Vegetarian Flammkuchen | German Pizza

Event: Sunday Funday

Theme: Oktoberfest Recipes

Recipe: Vegetarian Flammkuchen | German Pizza

Vegetarian Flammkuchen is a crispy, thin flatbread that is topped with creme fraiche, onion and some cheese. Usually bacon is added also but to make a vegetarian version I left it out. I used creme fraiche, onion, sliced mushrooms and olive slices. Also added some cheese.

A Bit About Flammkuchen | German Pizza

Also known as German Pizza, flammekueche or as tarte flambée in French, you’ve got to try out this delicious crispy pizza. Flammkuchen literally translates as ‘flame cake’. Bakers would roll out a thin piece of dough and put in their wood fired ovens. The dough was a test to indicate whether the correct temperature had reached so that the baker could bake the bread.

Perhaps a baker got tired of eating the flat crispy bread and added some creme fraiche, onion and bacon before putting it in the oven. It became a popular meal for farmers. However, this delicious criapy flatbread did not reach the restaurants till pizza became popular world wide.

It is believed that Flammkuchen or flammekueche originates from the Alsace region. Though, now a part of France, historically it has flip flopped between France and Germany. Situated at the border of France and Germany, it has a strong German influence. Saarland, the neighbouring region situated in Germany claims it to be their own invention.

As for me, whoever invented it, I am glad that it has become popular flatbread that I’ve being able to bake in my own oven. Recently, hubby and I had enjoyed these super thin pizza at the local restaurant La Piazzetta. Both of loved the pizza. Hubby then requested that I try and bake thin pizza at home. That is when I tumbled upon numerous flammkuchen recipes.

Deviate From The Traditional And Prepare Vegetarian Flammkuchen | German Pizza

While traditionally the topping is creme fraiche, onion and bacon, I had to think of a vegetarian version. On researching many recipes and videos deduced that these days there are so many different toppings that are used. Check below for topping suggestions.

Difference Between Italian Pizza and Flammkuchen

While Italian pizza can be thick or thin crusted, flammkuchen is always thin. In fact the dough is rolled out as thin as possible. So much so that in a wood fired oven it literally gets baked in 2-3 minutes.

The second main difference is that for Italian Pizza a tomato sauce is used while we do not use that for flammekueche.

Some More Flatbread Recipes For You To Check Out

MANAKEESH, MIDDLE EASTERN FLATBREAD

Manakeesh, Manakish, Manaeesh, Manaqish or in singular form Manousheh is the Middle East's version of a pizza. It is usually topped with herbs, cheese or minced meat and can be served for breakfast or lunch. Very popular in Syria, Lebanon and the Arab Peninsula.

Check out this recipe

FOUGASSE

Fougasse is a stunning French Flatbread with a crisp crust and a slightly chewy crumb. Easy to make it is pronounced as 'foogaas'. This flatbread actually quite famous in the Provence region of France.

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QUBANI NAAN

Qubani Naan is a sweetish exotic Mughlai flatbread with dried apricot,poppy seeds, cardamom & saffron. Usually served with a spicy curry.

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Olive & Rosemary Focaccia

The Group Sunday Funday And Theme

Are you all wondering how come I tried out flammkuchen, not once but twice at home? Well, it is for the Oktoberfest theme. This is what Sue suggested “Oktoberfest (Munich) runs September 17- October 3rd this year. Let’s wow them with our best recipes suitable for celebrating this beer fest”. Well, not a problem at all as you can easily serve piping hot flammkuchen as a starter to go with the chilled beer..that too German. And no, neither Heineken nor Budweiser are German beers. If you want to join this fun and easy going Sunday Funday Group then please do leave a comment at the bottom and I’ll definitely guide you how to join it. Every Sunday members make something traditional, fun, hearty or easy according to the chosen theme.

Check Out Some More Oktoberfest Recipes By Sunday Funday Members

• German Cucumber Salad from Amy’s Kitchen Adventures
• German Potato Salad from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Laugenbrezel (German Soft Pretzels) with Big Sur Sea Salt Blends from Culinary Adventures with Camilla
• Oktoberfest Casserole from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Sauerkraut Rye Bread from Palatable Pastime
• Vegetarian Flammkuchen from Mayuri’s Jikoni
• Wurstsalat from Pandemonium Noshery

Topping Suggestions For Vegetarian Flammkuchen | German Pizza

Besides the traditional creme fraiche,onion and bacon modern day toppings are various:

• cooked minced meat
• zucchini slices
• cherry tomatoes cut into halves
• sausages
• sauerkraut
• asparagus shavings
• artichoke
• thin slices of potatoes
• kale
• spinach
• caramelized onion
• finely diced peppers
• different types of cheese like cheddar, feta, mozzarella, etc
• sour cream, greek yogurt
• for a dessert one, use apples, cream cheese, berries, etc.

