Vegetarian Flammkuchen with Roasted Vegetables
shared by Nibblore Deutsch
This paper-thin German flatbread combines a crisp base with tangy crème fraîche, roasted red pepper, zucchini, and red onion. Slicing the vegetables very thinly and baking on fully preheated trays helps the toppings cook without making the crust soggy. Serve it with a simple green salad for a light lunch or dinner. • Slice the zucchini and bell pepper especially thinly; thick pieces release too much water during baking and may remain undercooked. • Do not top the dough until the oven is fully preheated, or the crème fraîche may make the base soggy. • For an even crisper base, bake each flammkuchen separately on a preheated pizza steel at 250°C for about 8 to 10 minutes. • Crème fraîche can be replaced with sour cream; if it is very thick, stir in 1 tbsp milk. • Instead of red bell pepper, use thinly sliced fennel or well-drained artichoke hearts. • Fresh thyme can be replaced with 1/2 tsp dried thyme. • Bread flour can be replaced with plain flour; begin with 115 ml water and add more only if needed. Let leftovers cool completely, then refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Reheat on a hot baking tray at 220°C for 5 to 7 minutes; microwaving will soften the base. Untopped dough can be frozen airtight for up to 1 month, but topped flammkuchen does not freeze well.
- Total time
- 46 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
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Save recipeIngredients
- 250 gbread flour
- ½ tspsalt
- 2 tbspolive oil
- 125 mlwater, lukewarm
- 200 gcrème fraîche
- 1 tsplemon juice
- ¼ tspblack pepper, freshly ground
- ⅛ tspnutmeg, freshly grated
- 1red onion, halved and very thinly sliced
- 1red bell pepper, deseeded and cut into 3 mm strips
- 1small zucchini, halved lengthwise and cut into 2 mm slices
- 1 tspolive oil, for the vegetables
- ¼ tspsalt, for the vegetables
- 1 tspfresh thyme leaves
- 10 gchives, finely sliced
Instructions
- 1Place two upside-down baking trays on the lower-middle and upper-middle oven racks. Preheat the oven to 250°C conventional heat for 30 minutes. Cut two sheets of baking paper to fit the trays.
- 2Mix the flour and 1/2 tsp salt in a bowl. Add 2 tbsp olive oil and the lukewarm water, then stir with a spoon until combined. Knead on a work surface for 5 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Cover and rest at room temperature for 15 minutes.
- 3Stir the crème fraîche, lemon juice, black pepper, and nutmeg until smooth. In a separate bowl, toss the onion, bell pepper, and zucchini with 1 tsp olive oil, 1/4 tsp salt, and the thyme leaves.
- 4Divide the dough in half. Roll each half on a prepared sheet of baking paper into a very thin rectangle measuring about 28 x 38 cm. Press down any thicker edges with your fingertips; the dough should be almost translucent.
- 5Spread half the crème fraîche mixture thinly over each piece of dough, leaving a 1 cm border. Arrange the vegetables evenly in as close to a single layer as possible so that any released moisture can evaporate quickly.
- 6Carefully slide the flammkuchen, still on the baking paper, onto the hot upside-down trays. Bake for 7 minutes, then swap the trays between the racks and bake for another 5 to 7 minutes. They are ready when the edges are deep golden and crisp, the undersides have brown spots, and the tips of the vegetables are lightly roasted.
- 7Leave the flammkuchen on the trays for 2 minutes, then sprinkle with chives and cut into pieces with a pizza wheel or large knife. Serve immediately while hot.