Oven Baked Flatbread for Sunday Lunch

No, we’re not on bread and water rations for Sunday Lunch here at Island Vittles.

That said, if I was restricted to bread only, I would choose this flatbread as my mainstay.  Do you think they`d let me have a little dip to go with it?

No, probably not.

We’ve been eating it around here for a number of years.  Howard LOVES it.  The original recipe came from Cook’s Illustrated, but I think I’ve tinkered with and simplified it enough to comfortably call it my own. (CI has the best recipes, but sometimes they over complicate things.  Does anyone out there know what I’m talking about?)

It’s an all-round flatbread — perfect with tzatziki and a greek salad, served alongside a curry, on a mezze platter with hummus, olives and prosciutto, or sandwiching some sharp cheddar and onion relish for a grilled-cheese panini.

Oven Baked Flatbread
adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

8 – 6” rounds

Active Dry Yeast	2 t	10 ml
Warm Water (110-115 F or 43-46 C)	1 C	250 ml
Olive Oil	1 T	15 ml
Sugar	2 t	10 ml
Yogurt or Sour Cream	¼ C	60 ml
Salt	1½ t	7 ml
Whole Wheat Flour	½ C	125 ml
All-Purpose Flour	2 C	500 ml

t=teaspoon          C=cup            T=tablespoon            ml=millilitres

Add the water and yeast to the work bowl of a food processor fitted with stainless steel blade.  Add oil, sugar, and yogurt and pulse to combine. Add salt, whole wheat and all-purpose flours; process until smooth, about 15 seconds, scraping down sides of bowl.  Continue to process until dough just pulls completely away from sides of bowl (adding more flour as necessary) and it is soft and satiny, about 30 seconds.

Remove from the bowl and knead once or twice on a lightly floured counter.  Place dough in medium bowl, cover with a clean towel, and place in draught-free spot until dough doubles in size — about 45 minutes.

Preheat a pizza stone or cookie sheet in the bottom third of a 500° F (260° C) oven for at least 30 minutes.

Turn dough onto lightly floured work surface.  Divide into 8 equal pieces, and roll each piece into a ball on your work surface.  Use a rolling pin to roll each ball out to a 4” (10 cm) circle.  Rest for 10 minutes, then roll (or toss) each round out to 6” (14 cm).

Bake dough rounds, in batches, on preheated tiles or pizza stone until bread is puffed and golden brown on bottom, 5 to 6 minutes.  Cool for 5 minutes on a wire rack; wrap in clean kitchen towels and serve warm or at room temperature.

Tips:

• After rising, the dough can be wrapped tightly and refrigerated up to 2 days.  I often cook ½ batch, then save the remaining dough for a meal in the near future.
• Work quickly when getting the bread in and out of the oven.  YOU’RE LOSING HEAT!
• To cook on the stove top, preheat a dry cast iron pan over medium high heat for 5-10 minutes.  Grill bread on the hot pan until small bubbles appear.  Flip, grill until golden, then flip again to brown the other side.