Flammkuchen (French - German Pizza)
When most people think pizza, they think Italy, but Flammkuchen (also called Flammekueche or tarte flambé in French), the crispy and smoky pizza from the France / Germany border, is definitely worth your time!
We do love a big slice of saucy, mozzarella-laden, classic, Italian pizza. But, it's also fun to explore the way that pizza has taken on a life of its own in regions outside of Italy.
Like this specialty of Alsace, France and southwestern Germany: Flammkuchen (sometimes spelled Flammenkuchen in German and known as Flammekueche or tarte flambé in Alsace, France).
What is Flammkuchen?
Translated 'flame cake,' flammkuchen really aren't pizza at all, in their own right. They were originally used by bakers to test the temperature of their ovens. A bit of dough was taken and rolled flat, topped with crème fraîche, and baked in the wood-fired bread oven for a few minutes.
The amount of time it took for the flammkuchen to bake to nearly-blistered crispness told them the oven's temperature. If the flammkuchen came out just right, then the ovens were ready to bake their bread!
This baker's oven test became a hit, and now can be found made with numerous toppings of its own!
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).
The Alsace region, while currently a part of France, has bounced back and forth under German and French control through the centuries. So, understandably, there is a lot of German influence in this region, and a lot of Alsatian, French influence on the German side across the border.
You will find this specialty on both sides of the current border. It is thought that it originated as Flammekueche (tarte flambé) with bakers in Alsace. (But, when it originated, and whether Alsace was a part of France or Germany at that time, is up for debate.)
Crispy Thin Crust Pizza
Thin and crispy crust pizza lovers, this pizza is for you!
Flammkuchen is characterized by its incredibly thin, crisp, and blistered crust.
We're talking cracker-like here folks.
What Is Crème Fraîche?
Rather than a tomato sauce, the dough for flammkuchen is spread with crème fraîche (KREHM fresh), a thick, French, soured cream.
Crème fraîche is less sour than American sour cream, so if you can't find crème fraîche, we recommend using plain, strained yogurt. (Yogurt is naturally thinner than crème fraîche, so we strain it through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth to thicken it to a more proper consistency.)
When the crème bakes with the crust, it creates a slightly tart, creamy contrast to the crust's crispness.
Bacon and Caramelized Onion German Pizza
While you can use any toppings that you like for you flammkuchen, the most traditional combination includes bacon and caramelized onions. These are seasoned only with a bit of nutmeg and black pepper.
Other common variations include
- gruyère (or Swiss) cheese
- mushrooms
- Munster cheese
You can even find sweet versions of flammkuchen that are typically made with apples, cinnamon, and a sweet liqueur.
We went for the classic caramelized onion and bacon version today. Because, really, how can you go wrong with those toppings?
Crisp, creamy, smoky, with a hind of caramelized sweetness.
This pizza makes for a perfect light dinner or appetizer.
Our Flammkuchen Recipe
As far as making pizza goes, this flammkuchen recipe is fairly straightforward.
The dough is a simple mixture of flour, salt, water, and oil that mixes together well and kneads nice and smooth. (Kneading to a smooth dough is important because you want your dough to be able to stretch out nice and thin.)
While the dough rests, it's time to prepare the toppings.
- Mix the crème fraîche and nutmeg for your 'sauce'.
- Saute up some bacon.
- Caramelize some onions in the bacon grease.
Then, it's time to stretch the dough. We like to stretch it right onto a baking sheet, that way once it is stretched, we don't have to move it and risk tearing the dough.
Finally top and bake 'till crispy!
More Pizza Recipes To Enjoy
Pizza around the world has taken on some fun twists. If you're a pizza lover, give these other variations a try too!
And, for your classic Italian pizza, you'll love our quick and easy pizza dough or our whole wheat bread machine pizza dough recipes.
Flammkuchen (German Pizza)
When most people think pizza, they think Italy, but Flammkuchen, the crispy and smoky thin crust German pizza, is definitely worth your time!
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 2 c unbleached all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ c water
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
For the Toppings
- 1 c crème fraîche, or 1 c Greek yogurt, or slightly over 1 c plain yogurt, strained *
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ lb bacon, diced
- 2 onions, halved and sliced thin
- ground black pepper (to top)
- Cornmeal (for the pan)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 500F.
- In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt, water, and oil. Mix until a dough begins to form, the turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until it is soft and smooth, 3-5 min. Set the dough aside and cover it with a towel.
- In a small bowl, mix together crème fraîche and nutmeg. Set aside.
- In a large sauté pan, sauté bacon over medium high heat, until it is cooked about halfway to crisp, 2-4 minutes. Remove the bacon (keeping the grease in the pan) to a paper towel lined plate. Set aside.
- Place the sliced onions into the hot bacon grease and sauté over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until caramelized, 10 min. Remove the pan from the heat.
- Roll and stretch the dough out into a rectangle, roughly 11x16 inches. Place the dough onto a large baking sheet that has been generously dusted with cornmeal.
- Spread the crème fraîche mixture over the crust, leaving just a little bare crust border. Distribute the caramelized onions over the crème fraîche, and sprinkle the bacon over the onions. Finish everything off with a dusting of black pepper.
- Place the baking sheet with the pizza into the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until the pizza is crisp and the edges are starting to darken.
- Remove from the oven, cut, and serve immediately with some good wine.
Notes
*To strain your yogurt, place it in a couple layers of cheesecloth in a fine mesh sieve over a bowl for 20-30 minutes.
