Make Your Own... Flat Breads

Bread can be tricky to make – only if you choose it to be.

I will never attempt to make a sourdough at home when I know that there is a baker down the road who makes a beautiful sour and chewy loaf.

However I do love the rewarding feeling of making bread from scratch. I think it all comes down to the kneading, resting and watching as the yeast and flour grow and develop.

At home I choose to only make simple breads that I know will taste and look great.

Flat breads are one of my favourites. Not only do they bake fast they also leave your taste buds to go wild with different flavoured toppings.

For the dough I uses a standard olive oil based yeast dough made with dried instant yeast. It is simple to make, and tastes fruity and light especially if you use a good quality olive oil (which I strongly suggest).

You can top the flat breads with any choice of ingredients. Some of my favourites are baby Dutch carrots, sunflower seeds and ricotta or cherry tomatoes, red onion and fetta or roasted beetroot, caramelised onion and coriander.


Ingredients

Olive oil dough

500g “OO” flour
1 tablespoon sea salt flakes
1 teaspoon sugar
1 sachet instant yeast
400ml tepid water
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
polenta, to scatter

Preheat oven to 200°C.

Mix all dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

Add the water and olive oil and knead together until a smooth dough is formed – this may take up to 10 minutes.

Leave the dough to rest, covered, in a lightly oiled bowl for 20-30 minutes, until doubled in size.

Using your fist know the dough back and divide into 8-10 balls.

Using a rolling pin roll each ball on a lightly floured surface until the dough is 2-3 mm thick.

Sprinkle 2-3 large baking trays with polenta and place dough on top.

Top with desired ingredients and bake for 15- 20 minutes until the dough is golden and the base crispy.

Makes 8-10 flat breads.

Bon Appetite

Hazelnut, Apricot and Mulberry Tart

Why Hazelnut, apricot and mulberry tart?

I had a beautiful mulberry tree, abundant with fruit, in my back yard, that is until work men cut it down yesterday.

At the time of writing this recipe I still had the mulberry tree and couldn't have been more excited.

As a child I always envied friends who came to school with bundles of mulberries in a bag, picked on the way to school (even more envious of those with pet silk worms that happily fed off the leaves).

Mulberries are the Russian Roulette of the berry world. Deep purple black in colour when they are ripe, mulberries smell floral and sweet and nearly always taste just as sweet as their aroma, with an ever slight tart finish. Every now and then however you taste one, that looks just like the others, and they taste pungently sour.

Mulberries are fantastic to bake with or to use in jam. The sour berries that pop up every now and then are perfect in balancing the sweetness of mulberries when they are cooked.

This tart is so simple to make, tastes fantastic and is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

Feel free to substitute the mulberries for blackberries, raspberries or blueberries.

Ingredients
100g dried apricots, soaked in warm water for 1 hour and drained
110g blanched almonds, toasted
125g hazelnuts, toasted
½ cup plain flour
½ cup caster sugar
40g unsalted butter melted, plus extra to brush
2 eggs
100g mulberries

Preheat oven to 180°C and brush a rectangular loose bottom tart tin (10cm x 34cm) with melted butter.

Place the almonds and hazelnuts in a small food processor and grind until fine. Add a third of the drained apricots to the food processor and process until broken up.

Transfer to a bowl and thoroughly fold through the flour. Add the, sugar, butter and eggs. Using a spoon mix together until combined.

Spread into the buttered tart tin and lightly press the apricots into the tart. Scatter over the mulberries, pressing a few into the hazelnut mixture.

Bake for 40 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

Leave to cool in the tart tin for 10 – 15 minute before removing.
Serves 6-8.

Bon Appetite.