Olive oil crispbread

This recipe is based on one by Yotam Ottonlenghi, the famous Israeli-British chef, restaurant owner, and food writer, who has made vegetables made interesting a feature of his cooking and describes his food goal as drama in the mouth. I changed the quantity of both olive oil and water in the original recipe, as my attempts following the quantities specified resulted in a quite crumbly dough that was hard to work with. I also took away additional spices from the original, as I wanted to serve the crackers with soft cheese and didn’t want to conflict with the creamy wonderfulness of triple brie from the Woombye Cheese Company (if you are able try this cheese – it is amazing). It was a very easy and quick to make something that looked and tasted quite special and very delicious.

The crispbread is delicate and golden, and is a perfect accompaniment to soft cheese, or hummus, or labne. We added some pistachio and cranberry paste and a soft rosé, along with the cheese, and it was fabulous.

Makes 16

250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tsp baking powder
125ml water
60 ml olive oil, plus extra for brushing (use a really fruity extra-virgin olive oil because the flavour will shine through)
½ tsp salt
sea salt flakes for sprinkling

In a medium sized bowl combine the flour, baking powder, water and olive oil and mix together until a dough is formed. Tip onto a bench top and knead lightly for a couple of minutes until the dough is smooth. Wrap in cling film and set aside for about 20 – 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 180C. Cut the dough into sixteen pieces. Dust the bench top with a little of the flour and then roll as thinly and evenly as possible using a rolling pin, to get a longish rectangle shape. You could also use a pasta machine if you have one. The final result should almost be transparent. Place on a baking sheet and brush lightly with a little of the extra olive oil, and then sprinkle on the salt. You could also sprinkle sesame seeds or nigella seeds for something a little different. Bake in the oven for 10 – 15 minutes, until golden brown. Cool on a wire cooling rack and when cold store in an airtight container. The crackers will keep for 3 – 4 days. You will never want to buy fancy deli crackers again, once you have tried these.