Traditional Lagana flatbread

Lagana (in Greek λαγάνα, pronounced lah-GHAH-nah) is a traditional Greek flatbread, which is made with flour, yeast, salt, water and sesame seeds.

Originally it was an unleavened bread but eventually some yeast was added.

This bread sees the light of day once a year, on the first day of the Greek Orthodox Lent, known as Clean or Green or Shrove Monday.

The name comes from laganon, a thin broad cake, of meal and water. The Romans called it "lasanum", which is also the origin of the word lasagna, also known as tracta, from Ancient Greek τρακτὸς.

This traditional Greek bread is made dairy free as it is used for fasting and hence it is a great vegan flatbread.

If you are new to baking, I would absolutely recommend trying this recipe out. It is one of the easiest bread recipes and a great way to make friends with yeast.

The procedure is very straight forward with very basic ingredients. It's shaped like a rectangle with rounded corners, and is a fairly flat loaf.

Make the dough, let it rise, put it on your work space and stretch. Then the bread is baked and served.

The bread tastes great by itself or served with the other Lenten food such as taramosalata, olives, halvas, etc.

I really cannot understand why it is not made year around, as everybody is crazy about this bread.

Try it also by adding other ingredients in it. I've made it into an olive flatbread or with olives and sun-dried tomatoes.

PROCEDURE TO MAKE LAGANA BREAD

TO MAKE THE DOUGH:

• In a bowl, combine the yeast, ¼ cup flour, sugar and lukewarm water. Mix it well and let the yeast proof for about 5 to 10 minutes. The yeast mixture would be very bubbly at the end of the 10 minutes. If not, the yeast might have become inactive. Discard this mixture and start with a fresh batch of yeast.
• I made the dough in my stand mixer but if you don't have one you can make it by hand. Add the flour, salt and olive oil to the bowl. Mix it a bit and then add the yeast mixture to the bowl as well as some lukewarm water.
• Knead the dough until it is very soft and not sticky. The dough will be on the softer side, but should not be sticky. Add more liquid or flour to get to the right consistency.
• Wet the dough with some olive oil, cover it with plastic wrap and then with a kitchen towel and place it in a warm place to rise. The time will depend on the room temperature.

TO SHAPE THE LAGANA AND BAKE  

I made all the preparation from the previous day, so I left the dough in the fridge overnight and baked them in the morning.

If you want to prepare and bake them on the same day, you will need to bake them after the dough rises.  

You can prepare the dough using a stand mixer or by hand.

I made the dough and after dividing it into two pieces, I made the classic lagana first.   

• Punch the proofed dough gently and divide it into two pieces.  Place half of it on a baking pan lined with parchment paper or you can grease your baking tin.
• Using your hand, stretch the dough and spread it all across the pan.  Try to keep it evenly thick.
• Let the dough rest for about 30 to 40 minutes covered or until it rises again.
• Once the dough is ready, using your fingertips, poke some holes across the surface of the Lagana bread.   (I usually use the stick of a wooden spoon as I have long nails and it's not convenient. I have also used a wooden souvlaki skewer to do smaller holes).

Kopiaste and Kali Orexi,