as i'm sure many of you know, anya, from the beautiful blog, Golubka, released her first cookbook, The Vibrant Table a few weeks ago. i was lucky enough to receive a copy and have been anxiously plotting out what i will make first. first of all, this cookbook is more than a cookbook; it's a guide on healthy, wholesome, CONSCIOUS eating - with a preface that frames all the ingredients in the book and explains why anya utilizes them (some of which i have never heard of before, but am totally jazzed to use - maca + mesquite!). not only do her recipes reflect her culture and heritage, but they are also a celebration of family and meals for all kinds of occasions. moreover, the photos (all of which her daughter take - both for her blog and the cookbook!) weave a beautifully, vibrant food story.

i've been working on a flatbread recipe for some time using chickpea/garbanzo bean flour. there's been a lot trial and error - substituting half the garbanzo bean flour for other GF flours, adding various amounts of oil and water and adding different herbs and spices. finally, i reached a consistency and texture that i'm super pleased with - crispy and thin without much of a crumble! i've been waiting for just the right mix of ingredients to top this flatbread, so when i received my copy of The Vibrant Table (and immediately read through it!) and saw anya's fingerling potato and rosemary flatbread, i knew i had found the perfect way to top off my flatbread. new potatoes are popping up at all the markets around me, as well as leafy herbs and freshly plucked onions, so i chose to make a few changes to the original recipe based on what was available to me. all in all, the garlic-smeared flatbread with slightly sweet potatoes, shiitakes, onions and some toasted pine nuts, came out to be one of the loveliest combos i've ever had. thank you to anya for the inspiration!

chickpea flour flatbread w/ new potatoes + fresh basil (v + gf)

| makes 2 flatbreads |

flatbread topping adapted from The Vibrant Table

i didn't have all the ingredients from anya's flatbread recipe, she uses rolled oats, quinoa flakes, nuts, zucchini and chia seeds that i would imagine to be super tasty. but if you're not gluten free, substituting your favorite/go-to flatbread recipe is totally ok too!

ingredients

dough

2 cups garbanzo bean/chickpea flour, plus more for dusting
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for coating bowl
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
6-8 tablespoons water

topping

roughly 12 ounces assorted new potatoes, thinly sliced (preferably with a mandoline)
1 head of garlic
4-6 shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced thin
1 small red onion, sliced thin
1/4 cup fresh basil, julienned
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
olive oil for brushing
sea salt + fresh ground pepper

instructions

place the sliced potatoes in a large bowl; cover the slices with cold water and 1 tablespoon sea salt. let sit for about 1 hour
preheat oven to 350°. slice off the top of the garlic head to expose the insides. peel most of the surrounding layers of paper and place inside a piece of foil. sprinkle with salt, pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil, wrap foil and place in a small baking dish or ramekin. roast for 25-30 minutes - until cloves can be easily pierced with a sharp knife. squeeze garlic cloves into a small bowl and mash with the back of a fork; set aside

for the crust

in a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt. add the olive oil and mix with your hands until oil is evenly dispersed and the flour resembles small crumbles. by the tablespoon, work water in little by little with your hands - you may need more or less water depending on your brand of flour. in the end, you want your dough to be pliable, but not too sticky. once dough comes together kneed and form into a smooth ball, brush with a bit of oil and cover with a dish towel - let rest in the bowl for 8-10 minutes
divide dough evenly into 2 pieces (place second piece back in the bowl and cover). take a large piece of parchment paper and dust it with flour. form dough into an disk and flour the top of the dough (you can either use a second piece of parchment or a floured rolling pin), and roll dough into a 9-10 inch circle - if edges crack just pinch back together
repeat with second piece of dough when ready

assemble flatbread

preheat oven to 400° with a baking sheet inside
drain and rinse the potato slices, pat dry. using a pastry brush, smooth top of dough with a 1/4 of the roasted garlic puree, then evenly arrange potato slices, overlapping the edges of slices until the dough is covered. lightly brush with olive oil and sprinkle with salt + pepper. transfer the flatbread, with the parchment, to the oven and bake for 16-18 minutes
remove flatbread from oven and add half the mushrooms and onion, then add another 1/4 of the garlic puree and a small sprinkle of salt. bake for about 13 minutes, remove, add basil and then cook for another 2 minutes. remove flatbread and transfer to a cutting board. slice bread and top a tablespoon of toasted pine nuts. serve and enjoy!
repeat with other piece of dough