Greek cuisine · Breakfast & Eggs

Cretan Eftazymo Bread

Cretan bread leavened not with yeast but with a chickpea starter, giving it a dense, anise-scented crumb.

Ingredients · for 8 servings

• 100 g chickpeas
• 500 ml lukewarm water
• 700 g wheat flour
• 1 tbsp ground anise
• 12 g salt
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds

Instructions

1. Coarsely crush the chickpeas in a mortar, put into a jar with 250 ml lukewarm water, the sugar and 1 tsp of the ground anise, cover and leave overnight in a very warm spot until the starter foams and smells sour.
2. Pour the starter through a fine sieve, catching the liquid, and stir it with 200 g flour and the remaining water into a thin pre-dough; leave this warm for 3 hours until it bubbles.
3. Work in the remaining flour, the rest of the anise, the salt and the olive oil, then knead the dough vigorously for 12 min. until smooth and only slightly sticky.
4. Let the dough rise covered for 2 hours — without baker's yeast it takes longer than usual; it only rises by about half.
5. Shape the dough into two round loaves, place on a floured baking sheet, brush with water, sprinkle with sesame seeds and let rest again for 45 min.
6. Bake in the oven preheated to 220°C for 15 min., then lower to 190°C and bake for another 35 min. until the loaves sound hollow when tapped; let cool completely before slicing.