I have traveled to certain destinations just for one dish. Recco, on the Italian coast about 10 miles south of Genoa, is the place for a type of double-crust cheese pizza called focaccia di Recco. Within unyeasted pastry as thin as Sardinian pane carasau is molten stracchino cheese. The focaccia is baked in a special copper pan more than 20 inches in diameter. (In Recco, we ordered the dish, and when it arrived the two of us mistakenly thought we’d never finish it.) Now, Roberto Caporuscio, the owner of Kesté pizzerias in Manhattan, is baking the cheese focaccia at his spacious financial district restaurant. In addition to the mammoth classic, 25 inches across and available to order in advance, he’s baking an individual 8-inch size for $10 and a 12-inch for $15. “I’m from between Rome and Naples, so this was not something I knew about,” Mr. Caporuscio said. “But some customers asked about it, so I researched it, experimented and I’m now serving it.” His interpretation is worth the effort and the trip downtown if you don’t live nearby.
Focaccia di Recco, Kesté, 66 Gold Street (Fulton Street), 212-693-9030, kestepizzeria.com.
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