Flatbread With Zaatar Lemon And Oil Topping Food

LAMB FLATBREAD WITH ZA'ATAR

Steps:

• Make the dough: In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve yeast and sugar in water. Stir in 1 cup flour to form a thin batter. Leave to rest until mixture is bubbly, about 20 minutes.
• Add remaining flour, olive oil and salt. Mix until dough comes together, then knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. The dough should be soft and a bit sticky; dust lightly with flour as necessary. Return dough to bowl, cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. (Alternatively, put dough in a resealable plastic bag and refrigerate overnight.)
• Meanwhile, prepare the filling: Put 3 tablespoons olive oil in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, add onions, season generously with salt and stir to coat. Cook, stirring, until softened and nicely browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
• Add lamb to skillet and mash into onions with a large spoon until crumbled. Sprinkle with salt, then stir in pepper, clove, allspice, cayenne, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, sumac and pomegranate molasses. Turn heat to low and stir to combine. Cook for 5 minutes, until meat is just cooked through. Transfer mixture to a rimmed baking sheet and spread out to cool. (You will have a bit more lamb filling than you need - it's good on buttered toast for a cook's treat.)
• Heat oven to 450 degrees. Punch down dough and divide into 8 2 1/2-ounce pieces. Knead each piece into a ball. Cover with a damp towel and let dough rest 20 to 30 minutes, then roll thinly or stretch each piece into a 6-inch round. Make the dough as thin as possible.
• Arrange 4 rolled-out dough rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush each with a generous amount of za'atar-oil mixture over dough (all the way to the edges or you'll get a puffed up "lip"). Make a layer of thinly sliced or crumbled feta, then sprinkle 1/4 cup of the cooled lamb mixture over the entire surface. Sprinkle on a few pine nuts, if using. Press topping down with the palm of your hand.
• Bake 4 flatbreads at a time, on the upper rack of the oven, for 5 to 8 minutes or until puffed and lightly browned. The dough should still be soft and pliable, not crisp. Serve hot or at room temperature, garnished with parsley, mint and cilantro leaves, whole or roughly chopped.

ZA'ATAR MANAQISH RECIPE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine water, sugar and yeast. Set aside for 10 minutes to foam.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, and olive oil. Work the mixture with your hands. Now, make a well in the middle and pour in the yeast and water mixture. Stir until soft dough forms.
• Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes or until dough is elastic, smooth, and no longer sticky (as you knead, if dough is too sticky for you, you can sprinkle just a tiny bit of flour to help it).
• Form dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled mixing bowl. Cover with damp cloth and place in a warm spot (inside a warmed but turned-off oven is a good place). Leave to rise for 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• Punch dough down. Knead briefly and form into 8 small balls. Arrange on lightly floured surface, cover again and leave to rise another 30 minutes.
• While dough is rising, mix together the za'atar spice and olive oil in a bowl.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place a large baking sheet in oven while heating.
• Lightly oil the heated baking sheet and set near you. Flatten the dough into small discs about 5 inches in diameter. With your finger tips, make indentations in discs and add about 1 tbsp za'atar topping in the middle of each disc, leave a narrow boarder around. Arrange discs in prepared oiled baking sheet (use two sheets if needed, do not crowd the manaqish).
• Bake in 400 degrees F heated-oven for 7 to 8 minutes or until the dough is slightly browned on bottom and edges (za'atar topping will remain liquidy at this point). Remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes or so, the topping will dry and settle into dough.
• Serve za'atar manaqish warm or at room temprature with assorted vegetables, olives, feta cheese, or homemade labneh.

MAN'OUSHE

Steps:

• To make the dough, in a bowl of a stand mixer (if mixing by hand, use a large bowl), sprinkle the yeast over the water along with the sugar and let sit in a warm place until the yeast starts to bubble, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in the olive oil, flour, and salt. If using a stand mixer, use the dough hook attachment. If mixing by hand, stir with a wood spoon or spatula until it becomes too thick to stir, then turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter. Knead the dough in the machine on medium-high speed, or by hand, until the dough forms a smooth ball, but is slightly sticky when you touch it with your finger. It'll take about 5 minutes and will pull away from the sides of the mixer bowl. Cover the dough in the bowl with a kitchen towel, and let rise in a warm place until the dough doubles in volume, about 1 1/2 hours.
• To make the flatbreads, preheat the oven to 500ºF/260ºC and move the oven rack to the upper third of the oven. Set a baking steel on the rack. (Check the manufacturer's instructions for your baking steel or stone.) Otherwise, line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Preheat the baking steel or stone for 45 minutes.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured countertop and divide the dough into six pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a small oval, rolling it just until each starts to resist. When each one does, set it aside on the countertop and begin rolling another. Continue to roll each of the six pieces of dough into ovals, stopping when the dough starts stretching back on itself.
• When ready to bake, take the first oval of dough and roll it out to its final size, adding a bit more flour if necessary to keep it from sticking to the counter or rolling pin, turning it over a few times to ensure it's not sticking. Roll it until it's about 12-inch long by 4- or 5-inches wide (30cm by 10- to 12cm).
• Spread the oval with a layer of the za'atar mixture, about 1 1/2 tablespoons per flatbread leaving, not quite reaching the edge so there's space for a crust. Don't worry about any bare spots when smearing on the za'atar: it doesn't need to be perfect.
• (Note: My za'atar was quite fresh, and strong. But if yours isn't, you can use more of the topping is you wish. If you need more for spreading, mix za'atar and olive oil together in even amounts.)
• Lift the finished flatbread with your hands, or slide a pizza peel dusted with flour underneath, and transfer the flatbread on the baking steel or stone. Continue rolling and topping the rest of the flatbreads, baking each until the crust is golden brown, about 7 minutes.
• (If you don't have a pizza peel and are worried about transferring the dough, another option is to cut six sheets of parchment paper to a size that will fit under the rolled dough, then transfer the unbaked flatbreads to the parchment paper before smearing them with za'atar. Leave the parchment paper under the flatbreads and lift them, holding the ends of the paper, then bake the man'oushe breads on the parchment paper, setting them directly on the baking steel or stone.)
• Remove the flatbreads from the oven when the crusts are golden brown and serve warm or at room temperature.