Ingredients Required For Flammkuchen | German Pizza

For The Pizza Dough:

• Flour – all purpose flour or bread flour. Extra flour for dusting when kneading and rolling out the dough.
• Warm Water – amount required may vary with quality of the flour. Some flours tend to absorb more liquid than others.
• Yeast – I have used instant active dry yeast. If you use the non instant one, then add the yeast to the warm water with sugar. Mix it. Cover it and allow the yeast to activate for 10 -15 minutes. The mixture should appear frothy after 10 minutes.
• Salt – iodized, sea salt or rock salt.
• Sugar – can use normal white sugar, brown sugar, honey or maple syrup. You need a little so that it activates the yeast.
• Olive Oil – or any flavourless oil.

For The Topping:

• Creme Fraiche – French word for fresh cream,  it is cultured with bacterial culture, resulting in a slightly sour thick cream. If you don’t get creme fraiche, you can substitute it with sour cream. Generally, sour cream tends to be a bit more sour than creme fraiche. The first time I baked flammkuchen, I used creme fraiche and the second time sour cream. We liked both.
• Onion – can use any, red, white or yellow but I love the taste of the red/purple one and it looks pretty against the white creme fraiche.
• Garlic – I mixed a bit of minced garlic into the creme fraiche.
• Mushroom – can use any type of mushrooms. I had button mushrooms, so used those. Make thin slices.
• Olives – preferably sliced. Use any of your choice, green, black, kalamata.
• Salt – add according to your taste.
• Pepper Powder – add according to your taste.
• Herbs – I used dried parsley
• Spinach – optional. Top the baked pizza with greens if you want to . I used baby spinach.

Watch How To Bake Vegetarian Flammkuchen

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VEGETARIAN FLAMMKUCHEN | GERMAN PIZZA

Vegetarian Flammkuchen is a crispy, thin flatbread that is topped with creme fraiche, onion and some cheese. Usually bacon is added also but to make a vegetarian version I left it out. I used creme fraiche, onion, sliced mushrooms and olive slices. Also added some cheese.

Course Appetizer, Main Meal, Starter

Cuisine German

Keyword Flammekueche recipe, Vegetarian Flammkutchen, Vegetarian German Pizza Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

FERMENTING TIME: 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 25 minutes minutes

Servings 2 LARGE PIZZA

Author mayurisjikoni

Ingredients

FOR THE PIZZA/FLATBREAD BASE

• 1¼ cup all purpose flour or bread flour
• ½ cup warm water
• 1 tsp instant active dry yeast
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp sugar
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• extra flour for dusting
• extra oil greasing

FOR THE TOPPING:

• 1 cup mushrooms sliced
• 1 cup onion thinly sliced
• 1 tsp garlic minced
• 1 cup grated cheese optional
• 1 cup creme fraiche
• ¼ cup sliced olives
• 1 tsp dried parsley
• some olive oil for brushing

Instructions

PREPARATION OF THE PIZZA BASE/FLATBREAD

• Mix flour, yeast and sugar in a bowl.
• Add salt and mix.
• Add the warm water and mix everything into a dough.
• Dust the worktop with some flour.
• Rub your hands with some oil and transfer the dough to the worktop.
• Knead the dough for about 10-15 minutes until it becomes smooth and soft.
• You may need to sprinkle some flour but don't add too much.
• Use up the 1 tbsp oil in batches while kneading the dough.
• Grease a bowl with some oil.
• Shape the dough into a round ball.
• Transfer to the greased bowl.
• Cover with a damp towel or a lid. Put it in a warm place. Allow it to ferment till it is double in size.
• Because the weather is warm, my dough got fermented in 45 minutes.

PREPARATION OF FLAMMKUCHEN | GERMAN PIZZA

• Preheat the oven to 240°C or 250°C.
• Grease two baking trays with some olive oil.
• Keep the toppings ready.
• Add minced garlic to the creme fraiche and mix well.
• Deflate the fermented dough gently. Knead it for a few seconds.
• Divide the dough into 2 parts.
• Dust the worktop with some flour.
• Take one part of the dough and roll it out as thin as possible. Do not worry about the shape. It can be round, oval, irregular. Sprinkle little flour in between so that the dough does not stick to worktop.
• Transfer the rolled dough to the prepared tray.
• Spread half of the creme fraiche over it.
• Add half of the mushroom and onion slices. Add half of the olive slices.
• Sprinkle the parsley, salt and pepper over it.
• Bake in the hot oven for 10-15 minutes or till the edges are golden brown and crispy.
• Repeat the same for the remaining dough.
• Enjoy hot vegetarian flammkuchen with your chilled beer or wine.

Notes

• Roll out the dough as thin as possible.
• Use a pizza stone if you have one.
• Slice the vegetable toppings as thin as possible as it baking time is less.
• Add toppings of your choice.
• I brush a little olive oil on the tray. That makes the base more crispier.
• Use sour cream instead of creme fraiche.

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A Little Request:

If you do try this recipe then please either

• add a comment below,
• send a picture to my email mayuri.ajay.patel62@gmail.com
• tag me as #mayuri_jikoni on Instagram
• or tag me on Twitter as #Mayuri1962