Zucchini Feta Chilli and Mint Flatbread

On Saturday night we had friends over for dinner.

Given that one of them is vegetarian, it gave me an opportunity to try out some new dishes and this flatbread was one of them.  It is from my Vegetarian Cookbook, which includes recipes from many different ‘cooks’ so it has quite an eclectic range of recipes. It is a lovely book.

The flatbread was easy to prepare and assemble.  I made the dough about 30 minutes before our friends arrived and also pre-prepared the topping.

Soon after our guests arrived, I rolled out the dough and baked it for 10 minutes

I then quickly added the topping and baked it for another 10 minutes until the feta cheese had browned.  During this time I was still able to take part in the conversation!

It was a hit and the leftovers even made a yummy breakfast the next day – much to my husband’s disgust!

Zucchini, Feta, Chilli & Mint Flatbread

Makes about 9 large slices

For the flatbread:
1 3/4 cups (250g) wholemeal (or use 1/2 wholemeal, 1/2 white) plain flour (choose ‘hard’ flour which is higher in gluten if available)
½ teaspoon dried yeast
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
150ml warm water
a good pinch of salt

For the topping:
2 zucchinis, very finely sliced lengthways – I used my vegie peeler for this and it was perfect
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
a pinch of salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 large red chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped, optional (I actually forgot to add it! talking too much?!)
4 tablespoons finely shredded mint leaves
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
100g feta cheese, crumbled (recipe suggests 150g, but I found 100g was ample)

For the flatbread
In a bowl, combine flour and yeast.
Make a well in the centre and add the olive oil, water and salt.  Stir with a fork to combine.
Gradually mix the flour into the liquid to form a dough.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured workbench and knead until the dough is smooth and silky.  (I actually used my thermomix to do this entire bit for me:  Place all ingredients in thermomix.  Mix for 5 seconds on speed 7 to combine.  Set dial to closed lid position.  Knead dough for about 1 1/2 minutes on Interval speed)
Return the dough to the bowl, cover and leave in a warm place until it has doubled it’s bulk (takes about half an hour).

Meanwhile, prepare the topping:  Into a medium-sized bowl, place the zucchini, olive oil, salt, pepper, chilli, mint and lemon zest.
Give it a good toss with your clean fingers and leave aside for the flavours to infuse while the dough continues to rise.

Preheat oven to 220 degrees C.

When the dough has doubled in size, punch it down to knock all the air out, then roll into a large rectangular shape (approximately 28cm x 38cm) on a well floured surface.  Transfer to a baking tray (or pizza stone if you have one) and brush the top with a little extra olive oil.
Bake the flatbread for 10 minutes
Spread the topping over the top of the flatbread, then crumble the feta cheese evenly over and continue baking for another 10-12 minutes – or until the flatbread is crisp and appears slightly golden around the edges

Serve while still warm