Zaatar Bread Manakish Manakeesh Recipes

ZA'ATAR MANAQISH RECIPE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine water, sugar and yeast. Set aside for 10 minutes to foam.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, and olive oil. Work the mixture with your hands. Now, make a well in the middle and pour in the yeast and water mixture. Stir until soft dough forms.
• Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes or until dough is elastic, smooth, and no longer sticky (as you knead, if dough is too sticky for you, you can sprinkle just a tiny bit of flour to help it).
• Form dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled mixing bowl. Cover with damp cloth and place in a warm spot (inside a warmed but turned-off oven is a good place). Leave to rise for 1 hour and 30 minutes.
• Punch dough down. Knead briefly and form into 8 small balls. Arrange on lightly floured surface, cover again and leave to rise another 30 minutes.
• While dough is rising, mix together the za'atar spice and olive oil in a bowl.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place a large baking sheet in oven while heating.
• Lightly oil the heated baking sheet and set near you. Flatten the dough into small discs about 5 inches in diameter. With your finger tips, make indentations in discs and add about 1 tbsp za'atar topping in the middle of each disc, leave a narrow boarder around. Arrange discs in prepared oiled baking sheet (use two sheets if needed, do not crowd the manaqish).
• Bake in 400 degrees F heated-oven for 7 to 8 minutes or until the dough is slightly browned on bottom and edges (za'atar topping will remain liquidy at this point). Remove from heat and let sit for 5 minutes or so, the topping will dry and settle into dough.
• Serve za'atar manaqish warm or at room temprature with assorted vegetables, olives, feta cheese, or homemade labneh.

MANAKEESH (MANAKISH) ZAATAR RECIPE

Steps:

• In your mixer bowl, combine yeast, sugar and half a cup of the warm water. Stir to combine and leave it to proof for 10 minutes.
• In a separate bowl, combine flour, dry milk and salt.
• After the 10 minutes add oil and flour then start kneading adding the water little by little until a nice consistent dough is formed.
• Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise on you countertop until it doubled in size or for 1 hour depending on your kitchen temperature.
• Preheat oven to 375F. Place a rack in the middle of the oven.
• Line two large baking sheets (enough to hold two 8inch circles) with parchment paper.
• Lightly flour your work surface and turn the dough in, divide the dough into 8 equal balls.
• Work with one ball at a time and cover the rest with plastic wrap.
• Roll the dough ball into a 8inch circle, lightly dust with flour while rolling so it will not stick to the work space.
• Place the rolled dough on your baking sheet and work with another one then place it on the same baking sheet.
• Top the circles with your za'atar or cheese mix and level the surface.
• Bake for 12-15 minutes ( or longer for a crispier mannish if that's what you like) or until the bottom of the manakish turns golden brown.
• If you want them to stay soft place while hot on a plate and cover with plastic wrap.

LEBANESE ZAATAR (ZA'ATAR) BREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Mix water, yeast, salt, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, olive oil, and corn oil; mix using your hands, adding more whole wheat flour if needed, until dough holds together. Mix za'atar into dough until evenly incorporated (see notes).
• Shape dough, about 1/4 cup per piece, into rounds on a floured work surface. Arrange rounds on baking sheets.
• Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned, about 25 minutes.

MANAKEESH BIL ZA'ATAR (FLAT BREAD WITH ZA'ATAR)

Steps:

• To make the dough, sift the flour, sugar, yeast and salt in a large bowl.
• Make a well in the centre and add in the water and knead till the dough has come together leaving the sides of the bowl clean.
• Transfer onto a clean work surface and knead for about 10 minutes till the dough is smooth and elastic.
• Lightly grease the bowl and transfer the dough into the bowl and cover with cling film and leave it in a warm place till it has doubled in bulk, for about 1 1/2 hours.
• Meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to gas mark 7/425F/220°C.
• Put 2 large oiled baking sheets in the oven to heat.
• Knock the air out of the dough and knead again for about 2 minutes.
• Divide into 8 portions and roll each ball between your palms until smooth and round.
• Flour the work surface and flatten each round with a rolling pin until it is circular, even, and about 1/4 inch thick.
• Cover and leave in a warm place to rise for 20 more minutes.
• Brush the tops of the discs with a little olive oil.
• In a small bowl, mix all the ingredients for the zaatar spice mix and add in the remaining oil and give it a good mix.
• Spread the oil-zaatar mixture over the surface of each bread.
• Slide the bread onto the hot baking sheets and bake for 10 minutes or until the bread is golden brown.
• Remove from the oven and serve hot.

