A flatbread by any other name

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While in New Orleans recently my wife and I ate at a greatbrlittle restaurant named Salú.  It’s inbrthe funky part of town on Magazine St. in the Garden District.  While there we shared several small platesbrand among them was this incredibly simple but well executed BLT flatbread.  It was hauntingly good.  So good in fact it inspired me to make my ownbrversion.

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Flatbreads have come into their own lately as they seemed tobrhave carved out a niche among restaurant menus. brBut you may know flatbreads by a different name, pizza.  That’s right flatbread and pizza are prettybrmuch interchangeable as both consist of a bread type crust with variousbrtoppings.

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I can just hear the detractors now, “But there are keybrdifferences in flatbreads versus pizzas….” Blah, blah, blah, the two are sobrclose to one another that any differences are merely semantics.  Get over it, and check your food snobbery atbrthe door please and thank you.

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Simplicity your are a flatbread

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There is really nothing complicated here.  All we need is a killer pizza crust recipe, abrblazing hot oven, and some really great toppings.  Put all of those things together and you willbrhave yourself a meal that is not soon forgotten, and quickly repeated.

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If you recall from my other pizza recipes I only usebrFleischmann’s Pizza Crust Yeast because it requires no rising time, and thebrresults are fantastic.  I won’t bore youbrwith a pizza dough recipe and technique. brJust click the link.

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This recipe also calls for an herbed, garlic aioli.  The recipe and method is described in thebrfollowing article.

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All that is left for our flatbread is some fresh, crispybrromaine lettuce and some very good bacon cooked until crispy.  I cook my bacon in the oven at 350° on abrsheet pan.  Trust me on this.  It’s a better way.

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Making flatbread sense

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So this is how it all goes together.  We bake the very thin flatbread dough withbrsome of the aioli in place of a pizza sauce, top it with the bacon, lettuce,brtomato, some more of the aioli, and eat. brSee how easy this is?

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Note:  Most pizzabrovens cook at well above 500°, so set yours to 500° and have no fear.

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Yield:  3 flatbreads

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Ingredients:

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• 1recipe   Pizzabrdough
• 1C          Herbedbrgarlic aioli
• 1head     Romainebrlettuce
• 4             Romabrtomatoes (chopped)
• 1lb.         Baconbr(cooked until crispy)

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Method:

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Preheat oven to 500° or highest setting

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Roll out 1lb. pizza dough to about one-eighth inch thickness

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Spread 2-3 tbsp aioli on the dough and bake for 10-12brminutes or until very crispy and slightly charred

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Remove from oven and top evenly with lettuce, bacon, andbrtomatoes

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Finish with small dollops of aioli

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Texture and flavor are at the forefront of thisbrflatbread.  The herbed-garlic aioli isbrthe perfect complement to the crisp bread, crunchy lettuce, sweet tomatoes, andbrsavory bacon.  This dish gets a bit messybrwhile eating, but you won’t mind.

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Stay hungry.