Asparagus and Arugula Flatbread with Creme Fraiche

When Will It Be Spring?-

At his preschool, my youngest is learning all about animals that hibernate in the winter. Every day for the past few weeks, he has asked me to read the children’s book When Will It Be Spring, about a bear cub impatiently awaiting the end of hibernation, and the emergence of Spring. 

My little one asks me when Spring will come, and I tell him it will be here soon. All that talk has me wishing for Spring too. I found some early season asparagus at the local market and decided maybe Spring could come a bit early, even if it’s just in the form of this Asparagus and Arugula Flatbread with Creme Fraiche. It’s got all the Spring goodies on it, with a lovely creme fraiche spread.

Two Ingredient Dough for Asparagus and Arugula Flatbread with Creme Fraiche

If you have been on the internet at all the past few years, you have probably seen the pizza dough made with greek yogurt and self rising flour. I finally decided to try my own version of this. Boy, am I a late adopter. I chose to make my own self rising flour because it is not an ingredient I tend to keep in my pantry. Self rising flour is merely all purpose flour and baking powder in the right proportions. I used the ratio on King Arthur Baking’s website. 

This dough was actually pretty good and I will definitely use it again. It was very easy to make. In my opinion it is more of a flatbread dough than a pizza dough but hey, it works in a pinch. It is easy to work with to get it into the shape you want after the dough forms, and it was slightly chewy once cooked. I think it would take well to a wide variety of herbs or spices as well.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

• On its own, this dough does not have much flavor so it needs salt for sure. Adding fresh or dried herbs, granulated or fresh garlic, red chili flakes, chopped jalapeno, curry powder, or many other dried spice blends would work. For one flatbread, I would start with a half teaspoon of any one thing. You certainly are not limited to salt only with this dough. For this recipe, I chose to add my herbs to the creme fraiche spread on top rather than in the dough itself.
• You don’t have to stick with the arugula and asparagus combination used in this recipe. Any fresh vegetable that stands up to a few minutes in a high heat oven would work here. Butternut squash, spinach, kale, red onion, or shaved brussels sprouts would all be great!
• If you want to add crumbled bacon, smoked salmon, or prosciutto I am certainly not going to stop you.
• When making the dough, it is going to seem dry at first when you add the yogurt and start stirring. The flour takes a little effort to soak up the yogurt. You will be tempted to add more yogurt to get the flour to blend, but there is no need. Once I got in there with my hands and started kneading, it came together just fine. 

Serving Suggestions and Substitutions

This is a very versatile recipe! The Fontina can be substituted for any other melty cheese you like, and the topping combinations are limited only by your imagination. This would be great to serve with some Artichoke and Fresh Spinach Dip for a great appetizer spread. This keeps in the fridge wrapped in foil for two or three days in the fridge, and you can simply pop it in the microwave for a few seconds to warm it up (without the foil of course).

I love this as a light lunch, it is not just an appetizer! It is also a fabulous accompaniment to soup or a salad. This dough is also really easy to have young children help make, and they can even pick out their own toppings. 

I hope you try this recipe and that I have given you a few ideas for variations. If you enjoyed this recipe, please let me know in the comments below. Happy Cooking!

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Yield: 6 Servings

Asparagus and Arugula Flatbread with Creme Fraiche

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

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Ingredients

For the Dough

• 1 cup All Purpose Flour
• 1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 5.3 ounce container of Plain Greek Yogurt (I used full fat)

For the Creme Fraiche Spread

• 1/4 cup Creme Fraiche
• 2 Tbsp Fresh Chives
• 1 tsp Shallot, chopped
• 1 clove Garlic, finely chopped
• Pinch of Salt

For the Toppings

• 1/2 cup Arugula
• 8-10 Asparagus Spears, tough ends trimmed
• 1/3 cup shredded Fontina Cheese
• 1/8 tsp cracked Black Pepper

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. In a medium bowl, add the all purpose flour, salt, and baking powder and stir well.
2. Add the yogurt and stir to combine. Once some of the flour is absorbed start kneading with your hands to fully combine the ingredients.
3. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead a few more times, and shape into an oval or round that is about a quarter inch to a half inch thick.
4. Sprinkle a rimmed baking sheet with course ground cornmeal and place the dough round on top.
5. Next, chop the garlic, shallot, and chives and stir into the creme fraiche. Add the salt to the mixture and spread evenly over the dough, leaving about a half inch border all the way around.
6. Top the dough with the asparagus, then add add the arugula and Fontina. Sprinkle the black pepper evenly over the top.
7. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and the edges of the dough are light golden. Cut into slices and serve.

Notes

Self rising flour can be used instead of making your own, just substitute the same amount of self rising flour for the all purpose and leave out the baking powder, as it is already in the self rising flour.

Any other melty cheese can be used in place of Fontina, such as Mozzarella.

You will not need any more yogurt than the recipe requires, though at first when the dough is being mixed it will seem as though the flour will not all absorb into the yogurt without adding more. With some kneading the dough will all come together.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 163Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 21mgSodium: 323mgCarbohydrates: 19gFiber: 1gSugar: 2gProtein: 7g

All information presented and written within this site are intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist or registered dietitian and any nutritional information should only be used as a general guideline. Statements within this site have not been evaluated or approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is provided for recipes contained on this site. This information comes from online calculators. Although The Copper Table attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.