Rye, oat and fennel seed crisp breads

Crisp breads are very quick and easy to make, and have a gentle oven toasted flavour far nicer than the shop bought type. 

These make a nice partner to the smoky aubergine dip but the hint of aniseed that comes from the fennel seeds also buddies up well with hard cheeses.  I quite like the Scandinavian slant that comes from the fennel, but you can swap it for sesame, pumpkin or poppy seeds if you prefer.

Makes 16

½ cup plain flour

½ cup rye flour

¼ cup oat bran

¼ tsp salt

1 tbsp caster sugar

¼ cup olive oil

¼ cup warm water

½ tsp fennel seeds

Sea salt for sprinkling

1) Simply place all the dry ingredients except the fennel seeds together in a bowl, then stir in the olive oil.  Add enough of the warm water to make a firm, pliable but non-sticky dough.  Add more plain flour if the mixture seems at all sticky.

2) Divide the dough into two equal parts and roll each into a ball.  Roll out each ball into a roughly 20cm circle, using a lightly oiled rolling pin and work surface.   Transfer each circle to a baking sheet, sprinkle with the fennel seeds and a pinch of sea salt and use the rolling pin to lightly press them into the surface of the dough. 

3) Use a knife to score the surface of each circle into 8 wedges, without cutting through the dough, and bake at 350f/180c/gas mark 4 for 30 minutes or until the mixture is firm in the centre and lightly toasted around the edges.  Leave to cool, then snap into pieces and store in an airtight box.