Flatbreads

Flatbreads

 Preparation time:        less than 30 mins

Cooking time:              10 to 30 mins

Serves:             4-6 flatbreads

 Ingredients:

●      200g plain or wholemeal flour 

●      ¼ tsp salt

●      100ml warm water

●      2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for cooking

Method:

1.     Place the flour and salt in a large bowl and trickle on the water bit by bit.

2.     Mix the water and flour together. Kids can mix using one finger so that they don’t get a whole hand covered in dough. Doughy hands can be cleaned by rubbing a little more flour onto the hands over another bowl or the bin - resist the urge to wash doughy hands as you will block the drain!

 3.     Add the oil and knead the dough - you are aiming for a soft dough. If it is too sticky add a little more flour, if it is too dry add a splash of water. 

 4.     Knead the dough for five minutes - kids can do this in the bowl or on a clean surface using one or two hands.

 5.     You can cook the breads straight away or leave the dough to stand for about half an hour. This is a good time to make a quick filling such as a grated salad or dip.

 6.     Divide the dough into four balls, or six if you have a smaller frying pan.

 7.     On a clean surface, roll each ball of dough one at a time using a rolling pin. If you pick up and move round the flatbread often you know it hasn’t stuck. (You may need to sprinkle a little flour on the surface but only use a little - too much will dry out the dough.) Don’t worry if they aren’t perfect circles!

 8.     Heat a large frying pan. Take a sheet of kitchen paper and rub a little oil onto the surface of the pan. Cook each flatbread for about two minutes on one side - it should puff up a little.

 9.     Flip the flatbread over using tongs and then cook for a couple of minutes on the other side. The flatbread should have turned lighter in colour and may have a few spots of brown. 

 10.  Keep the cooked flatbreads warm, wrapped in foil or a clean tea towel, until the others are cooked.

 11.  If you want crisp flatbreads you can now rub them with a little olive oil, chop into strips or triangles with scissors and then bake them for 5-10 minutes, or until crisp. 

Tip: Flatbreads can be rolled out and frozen in a stack. You will need to put a bit of greaseproof paper between each of the breads, so they don’t stick. Frozen flatbreads can be cooked from frozen - they will take a few minutes more to cook on a hot frying pan.