Soft, warm flatbread with spicy chick peas, slathered with cool yogurt and sweet mango chutney makes a wonderful light dinner or lunch. The flatbreads are really easy to make, and so much better than anything store-bought. You can even get the kids to help you roll them out while the filling simmers on the stove!
Ingredients:
Flatbread:
2 cups flour
1 tsp active dry yeast
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
Filling:
1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 Tbsp curry powder
2 cups (500 ml) cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
Mango chutney and Greek yogurt, for garnish
In a large heavy saucepan, saute the onion for about 5 minutes or so until it’s soft and translucent. Add the curry powder, stirring and cooking to coat the onions for about a minute. Stir in the chick peas and cilantro, moving them around the pan to get the chick peas somewhat coated with spices, then pour in the chicken stock and stir. Bring the mixture to a boil before turning down to medium low, then partially cover the pan and allow to simmer for an hour until the chick peas are very soft and most of the liquid has thickened up.
While the filling is cooking, measure the flour, yeast, turmeric, cumin, sugar, and salt into a large bowl. Stir in ¾ cup of warm water until dough forms, before turning it out on a lightly floured counter and kneading for about 5 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic film wrap, and set in a warm place to rise until doubled in size, or for about an hour.
When the dough has finished rising, divide it into 12 balls. On a floured counter, roll each out to about 8 inches in diameter. You can do them all at once or one at a time as you cook, if you wish. Over medium heat, get a heavy skillet good and hot, then swirl a little oil in it. Fry up the breads one by one, turning as they get browned on the bottom and puff up. They cook fairly fast, so you need to stay by the stove, and a pair of tongs can be handy. You may need to add a little more oil now and then. As they cook, remove to a paper towel and continue cooking the rest of them. When you are finished, serve with the chick pea filling to spoon over top, along with some cool Greek yogurt and mango chutney. They are a little messy, but wow are they delicious!
Makes about 12 (serves 4-8)
Adapted from Spilling the Beans
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