Easy Zatar Bread!

This bread is SUPER EASY. I'm not kidding you - just try it. It may change your life.

Before making this bread, I had just about given up on bread recipes. I don't like spending time waiting for the bread to rise or having to keep coming back every 20 minutes to do something else to the dough and let it rise again. This recipe is NOT LIKE OTHER RECIPES. It is so simple, and versatile too - you can use it to make this zatar bread, pita bread, baguette, pizza dough, and many more...and everything I have made with this dough so far comes out delicious!

I'm going to explain to you how to make the dough, and then show you how easy it was to turn it into zatar bread.

You will need:

1 1/2 c. lukewarm water

3/4 T yeast

3/4 T salt

3 1/4 cups all purpose flour

Here is what you do to make the generic dough:

Add yeast and salt to water in the bowl of a standing mixer. Using the dough hook attachment, mix in the flour. Mix for a couple of minutes - just until the dough is uniformly moist. Take off the hook, cover the bowl with a towel, and let rise for two to three hours. After the dough has risen, spray a bowl with olive oil spray (or PAM - whatever you have) and transfer the dough to that bowl. Spray the top of the dough with olive oil spray, and then cover with plastic wrap. Put into the refrigerator, and take chunks of dough from it whenever you want within the next two weeks to make whatever bread product your heart desires! 

To turn the dough into zatar bread, you first generously sprinkle a cutting board with flour. The dough is very wet so you must generously sprinkle the flour.

Then, tear off a chunk of dough about the size of an orange.

Separate it into two rounds, and flatten them.

At this point, you should transfer them to a baking sheet. Do what I say, not what I do :)

Sprinkle about 1 T of zatar blend (a meditteranean spice mix) onto the dough.

Press into the dough with your fingers to make indentations all over.

You can wait until now to transfer them to a baking dish, but it will be easier if you do it before sprinkling the zatar on.

Cover the bread pieces with olive oil.

Maybe about 1 T each? It's up to you... You can also sprinkle some salt over the top.

Let the unbaked zatar breads rest for about 20 minutes. Then, bake them in a 450 degree oven for about 15 minutes. Have a broiler pan or other pan in the oven on the rack below where you plan to bake the bread, and when you put the bread into the oven, pour a cup of water into that pan. This will create steam and be good for the bread (I think... I don't really know the science behind it.)

Enjoy your zatar bread!