Reteșe, Romanian cheese and flaxseed flatbreads

Name: Reteșe, Romanian cheese and flaxseed flatbreads
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons flaxseeds; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon baking soda; 100 ml oil; about 250 ml lukewarm water; 500 g white flour; about 200 g sheep’s milk telemea

Appetizers - Reteșe, Romanian cheese and flaxseed flatbreads by Eleonora O. - Recipia

Reteșe, Romanian cheese and flaxseed flatbreads, are made with dough rolled as thin as possible, since the rounds cook quickly in the pan and can tear when moved. Grated sheep’s milk telemea stays tucked into the dough’s spiral, and golden spots appear on both sides. I prefer to roll them thinner than an ordinary flatbread. Preparation: 35 minutes. Cooking: 35 minutes. Total time: 70 minutes. Servings: 4. Approximately 820 kcal and 22 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons flaxseeds
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
100 ml oil
about 250 ml lukewarm water
500 g white flour
about 200 g sheep’s milk telemea

Preparation

1. Put the flaxseeds, salt, baking soda and 50 ml of the oil in a large bowl. Pour in the lukewarm water, then add the flour and knead until you have an elastic dough. 2. Heat a nonstick pan over medium heat for 3 minutes, until it is hot. Divide the dough into 8 pieces the size of a tennis ball. 3. Grease the work surface with a little of the remaining 50 ml of oil and roll one piece of dough very thin. Sprinkle with finely grated telemea, roll up the sheet, then coil it into a snail shape and roll it out again with a rolling pin. 4. Brush the top of the sheet with a little oil and transfer it to the pan, using the rolling pin to help. Cook each reteșă for 2 minutes on each side, until golden spots appear. Repeat with the remaining pieces. 5. Serve warm or cold.

Notes

I serve them with plain yogurt or tomato juice. They contain gluten and dairy. Drier telemea grates finely and does not make the sheet damp; if it is very salty, keep the salt in the dough at the amount listed. I don’t rush the rolling after coiling: I press with the rolling pin in short strokes until it spreads out without the spiral coming apart. Keep the pieces of dough covered with a clean towel while you roll them out one at a time, since the exposed surface dries out and cracks more easily. Once cooled, put them in a sealed container in the fridge and eat them within 3 days.