You are probably familiar with flammkuchen - a speciality of the French-German border region -because they are very popular at the moment. We have made a delicious variation with green asparagus and cherry tomatoes. Ideal to serve as a bite with drinks or as an appetiser before dinner.
Pour 100 ml lukewarm water (max. 37 °C) into a bowl and add the instant yeast. Leave to stand for 5 minutes. Put the flour with the salt in a large bowl and make a hollow in the middle. Pour in the yeast mixture, add 100 ml of water and the olive oil and knead into a smooth dough in about 8 minutes. Add extra flour if the dough is too wet and extra milk if it is too dry. You can also use a mixer with dough hooks or a table mixer. Knead on a low setting for 4 minutes as it is easy to over mix the dough. Cover the dough and leave to rise for approx. 60 minutes until it has doubled in volume. Beat out the air and knead briefly.
Preheat the oven to 230 °C.
Slice away the base (1-2 cm) of the asparagus and halve them. Halve the cherry tomatoes and slice the onion into rings.
Line the baking tray with a sheet of baking paper. Beat out the air out of the dough and knead briefly. Roll out the dough thinly on a worktop lightly dusted with flour until it is approx. 5 mm thick. Transfer to the lined baking tray.
Brush the dough with the crème fraîche. Divide the asparagus, cherry tomatoes, onion and raw ham over the top. Scatter with the cheese and season with salt and pepper. Bake the flammkuchen in the middle of the oven for about 15 minutes until golden brown and cooked.
Tip: Scatter the flammkuchen with lambs’ lettuce or rocket for an extra fresh bite.
