Middle Eastern Zaatar :Manakish Za’atar
Enjoy this traditional Middle Eastern flatbread, aka Zaatar bread/ Manakish Za'atar with just 7 ingredients from scratch and 20 minutes of hands-on prep! This zaatar flatbread can be served as a snack, appetizer, or alongside a breakfast spread!
Note: if you don't want to make the dough from scratch you can use Pita Bread or Naan Bread!
Ingredients
- Manakish dough
- 1/2 cup zaatar
- 1/2 cup olive oil
OPTIONAL ADD-ONS:
- Cheese Halloumi, akawi, nabulsi, or feta
- Kalamata Olives halved, sliced, or whole
- red pepper flakes For spice
Instructions
STEP 1: PREPARE THE MANAKISH DOUGH
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I use this simple Middle Eastern Dough. This recipe will require about an hour and a half (due to the hour-long proving time), so plan accordingly.
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Once the dough is prepared, split it into 5 equal pieces for larger breads or 8 pieces for medium-sized breads. You can weigh it out for complete accuracy, but I just do this by eye.
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Roll out the dough pieces with a rolling pin into round pizza-shaped pieces around 1/4-inch in thickness.
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Use your fingers to lightly dimple the top of the bread. This will not only help keep the topping in place as the bread bakes, but it will also stop it from puffing up too much in the oven. You can do this step before or after adding the topping. I did it after this particular time, as I forgot to do it before – whoops!
STEP 2: PREPARE THE ZA’ATAR TOPPING
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Place an inverted tray or a pizza stone in the oven and preheat it to the highest it can possibly reach (Mine is 500ºF/260ºC).
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In a small bowl combine the za'atar and olive oil and mix well into a paste similar to pesto rather than a thick paste.
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Top each of the Middle Eastern Flatbread with some of the za'atar oil blend, leaving about a 1/2-1 inch 'crust' at the edges. Feel free to increase/decrease the amount of topping that you add based on how strong you want the flavor to be.
STEP 3: BAKE THE ZAATAR BREAD
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Transfer the topped zaatar bread onto the pre-heated inverted oven tray (or pizza stone). Do this carefully, so you don't burn yourself.
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Bake for between 5-7 minutes, until it’s lightly golden-brown, without burning the spices on top.
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Remove the manakish za'atar from the oven and allow it to cool slightly. This will allow the topping to 'dry' to the flatbread. Then, enjoy- make sure to wrap/cover it with a kitchen towel to keep the bread soft.
HOW TO STORE & REHEAT
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Store: Store the baked zaatar bread in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. If you used oil in the dough in place of oil then you can store the bread at room temperature for 3-5 days (covered). Freezer: Wrap the zaatar manakish tightly with plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to three months, Thaw in the refrigerator before enjoying or heat from frozen. Reheat: You can reheat the bread from frozen in the oven at 250ºF/120ºC until warmed through (20-25 minutes usually). If heating from chilled or room temperature, then reduce the time in the oven.