Want to convert to WEIGHT measurements? Have a look at our ingredient conversion guide.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
¼ of recipeAmount Per Serving: Calories: 853
We love this recipe so much, and we make it often. So, we've updated our pictures since we first shared it on Curious Cuisiniere. But we've left some original images here, in case you've found us in the past and are looking for that old, familiar image.
Sarah founded Curious in 2010 as a way to save her recipe creations and share culinary experiences. Her love for cultural cuisines was instilled early by her French Canadian Grandmother. Her experience in the kitchen and in recipe development comes from over 10 years working in professional kitchens. She has traveled extensively and enjoys bringing the flavors of her travels back to create easy-to-make recipes.
This was delicious and reminded us both of our time in sw Germany during the Harvest. But why is there no yeast in the dough? I added some.
Hi Bette. We're so glad you enjoyed the flammkuchen! As you know, the crust for this pizza is quite thin and crispy. Some recipes use a bit of yeast and some don't. We didn't find it necessary to achieve the thin, crispy crust that reminded us of what we had in Germany. But, if you enjoyed it with a bit of yeast, then by all means, continue to add it!
My husband and I recently spent time in Germany where we traveled a week in the Mosel River wine country.. We absolutely loved the Flammkuchen that were served in the little restaurants and vineyard tasting rooms. I was a bit surprised when they set my order down in front of me and it was the whole pie! I ate all but one piece. Sooo Goood!! Looking forward to trying your recipe.
Such fun memories! We hope you enjoy it!
At what point do you add the strained yogurt? Before onions and bacon?
Hi Tricia. If using strained yogurt, you add it when the recipe calls for creme fraiche. So you will mix it with nutmeg and use it a the "sauce" for the pizza -- on top of the crust but before the onions and bacon. Enjoy!
Back in the early 1960's my first experience with pizza was in Brainerd Minnesota. The one local pizza place cooked a crispy thin crust pizza which was closer to what I later experienced in Italy than any other pizza I have had in America. And now I realize that it was really Flammenkuchen, or the Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish equivalent. I look forward eagerly to trying this out to relive a memory.
What a wonderful memory John! We hope you enjoy this Flammkuchen recipe!
I had this in Alsace years ago and will try yours soon. I’m know how good it is and can hardly wait!! Recently, I had a variation in The Hague with the crust baked alome, some warm smoked salmon, green leaves, capers and thin cuts of red onion. Wasabi mayonnaise on top. It was great!!
Oh my goodness!! That sounds wonderful! We are going to have to try those toppings the next time we make Flammkuchen!
OMG - soo good. i've been lucky enough to eat them in their country of origin, and when I saw some Dr. oetker frozen flammkuchen, i coulfn't resist - they were nearly as good as the original. they've since stopped producing them, or no longer in canada (?) so i have to DIY it if i want some . I haven't tried the recipe yet, butr will very soon.
They really are so good! We hope you enjoy them!
Had this while rising in Germany! My grand daughter and I really want to try this...Do you have a recipe that calls grapes, candied walnuts, Gouda cheese, There was a type of meat, and we can't figure out what it was. It was like an appetizer. So yummy..Oh also, fig mustard
Hi Carolyn. That flavor combo sounds amazing. We'll start experimenting with it and see if we can't come up with something. In the meantime, we hope you and your granddaughter enjoy this version!
I cannot believe I have never heard of this pizza before. It sounds absolutely amazing. I have been missing out.
We hadn't heard of it until a friend of ours introduced is to it while we were in Germany. It needs to take the States by storm!!
Your pizza looks delicious and sounds so flavorful! I cannot wait to try it!
Thanks Shelby!
Very unique take on pizza. I never knew of this version. Thank you for teaching me something new.
Thanks DB! It's a fun one, that's for sure!
Love the history and I am so making a pizza with creme fraiche. Sounds amazing!
Thanks Brianne! The creme fraiche makes for such a fun 'sauce'!
I love learning something new and your post is filled with great new info. I, also, LOVE a cracker like crust so this pizza is perfect for me!
Thanks Betsy! Our motto is never stop learning! It's great to hear that others appreciate hearing about our discoveries!
Sarah, I love how you always share the info behind the food. It's so interesting, and your description of this pizza has me craving these wonderful flavors! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Marian! We love learning about the food we cook and culture behind it. It is wonderful to hear that you love background we share!
I love thin crust pizzas at home (delivery style thin crust is so not good to me, however)! This sounds like a pizza I could get behind!
The great thing about thin crust at home is you can eat it right out of the oven, when it's still SUPER crispy!
The thin pizza is more like phyllo to us in U.S.
Hi Karen. The flammkuchen we tasted in Germany were closer to a very thin and crispy crust pizza. But, it is quite possible that some versions from other regions around Germany might take on a closer likeness to a phyllo crust. Thanks for your comment!
This is the area of Germany where my dad's ancestors came from---so I will blame genetics for me wanting to eat half of this marvelous pizza 🙂
That's wonderful Liz! This is definitely a crave-worthy pizza!
@Liz, I live in this area, and we simply put onions and bacon raw on the creme fraiche topping. The thin cake is baked a short time on high oven temperature, so onions and bacon are done and crispy without any pretreatment.
Hi Anka. Yes, if you have access to a high temp pizza oven and have very thinly sliced bacon and onions then they can just cook directly on the pizza, for a delicious result! If your onions aren't perfectly thin or your bacon is a bit on the thicker side, or your oven isn't quite hot enough, the result isn't quite as desirable.