Classic Flammkuchen / Tarte Flambée - Recipes From Europe (2024)

FAQs

Where does flammkuchen originate from? ›

With a thin, crispy crust, flammkuchen (as it's known in German) or tarte flambée (in French) is sort of a hybrid between flatbread and pizza. Literally translated as “flame cake” or “pie cooked in flames,” the dish is a specialty of France's northeastern Alsace region and the southwestern Palatinate region in Germany.

All these names translate as "pie baked in the flames". Contrary to what the direct translation would suggest, tarte flambée is not flambéed but is cooked in a wood-fired oven.

Born in the farms of Alsace, the tarte flambée is also called Flammekueche. At that time, the peasants made this recipe on bread baking day and gathered in the village to share this meal. Their origins go back to the Middle Ages.

The classic pizza always consists of tomato sauce, herbs and cheese plus ingredients to taste, which can range from simple salami to exclusive truffle. The original Alsatian tarte flambée always consists of sour cream, bacon and onion. There are also numerous variations for the topping of the tarte flambée.

In addition to its unique taste, the special thing about the tarte flambée, or Flammkueche as it is often called in Alsace, is the tradition from which it arose. It originates from a time more than 100 years ago when Alsatian farm owners in the Kochersberg region still baked bread in their own wood-burning stoves.

The Origins of Flammkuchen

It originated as a by-product of baking bread. Several villages had large wood-fired ovens in the centre, the temperature of which was tested by placing the remains of the bread dough inside. Throwing it away was a shame, so before it went into the oven it was rolled out and garnished.

I like to pair this dish with a nice white wine for dinner. Tarte flambée is usually topped with cream, which pairs well with white wine. If your recipe calls for onion, then a chardonnay would go well with this dish. If you choose not to use onion in your recipe, try pairing it with a sauvignon Blanc or Riesling.

Unearthed Tarte Flambée with Lardons Onion & Crème Fraiche 180g | Sainsbury's.

Tarte Flambée is a bacon and onion flatbread or pizza with a sour cream base. Called Flammkuchen in Germany, this crispy-chewy, SUPER EASY tarte flambée recipe originated in the once-German region of Alsace in France (in German 'Elsass'). Hence the name Elsässer Flammkuchen.

Eating in Strasbourg

You can hardly go to Strasbourg without enjoying some traditional choucroute, an iconic dish. A few restaurants in Strasbourg have built up a great reputation for themselves with this speciality. The tarte flambée, served all-you-can-eat, is another local speciality you'll want to try.

What does tarte flambée taste like? ›

The rich, salty flavors of tarte flambée play particularly well with the acidity and residual sugar in Alsatian Rieslings. These days, you'll find many variations on the classic recipe. Some of the most popular include Gratinée (with gruyere cheese) and Forestière (with mushrooms).

Unlike pizza, Flammkuchen, Tarte Flambée etc. don't have an underlying layer of tomato sauce under the cheese and toppings. Cheese, onions / leeks and sometimes lardon pieces are directly put on the rectangular base, before baking in a hot oven (usually wood-fired). No sprinkling of basil leaves.

I have something for you: flammkuchen with fresh figs, rosemary, thyme and goat cheese. Deliciously fresh, full of herbs and vitamines and a healthy alternative to a high-calorie pizza.

What is Apizza? In New Haven, the purists call their homegrown style of pizza “apizza,” (pronounced ah-BEETZ), based on an old Neapolitan dialect (nowadays, you'll see “apizza” used interchangeably with “pizza” there).

Neapolitan pizza, or pizza Napoletana, is a type of pizza that originated in Naples, Italy. This style of pizza is prepared with simple and fresh ingredients: a basic dough, raw tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and olive oil. No fancy toppings are allowed!

Is Flammkuchen French or German? Flammkuchen (pronounced flam-KOOK-en) in German, or Flammekueche (pronounced flam-KOOCHE) or tarte flambé in French, comes from the Alsace region of France (just across Germany's the southwestern border with France).

It is said that the first Brazilian pizzas were baked in the Brás district of São Paulo in the late part of the 19th century. Until the 1940s, pizza was almost only found in the Italian communities around the country. Since then, pizza became increasingly popular among the rest of the population.

The flatbread pizza as we know it today first appeared in Naples in the 18th century. After tomatoes arrived in Europe via the New world, poor people would top their flatbreads with tomato sauce (which they called "salsa"), cheese, anchovies, and other inexpensive toppings.

Flambe basically involves adding alcohol to a hot pan of food that is already cooking, then briefly setting it on fire. Most often, you'll see this technique in fancy restaurants where a dessert of some kind is being prepared or finished tableside.