Berber Bread

FOR THE GARLIC STARTER:

• 2/3 cup (104 grams) plus 1/2 cup (70 grams) regular semolina flour (pasta flour)
• 3/4 cup (85 grams) all-purpose flour
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled

FOR THE BREAD:

• 2 2/3 cups (400 grams) extra-fine semolina flour
• 1/2 teaspoon (1 1/2 grams) dry yeast
• 2 1/2 teaspoons (15 grams) fine salt
• 1/3 cup (52 grams) regular semolina flour or all-purpose flour, for handling the dough
• Moroccan Almond-Argan Butter, for serving (see recipe).

1. Make the starter: In a glass or ceramic bowl, combine 2/3 cup semolina flour with the all-purpose flour. Gradually stir in 3/4 cup water to make a wet dough. Mix in garlic, cover, wrap in a towel and leave in a warm place, like an unheated oven, for a day.

2. Uncover the starter, add 1/4 cup water and the remaining 1/2 cup semolina flour, and mix. Cover, wrap in a towel, and leave for 12 to 24 hours. The starter will get a crusty top and blossom underneath. Scoop out 1/2 cup starter and discard the rest, including garlic cloves (otherwise, as it continues to ferment, the smell would drive you out of your home).

3. Make the bread: In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, combine extra-fine semolina flour, the 1/2 cup of starter, the yeast and salt. Pulse once or twice. Add 1 cup warm water and process for 15 to 20 seconds to knead. Let rest 10 minutes. Pulsing food processor, trickle in another 1/4 cup water. Sprinkle a work surface with flour and turn dough onto it. Cover with an upside-down bowl for 10 minutes. Cut 4 1-foot squares of waxed or parchment paper and sprinkle with flour. Divide dough in four and put each piece on a piece of a floured paper, turning to coat. Press each into an 8-inch circle. Cover with kitchen towels and let rise 1 hour.

4. When ready to cook, gently flatten each disk, then prick the tops all over with a fork. Heat an 8- or 10-inch nonstick skillet or griddle (or two, if you have them) over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the pan’s surface with flour, then pick up a dough round and flip it into the pan, paper side up. Peel off the paper and adjust the heat so that the bread sizzles gently. When it is browned and blistered on the bottom, about 5 minutes, flip the bread out onto a plate, then slide it back into the pan to cook the other side. Cook about 2 minutes, shaking the skillet often to prevent sticking. When browned, firm and fragrant, slide onto a platter and serve immediately, or cover with a towel to keep warm while you cook the remaining breads. Serve with Moroccan almond-argan butter.

Time: 1 hour, plus 2 days to develop the starter and 1 hour’s rising

Yield: 4 8-inch bread rounds.

Adapted from “The Food of Morocco” by Paula Wolfert

Berber Bread

Ingredient

• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 4 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 cup hot water

Berber Bread

Instructions

In the container of a blender or food processor, combine the flour and salt. Pulse to blend. Add the oil and hot water, and blend until it stops sticking to the sides. Remove from the container, and cut into 4 pieces.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough until fairly thin. Let it rest for a minute if it is difficult to roll. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and spray with a light coating of cooking spray. Fry one piece at a time until the surface begins to bubble. Flip over, and fry until it has brown spots on the other side. Cut each piece into quarters to serve.

Algerian Bouzgene Berber Bread

Ingredients

• 1 lb semolina
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• olive oil for frying

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375F

Put semolina, salt and 2 tbsp. olive oil in a large bowl, stir. Gradually add the water, mixing and squeezing with your hands until the dough holds together without being sticky or dry. Using your hands, mold the dough into four balls.

Roll each ball into a flat, round piece, about 1/4 inch thick. Heat a skillet in high heat and add about 1 tbsp of olive oil. Fry each bread until dark spots appear on the surface, flip and repeat. Add more oil before frying each bread.

Algerian Bouzgene Berber Bread

This unleavened Berber pita bread is unbelievably easy to make and it tastes much better than it looks. I won't kid you, it's not great, but it's pretty good considering how easy and quick it is to make, and how few ingredients it calls for. It's supposed to be made with semolina but while I could find a vast array of flours at the store near me (banana flour, potato flour, pea flour, etc. etc.)

 I could not find semolina. Instead I used whole wheat flour, thus the dark color of the finished result. I am sure it would be better with semolina. You might be able to substitute regular flour as well but the comments on a similar recipe using all-purpose flour are not very positive.

I served the bread with Roasted Pepper Sauce

Roasted Pepper Sauce

Ingredients

• 2 red bell peppers
• 4 tomatoes
• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 jalapeno pepper, chopped
• salt to taste

Instructions

1. Preheat your broiler.
2. Broil the bell peppers and tomatoes until they start to char, about 8 minutes. Let cool and peel tomatoes and bell peppers. Core and seed the bell peppers.
3. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a small skillet. Add the garlic and jalapeno and sautee until tender.
4. Put the bell peppers, tomatoes, jalapeno and garlic in a food processor or blender and blend until somewhat smooth. Add salt to taste. 

Roasted pepper 

This roasted pepper sauce has the look and feel of a Mexican salsa but the red peppers in it make it be much less acidic. Even my husband who hates fresh tomatoes and dislikes salsa loved it.

It was easy to make though peeling the red peppers was hard. I'm not sure what the point of peeling them is, in particular after having roasted them. In the future I'll leave the skins in.

This recipe produces a lot of sauce, probably as much as you'd want for a party for twice as much as you'd require as an appetizer for a dinner - you may want to half it.