Flammekueche is the Belgian version of the French Tarte Flambée, a pizza like dish with a thin crust covered with sour cream, onions, bacon and cheese (Wiki). I decided to use the same flavors as part of a collaboration to explore Belgian food.
One of the best things about being a blogger is hooking up with other like minded people with shared interests. We call them blog parties or link parties and they serve as both a showcase of posts and as a means to see what online friends have been up to.
I explored global cuisine through the Food of the World Party which featured a different country every month. Unfortunately, Food of the World no longer exists, but I still enjoy experimenting with global cuisine.
When I originally wrote this blog post in October 2014, the country we “cooked” was Belgium. It should come as no surprise to learn Belgian cuisine is heavily influenced by its neighbors: France, Germany and the Netherlands.
The fun part of making flammekueche (also called flammkuchen) is there are plenty of regional variations. Feel free to make substitutions. This recipe from Food.com served as my inspiration.
During a trip to a medieval fair, we saw a vendor making artisan pizzas using a bread base. I found a nice round loaf in the grocery store and decided to use that instead of making dough. Bacon can be found in Spain, but taquitos (small cubes) of jamón are more commonly used instead of diced bacon. Likewise, when I can’t find gruyère cheese, emmental makes a nice substitution.
The first time I made this, I almost chickened out and bought ricotta instead of sour cream. I’m so glad I didn’t as the flavor with the onions and jamón is nothing short of amazing!
There are all sorts of possibilities for other variations. Adding apples or pears to the onions and bacon for example, or omitting the meat and using mushrooms for a veggie alternative. But first, do yourself a favor and try the onions and bacon with with sour cream. You won’t be sorry.
Ingredients
- 1 round loaf of bread, 9 or 10 inches across, sliced in two (substitute a pizza shell, large flatbread or make your own dough)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 6 ounces bacon, diced (substitute diced ham or other meat)
- 2 medium onions thinly sliced
- 1 cup sour cream
- 4 ounces grated gruyere cheese substitute emmental, swiss or similar
- salt and pepper to taste
- chopped chives or parsley for garnish optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C
- Saute the onions and bacon in olive oil until softened.
- Arrange the flammekeuche base on a baking sheet.
- Spread the sour cream over the base, then sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Top with the onion/bacon mixture, then the cheese.
- Bake for 10 – 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the dough is cooked through.
- Garnish with chive or parsley as desired.
Notes
Cut the flammekueche into small pieces and it would make a great appetizer. We enjoy it sliced like a pizza, with a glass of the local red wine and a large salad.
More global favorites:
Thanks for sharing – I am a big fan of belgian beers, and belgian style pizza sounds like a perfect pairing!
I wouldn’t turn either one down! Thanks for dropping by 🙂
This looks and sounds so good! Thank you for the recipe! Pinned!
I’ve never heard of this type of pizza also like Adelina Priddis. Really it is new and different item for us.
I hope you give it a try as it’s really delicious!
Hi Lydia,
Yum! Sounds and looks fabulous especially using the sour dough bread. Thanks for sharing recipe. Pinned & twitted.
What a great dish! I’ve had this, but never made it myself. I should — it’s so tasty, and your recipe looks terrific. Thanks!
Sour Cream you have me really curious… pinning to try this one out.
What an unusual pizza. So different than what we are used to, but looks and sounds amazing!
I’ve never heard of this type of pizza, but it sounds pretty good.
looks gooey and scrumptious
Belgium style pizza looks cheesy and delicious!