Lahmacun - Turkish flatbread

Step 1

To make the base, dissolve the yeast and the sugar in the 2tbsp of warm water. Leave them to start throthing a little. Meanwhile mix together the flour and salt in a large bowl and measure out everything else (you can blent together the yogurt and oil if you like but not essential).

Step 2

Add the yogurt, oil and yeast mixture to the flour and salt and mix well, adding a little water as you go until you get a smooth, very slightly damp mixture. It's often easiest to mix by hand, at least towards the end.

Step 3

Tip the mixture out onto a floured surface and knead for around 5 minutes. It should stop feeling sticky and more elastic. Clean out your mixing bowl, gently brush with a little oil then put the dough back in and put it in a warm place, covered with a cloth, for around 2 hours to rise.

Step 4

After the dough has rested, pre-heat the oven to 450F/230C.

Step 5

Roughly chop the onion, tomato and pepper - deseed half the tomato to save the mixture getting too wet. Place all along with the parsley in a food processor and blend to a rough paste.

Step 6

Add the lamb, allspice, cumin and a good grinding of salt and pepper. Blend until combined.

Step 7

Knock back the dough and divide into eight balls. Cover the ones you are not using until ready and roll them out into thin circles, around 6in in diameter (really just as thin as you can make them.

Step 8

Transfer to a lined baking sheet and spread a spoonful of the topping mixture over the top, carefully spreading it into a thin layer (it's often easiest to finish by hand and press it out).

Step 9

Sprinkle over a few pine nuts on the top of each.

Step 10

Bake in the oven for around 12-15min until browning around the edges and the topping is cooked.