Lavash/Laffa Bread

Lavash or Laffa bread is a traditional flat-bread served in the Middle East and can be used to make a sandwich or wrap. It’s a lightly baked bread that can be served with dips, as an appetizer or enjoyed as a healthy snack. Whenever I tire of pita, Laffa bread is always my other option.  I spread some hummus and dab it with a bit of hot sauce.  Then I layer it with various cut-up vegetables. If I have leftover turkey or chicken, I simply cut them into shreds and add it to my rolled-up sandwich (for a lack of a better term). If I’m in a mood for something sweet, I will smear some nutella or chocolate spread (not very healthy but I could think of worse). I’ve once even made a personal pizza out of these flat-breads and they were awesome. If I don’t have pizza dough on hand or don’t have the time to make one, Lavash is the next best thing.   While tortilla bread is generally made from corn flour, Laffa/Lavash is normally made from wheat flour.  I used a mixture of bread flour and whole wheat flour.  Like a tortilla wrap, you can stuff Laffa with virtually anything you want and roll it up afterwards. If you had fun with my pita recipe, I hope you’ll enjoy making Lavash bread as well.

For this recipe, you will need:

1. 3 cups of whole wheat flour
2. 2  1/2 cups of bread flour
3. 1 package of yeast
4. 2 cups of warm water
5. 2 tablespoons of sugar
6. 2 teaspoons of salt
7. 4 tablespoons of olive oil
8. 1 tablespoons of toasted sesame seeds

Instructions

Prepare the bowl. Coat the inside of a metal mixing bowl with oil, and set aside. Mix the yeast, water, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Make the dough. Slowly add the flour 1/2 cup at a time to the yeast mixture. Add the salt and sesame seeds and knead for at 10 to 15 minutes by hand. Dough will become firm and have a stretchy consistency. Let the dough rise. Shape the dough into a ball and place in oiled bowl. Cover with a dishcloth, and let rise in a warm area for 45 minutes until dough doubles in size.  Let the dough rise. Shape the dough into a ball and place in oiled bowl. Cover with a dishcloth, and let rise in a warm area for 45 minutes until dough doubles in size. Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare baking sheet. Lightly oil a 12×15 baking sheet and set aside. Separate dough into eight equal-sized pieces. Roll each one out onto the baking sheet to resemble large strips. Create holes in the dough. Lightly puncture the surface of the dough 1/2″ apart. Bake bread for 6 to 8 minutes until top is lightly brown. Remove bread from oven and let cool on wire rack.