Pide is a Turkish flatbread that can be easily identified by its signature canoe shape. Like Italian pizza, pide varies from region to region and even from family to family, so the first task in developing our recipe was to identify what we liked. First, we focused on the dough. We tested a few traditional recipes and found that tasters preferred a cold-fermented dough with a crisp outer crust and chewy, irregular interior. Next, we turned to toppings. Tasters loved the classic Turkish combination of eggplant, red bell pepper, and tomatoes. We found that salting the eggplant was unnecessary since sautéing the veggies eliminated any excess moisture. Pulsing canned whole tomatoes in the food processor gave our topping the best texture. We accented the vegetables with smoky paprika and spicy red pepper flakes, a healthy amount of mint, and some briny, creamy feta. Shaping the pide on individual parchment sheets made transferring the little boats to our preheated baking stone easy and efficient.
