Sandwich Thins

I found this recipe for Sandwich Thins HERE. I’ve been wanting to make more bread from scratch and in the case of the lunches I pack for my children, I didn’t think a standard homemade bread loaf would hold up very well at school. It’s more of a process to form the thins rather than just folding dough into a loaf pan, but the recipe makes 24 and they can be frozen for up to a month. So after baking these last night, I sliced them all, saved out 6 for our lunches this week and froze the rest in preparation for school starting in about 2 weeks {for us}.

To kind of show the process, after allowing the dough to rise, I used my bench scraper {a chef’s knife will work just as well} to cut the dough into 24 portions. With the flat of my hand I pressed each portion, then cupped it under my hand to gently roll each into a ball. After resting for 10 minutes on sheet pans {lined with Silpat baking mats or parchment paper} I pressed each ball flat with the bottom of a 1 1/2 cup stainless steel dry measuring cup and poked each flat several times with a fork. After they are flat, they rise one last time under plastic wrap for about 30 minutes before baking.

The thins contain all sorts of yummy things, like cornmeal, ground flax meal and ground walnuts {you can certainly leave the walnuts out} plus half the flour is whole wheat, so they are healthy. The filling possibilities are endless:

• peanut butter and jelly
• nutella and banana slices
• egg salad
• tuna salad
• lunch meat and cheese
• hummus and veggies
• cream cheese and olives
• pepperoni, sauce and cheese

For dinner last night, at my children’s request, we filled the sandwich thins with their favorite toppings from Subway… salami, turkey, cheese, lettuce, tomato and black olives {plus mayonnaise and mustard}. I was very pleased with how these turned out and totally thought they were worth the time and effort!

Print Pin

Sandwich Thins

Ingredients

for the soaker

• 1 c. warm water
• 1 T. packed dark brown sugar
• 1 T. instant yeast
• 3/4 c. whole wheat flour
• 3 T. ground corn meal
• 3 T. ground flax meal

for the dough

• 1 1/4 c. warm water
• 2 c. whole wheat flour
• 1 T. honey
• 2 1/2 c. bread flour plus 1/2 c. more as kneading
• 1 1/2 t. salt
• 3 T. ground walnuts optional

Instructions

• In a large bowl, whisk together the soaker ingredients, cover bowl with clean kitchen towel and allow to rest for 15 minutes until bubbly.
• Measure water and add honey to water. Whisk together all dry ingredients: wheat flour, bread flour, salt and ground walnuts.
• Add water and honey and all dry ingredients to soaker and mix gently with a wooden spoon. Flour counter and dump dough onto counter and gradually add the extra half cup of bread flour as you knead the dough for about 5 minutes until it forms a cohesive dough. Mine was still slightly sticky when I was finished. Lightly oil a large glass bowl and place the dough in it, turning so it's oiled on all sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise in the warmest area of your kitchen for 45 minutes to an hour, until doubled in size.
• Gently press on dough to release the air and place the dough on the counter to cut it into 24 equal portions. Roll each portion into a ball and place 8 balls on each of 3 sheet pans, lined with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Cover each sheet pan with plastic wrap and allow dough to rest for 10 minutes.
• Using a clean dry measuring cup (mine was a 1 1/2 cup size) press each dough ball flat and even, then prick each flat with a fork several times to keep them from puffing too much as they rise again. Once all the dough balls have been flattened, cover each sheet pan again with plastic wrap and allow flats to rise for 30-45 minutes, until they've all risen. Each should be about 1/2 inch high when they are ready to bake.
• As they are rising for the final time, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake each sheet pan for 12-15 minutes until the sandwich thins are lightly browned and baked through. Allow them to cool completely, then slice each in half. They will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week, or up to one month if frozen.

Notes

Adapted from Homemade Bread Thin Rolls