Fantastic ingredients, love, and dedication go into making an artisan flatbread. All the ingredients must be top-shelf. The flavor is, well, an incredible taste of love and Italia. Buon appetito!
Taste - The blend of freshly baked bread, olive oil, sea salt, fresh toppings, and generous portions of mozzarella and parmesan combine into a delightfully delicious and savory flavor. Mouthfeel - The baked bread and toppings make a textured delectable that is wonderfully buttery and hearty. Aroma - The fresh-baked bread, herbs, olive oil, and cheeses make for an enticingly savory aroma that pleasantly perfumes my kitchen.
Techniques
A flatbread is simply a flat, wide, and thin baked product made with bread flour, water, salt, and instant yeast, making it a yeast product.
I used nine primary techniques:
Bloom the instant yeast by placing the yeast in 105F to 110F temp 495g water (The best temp to activate the yeast). Add two pinches of granulated sugar to feed the yeast and get it active. Use an electric kettle to heat the water from 105F to 110F.
The straight Dough Mixing Method required proofing the yeast in water, combining all the ingredients in a mixing bowl, and mixing;
Procedure for Folding Yeast Dough, which included needing the dough for about 15-minutes;
Proofing the dough to allow the dough to rest for about 10-minutes before doing the windowpane test;
Windowpane test for proper gluten development and elasticity (Gluten window);
Rounding to shape a smooth, round ball of dough;
Bulk Fermentation until the dough has doubled in size (~1 hour);
Makeup and Panning shape the dough for the baking pan or the desired product’s shape and size. This process included topping placement after docking the dough;
Dock the dough to prevent it from bubbling while it is baking; and
The dry heat baking method in a standard oven was the means for baking the flatbread (450F for 15 to 20-minutes).
Mise en Place
(French for “gathering,” “putting gathered things in their place,” or “organizing required ingredients”)
I assembled and sanitized my kitchen tools, ramekins, baking pan, cooling rack, dough docker, equipment, supplies, and food production aids. All ingredient proportioning was measured per the recipes using an Ava Weigh commercial food scale. All components were scaled and placed into ramekins or bowls.
Here are the portions:
Dough - 250g bread flour, 2.5g Saf-Instant Yeast, 165g water. Bloom the instant yeast by placing the yeast in 115F to 110F temp water (The best temp to activate the yeast). Add two pinches of granulated sugar to feed the yeast and get it active.
Toppings - premium Italian olive oil, sea salt, and garlic powder. I hand-roasted Roma tomatoes and sliced fresh Italian black and green olives, basil, oregano, Italian parsley, wild spring mixed greens, and I hand-grated fresh mozzarella and parmesan.
Grocery List (Yields one half-sheet flatbread)
250g bread flour.
2.5g Saf-Instant Yeast.
165g water.
5g kosher salt.
NOTE: select your desired toppings, tomato sauce, and cheese.
Recipe Instruction
All my ingredient combining and mixing was done by hand using a mixing bowl, a hard plastic spoon, and a bowl scraper.
1. Mix flour, water, yeast, and salt in a mixing bowl using a rubber spatula. Mix until thoroughly combined.
2. Knead the dough. If you are using a stand mixer, knead for about 8-minutes. If you are kneading by hand, knead for about 15-minutes. I kneaded by hand, and it was one heck of a workout!
3. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl (I used a very, very light coating of PAM baking spray), cover it, and let the dough rest for about 10-minutes.
4. Splash your hands and workbench with a couple of pinches of flour. Gently work the dough into a nice ball.
5. Place the dough back in the bowl, cover it, and let it rest for about 1 hour.
6. Windowpane test for proper gluten development and elasticity (Gluten window)
7. Stretch the dough for your pan size. Use the back of your hands and not your fingers to stretch the dough. This technique helps to prevent ripping the dough. The dough in your baking pan should be about 1/4 inch thick.
8. Use a fork or a dough docking tool to poke small holes inside what will become the crust of the dough (Not what will be the crust). This technique will prevent bubbling.
9. Preheat the oven to bake at 450°F.
10. Brush olive oil and season with sea salt to your liking.
11. Carefully place your chosen toppings. Select and use your desired toppings, tomato sauce, and cheese.
12. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes. Keep an eye on your flatbread. Take the product out of the oven once the crust looks light golden brown.
13. Take out of the oven and let cool for about 5 to 10-minutes.
14. Enjoy!
