make a great snack or an antipasto served with olives and chips of pecorino cheese. The dough is easy to make in a food processor or by hand. Crescentine are best served warm the day they are made.

MAKES AT LEAST 3 1/2 DOZEN

Ingredients

2 cups King Arthur™ Unbleached, All-Purpose Flour
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary needles
2/3 cup dry white wine
4 cups vegetable oil, sunflower, peanut, or canola
Coarse sea salt for sprinkling on top
Ingredients

Directions

Mix the flour, salt, and baking powder together in a bowl. Work in the butter and rosemary, then add the wine a little at a time until a soft ball of dough is formed. Roll the dough into a 12-x-11-inch rectangle, then trim the piece to 10-x-10. Cut 2-inch squares. Reroll the scraps to make more.
Heat the oil in a deep fryer or heavy-duty pot until a thermometer registers 375°F. Fry the crescentine in the oil until golden brown. Remove them with a slotted spoon to a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Sprinkle the crescentine with salt and serve warm.
Variation: Use a combination of herbs or add 1/2 cup of minced prosciutto to the dough.

This recipe was featured on Season 21 - Episode 2122.