Fennel tortas

Makes 15

– 2 cups plain or 00 flour

– 2 tsp fennel seeds

– 1 tsp salt

– 2 tsp instant yeast

– 3 tbsp raw sugar

– ⅔ cup blood-temperature water

– ½ cup good olive oil, plus a little extra for oiling the trays

– 1 egg white

– castor sugar and raw sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 230ºC.

Combine the flour, fennel and salt in a bowl.

Combine the yeast and the sugar, then pour on the water. Whisk and let sit for five minutes to activate the yeast. Add the olive oil.

Pour the liquids onto the dry ingredients and mix for three to five minutes. I do this in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Remove the dough from the bowl and give it a little knead. Divide the dough into 15 pieces and roll each into a ball.

Oil a heavy baking tray and sprinkle with a little castor sugar.

With the palm of your hand, start to flatten out a ball of dough on a bench. Keep pushing it out until you have a disc about 10 centimetres across. It should look quite translucent.

Carefully lift and place on the tray. Repeat the process until the tray is full. Whisk the egg white until frothy, and brush each torta, then sprinkle with a little castor sugar and a little raw sugar.

Place in oven and bake for six to 10 minutes. They need to be brown and lightly caramelised, but be watchful, as they can burn in a blink of an eye.

Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack for a few minutes until they become crisp. Repeat until you have cooked all the tortas.