Name: Fresh Mozzarella-Topped (Not So) Flatbread
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients: 3/4 cup warm water; 2 tsp active dry yeast; 3/4 tbsp honey; 3/4 tbsp olive oil; 2 1/2 cups flour; 1 tsp salt; 2 tbsp butter (softened); 1/2 tsp basil; 1/2 tsp rosemary; 1/2 tsp thyme; 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese (shredded); 1/4 cup parmesan cheese (shredded); 4 oz mozzarella cheese (fresh); 2 tomatoes; 8 basil leaves (chopped)

One weekend we set out to make our own flatbread with the tomatoes we received in our Bountiful Basket and the fresh mozzarella cheese that was calling Justin when we were grocery shopping.

Our final product was delicious, but the flatbread wasn’t really very flat! I’m not sure if it’s because I made the dough in the bread machine rather than by hand or because I didn’t use a large enough baking sheet.

Either way, we all liked how thick and fluffy the crust came out, so we will probably continue to do it the same way from now on.

Flatbread is a great appetizer when you are cooking for a crowd. Especially with how thick this recipe turns out, you could make it into bite-sized pieces and have plenty to go around.

Fresh Mozzarella-Topped (Not So) Flatbread

Since we weren’t making this for others, just ourselves, we ate it similar to a pizza and made a meal out of the flatbread for our family. It’s probably equivalent to about a large pizza.

This was one of the first times I’ve ever cooked with fresh mozzarella rather than the pre-shredded bagged cheese and it made a world of difference. We may be getting fresh cheese from now on for anything like this.

The recipe we based our meal off of can be found here, and that links to her recipe for an herb-butter as well that was used instead of sauce on the flatbread.

Unfortunately, when we made this, our herb garden hadn’t grown enough from replanting so I wasn’t able to grab fresh herbs, but if you have that opportunity then fresh will almost always taste better.

Step by Step

Decide if you are going to prepare your dough by hand or use the dough setting on a bread machine. I used the bread machine, but the recipe we used for inspiration has instructions on how to do it by hand.

Bread Machine: Add all dough ingredients into the pan of the bread machine and choose the dough setting.

By Hand: In a large bowl, combine warm water, yeast, honey, and olive oil then stir a couple of times and let sit for 10 minutes, until bubbly. Add 2 cups of flour and salt and mix with a spoon until the dough comes together. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and add 1/2 cup of flour and knead until incorporated. Grease a large bowl and place the dough in it, cover the bowl, and let rise for one hour.

Preheat the oven to 425F and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Take the butter out of the refrigerator to soften.

Place the dough on the baking sheet and use a rolling pin or your hands to stretch the dough until it fills the baking sheet.

Combine the butter with the herbs to make your herb butter then spread that out on the dough as you would a sauce.

Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella and parmesan cheese on the flatbread.

Add the tomatoes and small pieces of fresh mozzarella cheese around the dough.

Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the crust starts to brown and the cheese is fully melted.

After removing the flatbread from the oven, let it cool for a few minutes then top with fresh basil. Cut into slices and serve warm!

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