Potato and Onion Flatbreads

Lately, I've been wanting to make homemade pizza or bread. Flatbreads seemed like a great place to start. Since I don't have a pizza stone, I did some research on making flatbread in an oven safe skillet or pan. The following recipe worked pretty well in my skillet, though it probably would work even better in a cast iron skillet (I only have a square grill pan). I topped one of the flatbreads with thinly sliced fingerling potatoes, and the other with loads of caramelized onions. They were both very tasty, served with a side of homemade marinara sauce.

Potato Topping

about 6 fingerling potatoes, very thinly sliced

salt and pepper

olive oil

Heat a bit of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add sliced potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Fry until golden brown and remove from heat.

Onion Topping

about 6 baby red onions, sliced (I found baby onions at the greenmarket, but you can substitute 2 or 3 regular sized onions of your choice)

1 tablespoon butter

olive oil

salt and pepper

Heat a bit of olive oil and the butter in a pan over medium heat. When oil is hot, add the onions and stir to coat. Let cook for about 15 minutes, shaking the pan and stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper, and let cook until lightly browned and caramelized (scraping up the brown bits helps this process a bit).

Flatbread

2 cups whole wheat flour

3 cups water

a pinch of salt

olive oil

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Meanwhile, combine salt and flour together in a large bowl. Incorporate water slowly, while whisking, to create a thin, pancake-like batter. Put a bit of olive oil in your skillet, enough to generously coat the bottom. Preheat the pan on the stove over medium heat, or in the oven. When the oil is hot but not smoking, remove pan from heat and pour about half the batter into the pan. Place the pan in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes until browned and cooked through. When the flatbread is ready, the sides will start to come up a little bit, and the center should be pretty firm. It took a bit of cajoling to the flatbread out of my pan, but I imagine with a cast iron skilled it should lift right out. Top the flatbread with desired topping and return to the oven on a baking sheet for a couple of minutes to crisp it up. Repeat with the rest of the batter.