Flatbread

A flatbread is a simple and easy bread to make, as the dough needs almost no resting time, and the bread is baked in a dry pan over the fire.

In olden times flatbread was called ‘bread disk’. Think of it as a kind of plate, on which you might place bacon, cabbage and mustard. Flatbread was, and still is, also a good side dish. It may seem a little firm, as there is no yeast in the dough, but on the dinner plate it soaks up the juices from the other food and becomes rather tasty.

Flatbread in three ways

These flatbreads can be used as a side for breakfast, dinner or as tasty lunch snacks, and they can be made over the campfire, on the garden grill or on the hob. It is easy to adapt the recipe to personal taste with different flours, liquids, spices and fillings. At the Hviding Farm, people are particularly fond of flatbread made with wholemeal flour and beer.

Procedure

Mix flour and salt in a bowl. Add yoghurt, buttermilk, beer or whey and water as needed. Knead well until the dough is smooth and comes away from the sides of the bowl. Leave the dough to rest for 30 minutes.

You can bake flatbread from the dough as it is, or you can flavour the dough first:

HONEY AND THYME
1 tbsp honey
2 tbsp thyme, finely chopped

SAVOURY AND RAMSONS
3 tbsp ramsons, finely chopped
1 tbsp savoury, finely chopped

HAZELNUT AND CRANBERRY
1 handful dried cranberries, chopped
1 handful hazelnuts, chopped
Optional: a little honey

Shape small flatbreads about 1 cm thick. Bake on both sides over a medium heat (over embers) in a pan until golden. The finished bread should sound hollow when tapped.

Ingredients

4 persons
  • 100 g rye flour
  • 100 g barley flour
  • 120 g wheat or wholemeal flour
  • 200 ml yoghurt, beer or whey
  • 2 tsp salt
  • Water as needed

Cook's notes

Remember that you can vary the types of flour, liquids and spices as you please.