This recipe is not found in any cookbook. In fact, I coined the name of this bread myself. It’s the bread I enjoyed eating bologna sandwiches during my first days of school in New Jersey.
I first came across this strange bread during school lunch. Across from my school in the middle of Newark, New Jersey was my favorite deli. There was always a line of students waiting to get their freshly baked bread with their favorite meat and cheese.
Then during my high school years I found this bread again. My palate was beginning to develop and I had gone from bologna sandwiches to Italian-style hot dogs. This is a fantastic hot dog sandwich stuffed in half a flying saucer bun topped with mustard, bell peppers, onions, and French fries.
Later, I found out that this bread has been made for centuries in the Middle East. There are many different versions similar to pita bread or Armenian bread. My version is unique and was derived from my pizza dough recipe. Here is my recipe and I hope you enjoy it!
swimming pool:
A poolish is a bakery term used for making Italian and French loaves. It enhances the flavor of the bread.
1 cup of flour
1 – Cup of water or buttermilk
1 – A pinch of yeast
Mix the flour, water, and yeast together until it resembles pancake batter. Store the poolish in a plastic container and let it sit overnight in a warm place. The next day, the poolish should be bubbly and ready for battering. Try the poolish with water and buttermilk and see which one you like best.
Dough Ingredients:
3 cups of flour
1 – cup of warm water
1 teaspoon salt
1 – teaspoon yeast
1 – tablespoon olive oil (optional)
Add the poolish to the above ingredients and knead the dough until smooth. Add a little more flour if needed. Then place your dough in a covered container and let it rest at room temperature for 1 hour. After that, let your dough slowly rise in the fridge overnight.
First ascent:
The next day take your dough out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature, this takes about 2 hours. Be sure to provide a warm place for your dough to rise the first time. When it has almost doubled in size, it is ready to form circles.
Second ascent:
Use a large, flat skillet and drizzle with olive oil. Form your dough into 4 round flying saucer buns and place on the baking tray. Each plate should be about 6 or 7 inches in diameter. Cover them with light plastic wrap that has been sprayed with olive oil. Let them grow back for an hour or so. They should be a bit swollen.
Baking:
Set your oven temperature to about 400 degrees and cook about 15-18 minutes. They should be a light brown color when they’re done. Let them sit to cool before cutting.
When cool, cut in half and open up the center so you can stuff your steak sandwich or hot dog. This recipe makes 8 half rounds of flying saucer bread. Enjoy!