Naan

My 4 year old and 7 year old daughters love to help me in the kitchen. One night, recently, I bribed promised them that if they went to bed when told, we would bake some sort of bread together the next day. (Worked like a charm!)

I was looking through a few recipes that I had printed out and came across one that I had printed almost a year ago. Click here to see the recipe. I had put off making it because it called for grilling the bread, and I never seemed to remember it when we were grilling. After reading through it, I decided that I could make it anyway. I would just use an electric skillet instead of a grill.

After hands were washed... ok, after hands were washed a few times, since a certain 4 year old decided it would be fun to touch everything in site, on the way to the table... We were ready to start.

First, we proofed the yeast. In the recipe, it says to proof it with just warm water, but to truly proof the yeast, you need to add about a tablespoon of sugar. (Just measure out the 1/4 cup called for in the recipe, and take a tablespoon from there.)

When the yeast is proofed, it should look something like this:

Next, we mixed the rest of the ingredients. When it came to the flour, we used all-purpose. I'm sure that the bread flour called for in the recipe would have been better, but all-purpose works fine.
Very Important: The recipe calls for 4 1/2 cups. That may be too much. We started out by using 3 cups, then added a little more until we got the right consistency.

Then we mixed....                                  And mixed...                                    And mixed...

                        

Until we got this:

Then we kneaded... a lot!

Until we got this. Pretty, isn't it?

Now to put it in a lightly oiled bowl... or just use a pot, like I did! 

Next, I covered it lightly and waited for it to rise. 

Then the kids helped me form balls of dough.

We didn't mix minced garlic into the dough. Instead, I melted the butter (as the recipe calls for) and let the garlic sit in the butter while the balls of dough were rising.

Want to know a really quick way to mince fresh garlic when your garlic press can't be found? Check this out! 

                     

Clever, eh?

Now we roll out the balls of dough...

See how they cook up in a heated skillet (I did this part)? I also brushed the garlic butter over them at this point.

Lovely little bubbles form as they are heated.

And Voila! (as my 4 year old said)

It tastes incredible! So yummy! My whole family likes it so much that I made it again two days later.
I recommend eating it as fresh as possible... but then again, that's all I can recommend, since that's when I ate it. Yes. It disappeared that fast.

Making Naan is a bit time consuming, as all yeast breads are, but it is super easy and well worth the effort! It is also a fun baking project to share with the kids. I am certain that I will make this many, many more times, and I know I will have eager little helpers!

...now if I can only remember it the next time we are grilling!