GRILLED FLATBREAD WITH SUMMER SQUASH

Steps:

• Preheat a grill to medium. Combine the red onion, lemon juice and a big pinch of salt in a medium bowl; toss well. Cut the pizza dough into 4 pieces. On a lightly floured surface, press one piece of dough with your fingertips to make a 4- to 5-inch round, then roll out into an 8-inch round. Repeat with the remaining dough.
• Combine the zucchini and/or yellow squash, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 3/4 teaspoon salt and the red pepper flakes in a large bowl; toss well to coat. Grill until well marked and tender, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove to a plate.
• Combine 2 tablespoons za'atar, a pinch of salt and the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil in a small bowl. Grill the dough rounds until marked on the bottom and starting to bubble up in spots, about 3 minutes. Flip the dough, brush with the za'atar oil and top with the mozzarella and zucchini and/or squash. Cook until the dough is marked on the bottom and the mozzarella melts, about 3 minutes.
• Remove each flatbread to a plate, scatter the feta and red onion on top and sprinkle with the remaining 1 teaspoon za'atar, a pinch of salt and the cilantro.

FLATBREAD WITH ZA'ATAR, LEMON AND OIL TOPPING

Steps:

• For The Bread: Whisk together the yeast, water and sugar. Stir in the oil, the all-purpose flour and most of the bread flour, then the salt. Mix to form a soft dough. Knead the dough for 8 to 10 minutes, till it's elastic and supple, adding additional flour as needed.
• Place the dough in a large, well-greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a tea towel, and let rise until doubled. Alternatively, allow the dough a long, cool rise in the refridgerator, several hours or overnight. Bring the dough to room temperature before shaping; it'll rise as it warms up.
• Divide the dough into 8 pieces. Stretch or roll the pieces into irregular slabs, and let rest for 15 minutes, covered with a tea towel. Spread some lemon/olive oil/za'atar mixture onto each piece of dough.
• Rub grill with vegetable oil. Preheat the grill to its hottest temperature. Place the flatbreads gently on the grill. Cover and bake for 1 to 2 minutes, then check for doneness. Allow to bake until the tops begin to brown. Brush with additional topping if desired and remove from the grill.
• For The Za'atar Topping: Mix topping ingredients with a whisk until well blended. Set aside until ready to use.

MIDDLE EASTERN ZAATAR (MANAKISH ZA'ATAR)

Steps:

• I use this simple Middle Eastern Dough. This recipe will require about an hour and a half (due to the hour-long proving time), so plan accordingly.
• Once the dough is prepared, split it into 5 equal pieces for larger breads or 8 pieces for medium-sized breads. You can weigh it out for complete accuracy, but I just do this by eye.
• Roll out the dough pieces with a rolling pin into round pizza-shaped pieces around 1/4-inch in thickness.
• Use your fingers to lightly dimple the top of the bread. This will not only help keep the topping in place as the bread bakes, but it will also stop it from puffing up too much in the oven. You can do this step before or after adding the topping. I did it after this particular time, as I forgot to do it before - whoops!
• Place an inverted tray or a pizza stone in the oven and preheat it to the highest it can possibly reach (Mine is 500ºF/260ºC).
• In a small bowl combine the za'atar and olive oil and mix well into a paste similar to pesto rather than a thick paste.
• Top each of the Middle Eastern Flatbread with some of the za'atar oil blend, leaving about a 1/2-1 inch 'crust' at the edges.Feel free to increase/decrease the amount of topping that you add based on how strong you want the flavor to be.
• Transfer the topped zaatar bread onto the pre-heated inverted oven tray (or pizza stone). Do this carefully, so you don't burn yourself.
• Bake for between 5-7 minutes, until it's lightly golden-brown, without burning the spices on top.
• Remove the manakish za'atar from the oven and allow it to cool slightly. This will allow the topping to 'dry' to the flatbread. Then, enjoy- make sure to wrap/cover it with a kitchen towel to keep the bread soft.
• Store: Store the baked zaatar bread in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. If you used oil in the dough in place of oil then you can store the bread at room temperature for 3-5 days (covered).Freezer: Wrap the zaatar manakish tightly with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to three months, Thaw in the refrigerator before enjoying or heat from frozen.Reheat: You can reheat the bread from frozen in the oven at 250ºF/120ºC until warmed through (20-25 minutes usually). If heating from chilled or room temperature, then reduce the time in the oven.

CHEESE & ZA'ATAR FLATBREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl mix the flour, salt, sugar and yeast. Pour in the 2 tablespoons oil and the water gradually. Mix to form a dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes until the dough becomes elastic and smooth.
• Place in a greased bowl and cover with a damp cloth. Leave to rise in a draft-free place for 1-1/2 hours until it doubles in size.
• Cut the dough into 8 equal parts and shape into balls. Dust with a little flour and cover with a towel. Leave to rest for an additional 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Combine the za'atar and the 1/2 cup olive oil to make the topping. Shred the cheese and set aside.
• On a floured surface, flatten each ball and with a rolling pin roll into a circle of approximately 6-8". Place on greased baking sheets and spread the za'atar/oil mixture on some of the circles leaving a 1/2" border. Do the same for the cheese flatbreads. Use your fingers to spread the fillings evenly. Pinch and crimp the edges to create a decorative border.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden, and serve hot.