SMALL SEMOLINA GRIDDLE BREADS

Small Semolina Griddle Breads image

_Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from Paula Wolfert's book [](http://www.ecookbooks.com/p-4239-slow-mediterranean-kitchen.aspx?affiliateID=10053)_[The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen](http://www.ecookbooks.com/p-4239-slow-mediterranean-kitchen.aspx?affiliateID=10053). _Wolfert also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page._ Here's a fast bread for slow foods. Small as a pancake, these easy-to-make, grainy-textured griddle breads are similar to those sold on the streets of Casablanca and Tunis. No yeast is required. A combination of coarse semolina and fine pasta flour provides a butter-colored interior and blotchy black exterior. Serve these breads as a hot hors d'oeuvre with North African [herb or tomato jams](/recipes/food/views/231567) or for breakfast brushed with butter or argan oil and honey.

Provided by Paula Wolfert

Yield Makes twelve 5-inch rounds

Number Of Ingredients 6

Ingredients

2 scant cups (14 ounces) pasta flour
1 cup (6 ounces) coarse semolina (see Tips, below, for mail order information)
1 stick plus two tablespoons (5 ounces) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 small onion, halved

Steps:

1. In a mixing bowl, combine the pasta flour and semolina. Add the stick of melted butter and rub the mixture together with your hands until sandy. Mix in the sugar and salt. Mix 1/2 cup of water into the dough; it should be crumbly. Let stand a few minutes, then gradually add more water until you have a soft dough, about 1 cup in all.
2. Transfer to a food processor and pulse 30 times to blend. The texture should now be very soft and moist. Turn the dough out onto an unfloured work surface. Using lightly buttered hands, knead it until silky, 1 to 2 minutes. Cover the dough loosely and let rest for at least 30 minutes.
3. Preheat a cast-iron grill or a ridged pan over medium heat. Preheat the oven to 250°F. Lightly grease the cut side of the onion with melted butter or oil and quickly rub the heated pan. Cut the dough into 12 equal pieces. On a buttered or oiled baking sheet, press out one portion of the dough into a 5-inch round. Cover loosely with plastic and repeat to form the remaining flatbreads. Grill the breads, one at a time, until they are golden and speckled with black spots, turning once; it should take 4 minutes total. Serve the breads hot off the grill, or wrap in foil and keep them warm in the oven for up to 30 minutes.
•Darker than olive oil, with a reddish tint, argan oil will impart a rich, nutty, earthy flavor to the griddle breads. This traditional Moroccan ingredient comes from the nuts of the argan tree, which grows only in southwestern Morocco. The oil is available at www.berbersources.com and www.exoticaoils.com. Since it takes approximately 12 hours to extract a liter of oil from the nuts, it's an expensive-but inimitable-ingredient. It can also be used as a finishing oil for vegetables or lentils. •Wolfert cautions against substituting other types of flour in this recipe: The combination of fine semolina (pasta flour) and course semolina is essential to the bread's distinctive texture. Coarse semolina is available at www.kalustyans.com or from Todaro Brothers (877-472-2767 or [email protected]).