ZAATAR BREAD - MANAKISH/ MANAKEESH

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in ½ cup of the warm water. Add the sugar and when it begins to froth, stir in the remaining water.
• Add 3 cups of flour slowly and stir it vigorously. Let the mixture rest for 10-15 minutes till it froths.
• Stir in the salt and the 2 tbspns of the virgin olive oil and mix it well.
• Gradually add the remaining 3 cups of flour (you may need a little less or more flour)until you have a dough that makes a perfect ball. Keep kneading the dough continuously for a good 10-15 minutes till the dough becomes soft, very smooth and stops sticking to your fingers.
• Pour the remaining 1 tbspn of oil on this round soft dough to grease it evenly . Cover the doughball with clingfilm and leave for it to rise for 2-3 hours.
• Meanwhile you can take the zaatar topping ingredients (or a cup of zaatar mixture that can be easily found in any middle eastern store with the oil ) and mix it in a small bowl to make it an oily mixture.
• Once the dough has risen , you can roll the dough and divide into either small balls or 2-3 large balls ( we chose to make 2 big 12″ breads. If you wish to serve manakeesh as an appetizer for friends and family , you can make mini manakeesh breads served as small bites to eat.)
• Roll out the ball on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin to a thickness of about ¼ inch and roll it to as big/small as you wish. Take a fork and poke it all over the bread avoiding the dough to puff up while being baked .
• You can now preheat the oven to 250°C (450°F) for 15-20 minutes.
• Place a greaseproof paper on a round baking tray and gently pick the stretched round dough and place it on top of the greaseproof paper. Gently spread 1 spoon of the Zaatar mixture on the bread.
• Zaatar bread is ready to bake. Place it in the preheated oven and let it bake for 5-10 minutes or until you can see slight browning. Hot yumminess is ready to dive into. See it on my blog https://ayoodcooks.wordpress.com/

MIDDLE EASTERN ZAATAR (MANAKISH ZA'ATAR)

Steps:

• 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.
• 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.
• Roll out the dough pieces with a rolling pin into round pizza-shaped pieces around 1/4-inch in thickness.
• 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!
• 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).
• 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.
• 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.
• Transfer the topped zaatar bread onto the pre-heated inverted oven tray (or pizza stone). Do this carefully, so you don't burn yourself.
• Bake for between 5-7 minutes, until it's lightly golden-brown, without burning the spices on top.
• 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.
• 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.

MANAKISH (LEBANESE ZA'ATAR BREAD)

Steps:

• Mix sugar and active dry yeast into a cup of warm water. Allow the yeast to activate until frothy. This can take anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes. (Tip: If the water does not froth it could be due to the yeast being expired, or the water is either too hot or too cold.)
• Mix flour and salt in a large bowl. When the yeast is frothy, add it to the same bowl, along with the olive oil.
• Stir to combine the ingredients and then knead the dough for at least 5 minutes. You may use a stand mixer with a hook attachment if you prefer.
• When the dough is smooth and elastic, form it into a ball and place it inside a large oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise for 1-½ hours in a warm location.
• Punch down the dough and knead for a few additional minutes. Divide the dough in half and then each half into thirds. Form each portion into a ball and place it on a floured surface or baking sheet. Cover the dough and allow to rise for an additional 30 minutes.
• Prepare the Za'atar from scratch or use a pre-made blend. Mix the Za'atar with olive oil.
• On a floured surface, form each portion into a circle about the same size as pita bread. Flatten the circle with your hand, or use a rolling pin. Use your fingers to make indentations into the top of the dough (similar to Focaccia bread).Tip: This step will not only help spread the dough but allow the zaatar paste to fill the indentations and stick to the dough.
• Transfer onto a pizza stone or lightly oiled pan. Add a few tablespoons of the Za'atar paste onto each flatbread, leaving an inch border all around.
• Bake for approximately 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown along the edges. Serve with Lebneh, Hummus, or cheese and olives.