Tigelle — Italian skillet breads with lardo, garlic and rosemary spread

Combine the milk and water and warm gently until lukewarm, not hot. Mix the 300 g of flour with the instant yeast and salt in a bowl. Pour in the milk and water and all the olive oil, mix and knead by hand for 8–10 minutes, until smooth, soft and elastic. The dough should release from your hands while remaining easy to shape.

Shape into a ball and leave in the bowl, snugly covered with a plate or lid. Set in a warm place with no drafts for 90–120 minutes, until the dough has roughly doubled in volume. If the kitchen is cool and it rises more slowly, wait longer. Prepare the spread in the next step while the dough rises.

Use cured, ready-to-eat lardo, not fresh raw pork fatback or rendered lard. Remove the skin and excess surface salt, then weigh out 80 g. Wash and dry the rosemary and strip the leaves from the woody stems. Chop the garlic and rosemary leaves very finely. Finely chop the lardo, mash it with the flat of a knife and mix thoroughly with the garlic and rosemary into a spreadable paste. Cover and refrigerate until serving. Finely grate the cheese and set aside separately.

Gently deflate the risen dough and divide into twelve equal pieces. Shape each into a ball, then flatten with your hand and a rolling pin into a disc about 8 cm across and 7–8 mm thick. If needed, dust the work surface and rolling pin very lightly with some of the allotted flour. Arrange the discs separately on the lightly floured work surface and cover with a clean cloth so they do not dry out.

Leave the shaped discs under the cloth for about 30 minutes, until visibly puffy. Gently shake off loose flour before placing in the skillet. Keep discs awaiting the next batch covered, and transfer carefully so you do not flatten the risen dough.

Heat a dry, heavy-bottomed nonstick 28 cm skillet over medium-low heat for 3–4 minutes. Add four discs with space between them, cover and cook for 5–6 minutes per side, until risen and both flat faces have browned patches. Cook without the lid for the final minute of the second side, included in the stated time. If the breads brown too quickly, lower the heat so the centers can cook through. Split the first bread: the crumb should be soft and springy, with no raw, sticky layer; if necessary, cook the batch a little longer, covered, over low heat. Cook all twelve breads in three batches; this takes about 40 minutes including heating the skillet. Loosely wrap cooked breads in a clean cloth to keep them soft and warm.

Split the warm tigelle horizontally like small rolls. Divide all the spread between the twelve breads, spreading it over the warm crumb, and sprinkle with all the reserved cheese. Close and serve immediately as the lardo starts to soften from the bread's warmth. Each of the four servings contains three filled breads.