Happy surprise wholemeal flatbreads

Having been diagnosed with nearly-diabetes I am now trying to fend it off, to reverse the process even, by losing some weight. Starvation is not the answer, but eating things which keep your stomach fuller for longer is a solution of a sort. Fat keeps hunger pangs at bay for longer than carbs which morph magically into sugar in a trice. But there’s even a hierarchy among carbs – whole grain rice, flour, pasta, bread…. all take longer to digest than their refined brethren. Equally magically, I have found to my surprise that, in general, I prefer whole grain food… it has more texture and flavour… it just needs the right treatment.

Hence this experiment – I admit I was dubious at first – wholemeal flatbreads didn’t sound inspiring.

The trouble with anything ‘wholemeal’ is that it can tend to be heavy and stodgy. On the plus side, it can have a more interesting nutty taste. These flatbreads are interesting – much better than imagined for reasons one might not expect – slightly burnt, slightly crispy. Yes, crispy… in a good way, but they don’t rise puffily like plain flour flatbreads do – the wholemeal flour contains gluten of course, but not in such a stretchy network.

I experimented first with using a griddle pan rather than a frying pan, as that’s my preferred equipment for standard flatbreads (I make two versions, one with yoghurt and one without). The result with the griddle pan is floppier flatbreads which are easier to roll and wrap.

Flatbreads made on the griddle pan

Using a frying pan however achieves a better taste. This is partly because the small singed patches give a very pleasing bitterness. But also because you get more of the flavour of the salt.

Flatbreads made in the frying pan – crispier, more flavour, the dark spots are the key.

I serve these for lunch together with sliced avocado, sliced hard-boiled egg, mayonnaise, and some halved and roasted (sprinkle over more of the salt and some balsamic vinegar first) baby tomatoes. But you can do all the usual things with these flatbreads – top, for example, with spiced minced beef and halloumi, and serve with saffron yoghurt instead of mayo.

Rather usefully, once you’ve divided the dough into eight, you can freeze it.

Use a silicon rolling pin – it makes the rolling much easier!
The seasoned salt is a revelation – I use it for everything, it’s great with boiled eggs. Add it first to the flour, rather than as you see here, after forming into a ball – it mixes in much better.
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