Edible Flowers: Calendula Lavash
posted by virtual chef on Mar 30, 2009 | Bakery |
Lavash is a thin, soft Middle Eastern flatbread that is often served with dips and used for wraps. For my Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24 Cooking with Edible Flowers entry, I adapted a simple lavash recipe from About.com and added calendula (pot marigold) petals. Marigold or Calendula is considered a “poor man’s saffron” and I was hoping to get a yellow colored, thin softbread to go with the edible flower cream cheese spread. Unfortunately, I must have not used enough petals since the bread didn’t change color. However, I did get pretty sheets showing off strands of the calendula beautifully when rolled.
Ingredients:
- 1 package active dry yeast
- 1 1/2 cup warm water
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 4 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 tbs calendula petals (dried or fresh)
Directions:
- Coat a large bowl with oil. Set aside.
- Combine yeast, water and sugar in a bowl and mix until yeast is dissolved.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour and salt. Add yeast water mixture and form a dough. Add calendula petals. Knead dough by hand for 10 -15 minutes. If using a mixer, knead for 5-8 minutes. Once dough is kneaded, place ball of dough in oiled bowl. Roll the dough around the bowl to coat it with oil. Cover and let rise for 1 -1 1/2 hours, or until dough doubles in size.
- Once dough has doubled, punch down to release air. Continue to knead for about 5 minutes.
- Divide dough into 8 separate balls of dough. Cover and allow to rise for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Once risen, roll dough out to thin rectangles, about 12″x10″ for large or 8″x6″ for small flatbreads. They should be as thin as pizza dough.
- Puncture rectangles with a fork. Brush dough with water and sprinkle sesame seeds. Bake on baking sheet for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Continue baking remaining dough. Cool on wire rack.
- Cut into triangles the size of tortilla chips. Store in sealed plastic bag until ready to serve.
If lavash sheets gets hard, place under running water to soak. Put in a sealed plastic bag. Lavash will soften and will be ready to use for wraps.
