Thrilling Flat Bread with Filling

Schiacciate in Padella, con Zucchine, Mozzarella & Olive
Sicilian Bake-in-the-Pan Bread Snacks with Zucchini, Mozzarella & Olives

Sometimes snacks are just fine in the evening- it doesn't have to be a full meal, you don't have to sit down with a knife and fork... sometimes it is nice to just sit back and nibble and take things easy. At least that is how I was feeling this evening!

Seriously though, there is some great "snack food" out there- who doesn't enjoy pizza now and again? Or just a great sandwich? Come to think of it... or even just a SIMPLE sandwich! It really doesn't always have to be fussy, complicated and extravagant food to titillate your taste buds and to satisfy your gourmet desires!

These were a great suppertime snack this evening but could also be served up at a party say, or if you made them a little prettier, as an appetizer :-) Yes- I know they look pretty rough- but rustic was what I wanted this evening!

Made from store-bought pizza dough and filled with some simple, fresh ingredients, these little folded and quashed-down bread-dough parcels were finished in under 15 minutes- and will probably be eaten in less time than that! Let me show and tell how i made them, so you can try them out and decide for yourselves!

Schacciate means "flattened down"- which is what happens to these little things before they get baked on the pan. To make this little platter full, I needed one roll of pizza dough/base, 1 small zucchini, 1 Spring onion, 1 mozzarella, a few leaves of basil, salt, pepper, nutmeg and some of that yummy, smoked Spanish paprika. 

I cut the dough into 2 and then laid the filling ingredients out along one side of each piece of pizza dough as you can see in the photos- first zucchini, then cheese, then finely chopped Spring onion, sliced olives, basil and then the seasoning of paprika, salt, pepper and a hint of nutmeg. 

I folded the dough shut, stretched it out in length and then flattened it down a little, then cut it into strips of maybe 3" width- simple. I then put my griddle pan on the stovetop and heated it up to the maximum setting, before laying the little, oven-sided dough parcels down on top, fat-free of course! We want these to bake not fry!

I let them sit and brown for 3-4 minutes, patiently watching but not moving them until the base had become firm and toasted- then flipped them over to do the other side. You will need to be careful and yes, some of the mozzarella or zucchini might slip out of the dough... but I managed ok and I am sure you will too!

Of course, once they are brown on both sides they are good and ready for eating- either piping hot , or cool later on- it's all good! You can use any filling of course, but the method is just the same. And I say, why make a boring old sandwich when this is so much more fun? The good thing is that these are handy, small portions... so you can eat as much or as little as you like without having to commit to a large serving. In theory. Because I still ate the lot!