Man’oushe

The most famous Lebanese breakfast is the Man’oushe and is considered the Lebanese version of pizza. It is made out of dough, traditionally topped with Zaatar mixed with olive oil or with cheese. Zaatar is made out fresh thyme, washed, dried and grounded, then mixed with sumac, sesame and salt. In Beirut, you can find a Man’oushe shop on every street corner. It is the perfect breakfast for anybody who doesn’t have time to prepare a decent meal during a busy day; they can grab a Man’oushe from any bakery nearby.

Recipe by ninabaidoon, Tabkhet el yom

Ingredients:

3 cups flour
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon instant dried yeast
1 cup water
1 cup of Zaatar mixed with 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup shredded cheese of your choice ( I used Gruyere)

Preparation:

1. To make the dough, mix the flour with salt, oil, dried yeast and water in a bowl until you have a soft dough; let it rest covered with a towel to rise for about 1 hour
2. Preheat the oven to 200C
3. Roll the dough into circles of about 1/4 inch thickness (the size of the circle is totally up to you) and top with Zaatar or cheese; bake for about 15 minutes and serve hot

Try it and tell me which one you prefer, the Zaatar or cheese? Personally I cannot decide which is tastier, they are both tasty 🙂