Polish Flatbread

 

This week I have been playing with all sorts of flatbread recipes.  This is hands down my favorite, which is a big deal considering there is sauerkraut in the recipe.  I have always had an aversion to sauerkraut.  As a kid, my mom would have to rinse off the vinegar and douse it in brown sugar so I would eat it.  I discovered vegan kielbasa in the grocery store and wanted to find a creative way to use it.  Sauerkraut is such an appropriate pairing for kielbasa that I thought I’d give it another chance, so I picked Bubbies, the brand that makes my favorite pickles.  My hope was that maybe a higher quality sauerkraut would taste better, or I could get creative with a brown sugar version.  It turns out that there is a huge difference.  The fresh sauerkraut is less acidic and a lot crisper than the regular canned version. 

For my flatbread, I balanced out the acidity of the sauerkraut with a sweet mustard sauce.  The kielbasa has a nice amount of spice, and the fresh cabbage adds a crunchy texture.  It has a little bit of everything to make a perfect meal.

Ingredients:

1 package vegan Kielbasa

Bubbies Sauerkraut (or other fresh kraut from the refrigerated section)

6 tablespoons yellow mustard

¼ cup agave nectar

Crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

Shredded cabbage

1 lb pizza dough (fresh or frozen and brought to room temperature)

1.       Grill the kielbasa over medium high heat in a preheated grill pan.  Slice into bite size pieces, and set aside.

2.       Make the sweet mustard sauce.  In a small bowl, stir together the yellow mustard, agave, and a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes. Set it aside.

3.       Divide the pizza dough into six pieces.  Stretch dough as evenly as possible with your hands.  On a lightly floured surface roll out the dough as thin as possible. (1/16 to 1/8 inch thick)  After all of the pieces have been rolled begin grilling.  Place a piece of the rolled dough on the preheated grill pan.  Grill until the bread has nice grill marks and is cooked most of the way through.  Flip the bread.  While the second side cooks, top the flatbread with a layer of sauerkraut that has been strained and squeezed to remove some of the liquid.  Add the kielbasa and a handful of the fresh cabbage.  Once the second side is finished, carefully move the flatbread to a plate, and drizzle with the sweet mustard sauce.