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Whole-Wheat Flatbread with Grapes

(recipe, Liz Biro)


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Introduction

This sweetened bread — schiacciata con l'uva — is traditionally made in Tuscany during the grape harvest. Feel free to reduce the sugar by a third if your grapes are especially sweet, or you simply prefer a less sweet bread.

Ingredients

    Fruit
    1. 2 lb. seedless grapes, stemmed and washed
    2. ½ cup white sugar
    3. ¼ cup brown sugar
    4. ¾ cup golden raisins
    5. 1 cup boiling water
    Sponge
    1. 1¾ cups warm water (100 to 110 degrees)
    2. 1 Tbsp. active yeast
    3. 1 cup all-purpose flour
    4. 1 cup whole-wheat bread flour
    Bread
    1. ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
    2. 1 tsp. salt
    3. 2 cups all-purpose flour
    4. 1 cup whole-wheat bread flour

    Steps

    1. Toss the grapes in a large bowl with the white and brown sugars, then set aside.
    2. Place golden raisins in a small bowl and cover with boiling water, then set aside.
    3. Prepare sponge: Place warm water in a large bowl. Sprinkle yeast over water and stir to dissolve. Stir in all-purpose and whole-wheat flours until well blended. Cover bowl with a clean dish towel and let sponge rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
    4. Finish the dough: Stir oil into sponge until well-blended. Add salt and remaining flour to sponge, ½ cup at a time, using a wooden spoon to stir at first. As dough comes together, turn it out onto a flour board and knead in remaining flour. Knead dough for 2 minutes. It should be a bit sticky, but easily pull away from board.
    5. Oil two 12-inch pizza pans or baking sheets with olive oil and set aside. Drain raisins. Stir grapes.
    6. Cut dough into four equal-sized pieces. Place one piece on a lightly floured board and roll into a 9-inch round or 8x10 rectangle. Place on one of the oiled pans. Cover dough with ½ pound of sugared grapes. Roll out another piece of dough into the same size and place on top of grape-covered dough, sealing edges together. Arrange ½ pound of sugared grapes on top.
    7. Repeat process with remaining dough, grapes, and oiled pan, but add half of the raisins to each layer of dough.
    8. Cover each loaf with a clean dish towel and let breads rise in a warm place for 1 hour.
    9. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven. Place a pan of bread on each rack, staggering the pans so that one is not directly over the other. Bake bread for 50 minutes, switching pans halfway through.
    10. Remove from oven and let bread cool completely in pans.