Moroccan Bread - cooking recipe

Ingredients

18 g active dry yeast
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
500 g unbleached flour
150 g whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons salt
8 tablespoons lukewarm milk
1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 tablespoon anise seed (optional)
cornmeal, for sprinkling

Preparation

Soften the yeast in 1 tbsp sugared lukewarm water.
Let stand a few minutes, then stir and set in a warm place until the yeast froths up.
Meanwhile, mix the flours and salt together.
Stir the yeast into the flour, then add the milk and enough lukewarm water to form a stiff dough.
The amount of water you need will depend on your particular flour but I need about a cup.
Add no more than 1/4 cup water at a time until you can see the dough coming together.
To knead by hand, turn the dough out onto a board and knead hard, adding water if necessary.
Knead for 10-15 minutes until smooth and elastic.
I prefer to use an electric beater with a dough hook and this takes 7-8 minutes at a slow speed.
Towards the end, add the spices.
Split into two balls and let stand 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, lightly grease a mixing bowl.
Transfer the first ball of dough into the greased bowl and form a cone shape by holding the dough in one hand and rotating it against the side of the bowl.
Turn out onto a baking sheet that has been sprinkled with cornmeal.
Flatten the cone with the palm of your hand to make a disc that is about 5-6 inches across and slightly raised in the centre.
Repeat with the second dough ball.
Cover with a damp towel and let rise.
Paula says to let it rise 2 hours but I found mine was done in about an hour.
Preheat the oven to 200 C or 400\u00b0F.
Using a fork, prick the bread around the sides 3-4 times.
Bake on the centre shelf of the oven for 12 minutes, then lower the heat to 150 C or 300 F and bake 30-40 minutes more.
Remove and let cool.
Cut into wedges when you're ready to serve.