This recipe is courtesy of The Hummus Theory www.TheHummusTheory.com
Diala Shaheen of The Hummus Theory shares through her blog her love of Middle Eastern food and the importance of preserving these recipes, especially those of her Palestinian background. We appreciate how she prepares healthier alternatives to traditional dishes we love and her modern take on dishes we are accustomed to!
Diala’s Your Lebanon Chef Feature Page
“We will stay here as long as there are thyme and olives”.
Wild thyme form the basis for the famous Palestinian spice za’atar, which is basically dried thyme grinded with sesame seeds and the tangy spice sumaq. Za’atar is a magical spice we eat with everything; chicken, salads, cheese, labneh (pressed yogurt), or even on its own with some olive oil.
And what’s better than adding it to dough and making delicious wild thyme bread?
Za’atar bread is not just another baked deliciousness for me; za’atar bread brings childhood memories that I remember every time I smell its aroma and savour its flavour. Memories of my settu (grandmother) kneading and making her special shape while I’m sitting next to her waiting for the first batch to snatch one or two flaming breads.
These days my mother and aunties carried the legacy while they compete to make the za’atar bread closest to settu’s. One of the secrets of making the best za’atar bread is getting the best za’atar; wild, fresh, and aromatic. What’s special about this bread’s dough is the use of olive oil. Add the fresh za’atar leaves after picking them from the roots.
What I love about this bread is its simplicity: there’s only two variations- plain circle-shaped bread and white nabulsi cheese stuffed. Another secret for delicious za’atar bread is making settu’s traditional shape: a hole in the middle and indentations all around. Here’s a tutorial video featuring my awesome mom.
For the cheese stuffed ones, shapes vary: the balls, the boats, or the classic triangles. BAKE! And enjoy the aromas.
This bread can’t be enjoyed without a cup of mint tea, some cucumbers and tomatoes, and labneh (pressed yogurt dip).
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- 2.2 lbs all-purpose flour (1 kg)
- 1 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
- 1 egg
- fresh wild thyme leaves
- warm water for kneading
- white nabulsi cheese for stuffing or Bulgarian, feta, halloumi
Ingredients
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- Place the flour in a big bowl, add the olive oil, salt, sugar, active yeast, powdered milk, egg, and thyme leaves and mix all together.
- Start adding warm water gradually and kneading until all incorporated and dough is not sticky anymore. Usually no more than 4 1/2 cups are needed.
- Form the dough into a ball, place in a bowl, cover, and leave in a warm place to rise. During winter, it is usually put to rise over night while in summer it needs 3-4 hours.
- Once risen, for regular bread: cut into medium-sized balls and flatten, pinching along the edges. For cheese stuffed, cut into small-sized balls and stuff with crumbled cheese in your favorite shape.
- Place in pans (usually no need to grease because of the olive oil) and leave for 5 minutes before baking.
- Bake in a preheated oven on 350 degrees F (190 degrees C) for at least 15 minutes and broil for a golden color.