Turkish balloon bread

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 250 ml water
• 400 g flour
• 1 tbsp water, warm
• ¾ tsp dry yeast
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 egg yolk for brushing
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds, hulled
• 1 tbsp black cumin

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 20 minutes; Total time approx. 2 hours 20 minutes

baked on a bread baking stone, for 8 pieces

You will need a thin wooden board, about 40 cm long (or longer) and about 30 cm wide, for later placing the loaves in the oven, or an upside-down baking sheet. Dissolve the yeast in lukewarm water and set aside for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the flour with the salt, place it in a bowl, and pile it up into a small mound. Make a well in the center of the mound. Pour the dissolved yeast into the well and dust with a little of the flour. Slowly fold in more flour. Gradually add water and knead repeatedly until you have a soft, moist, but not sticky dough. Then shape the dough into a ball and, covered, let it rise in a bowl for 90 minutes at room temperature. At the same time, place a rack on the middle shelf of the oven and place the bread baking stone on top. Set the oven to 275 degrees Celsius (450 degrees Fahrenheit) or the highest possible temperature using conventional oven technology. The bread baking stone needs to heat up to release enough heat during baking, otherwise the bread won’t puff up. The 90 minutes for the dough to rise are just enough time for the oven to preheat and the bread baking stone to heat up for about an hour. Whisk 1 tablespoon of water with the egg yolk. Flour the work surface thoroughly, knead the dough again, and divide it into 8 pieces. Roll out one piece of dough into a circle about 3 mm thick; the flatbread will now have a diameter of about 12 to 15 centimeters. If the dough is rolled out much thicker or thinner, or significantly larger, it will not puff up or not puff up well during baking. Brush the center of the flatbread with the beaten egg yolk and sprinkle with some sesame seeds and black cumin. Pull the flatbreads onto the thin wooden board and place them on the bread baking stone in the oven (give them a gentle tug to slide them down). Close the oven door. After a few seconds, you should be able to see bubbles forming and the top layer of dough lifting (if everything has been done correctly). You can bake the bread until it is crispy (the surface will be browned in some spots), then you can break it into pieces and serve it with a dip as an appetizer. If you bake it for a shorter time (the surface will barely be browned), it will stay a little softer and you can fill it because it is hollow. In Turkey, for example, it is also filled with kebab and then rolled up. Make the other pieces of dough one after the other into bread in the same way. The bread tastes best when it is still warm. Traditionally, it is eaten with butter and tulumpeyniri (a goat cheese made in a goat’s stomach).