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1
Combine the flour, yeast, and salt in a large bowl and make a well.
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2
Dollop the yogurt and oil into a measuring cup and add warm water to come up to the 1 1/2-cup mark.
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3
Give a quick beat with a fork to combine, then pour this liquid into the dry ingredients, and mix with your hands or a wooden spoon, adding more liquid as needed, to form a firm but soft dough.
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4
Turn out onto a floured surface (or set your mixer and dough hook to work) and start kneading.
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5
Add more flour as needed until youve got a smooth, supple, and elastic dough.
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6
Form the dough into a ball, grease a bowl, and turn the dough in it so its lightly oiled all over.
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7
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave to rise for about an hour or so, until doubled in size.
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8
Punch the dough down, then leave to rest for 10 minutes.
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9
Preheat the oven to 425F.
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10
Tear the dough into thirds, and then halve each piece.
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11
Form each of these 6 little pieces into an egg-shape and, one by one, roll them out to make a flat, elongated, if irregular oval.
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12
Place on baking sheets about 1 1/2 inches apart, cover with tea towels, and leave to prove for 20 minutes, until puffy.
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13
Using the blunt side of an ordinary kitchen knife, draw diagonal parallel lines across the loaves about 3/4 inch apart.
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14
Do the same now the other direction, so youve got a loose crisscross.
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15
Beat the egg with the water and yogurt and, using a pastry brush, paint this over the breads.
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16
Sprinkle on the nigella seeds and bake in the hot oven for 810 minutes, by which time the loaves will be golden, puffed up in places, and cooked through.
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17
Remove them from the oven and drape immediately and for a few minutes with a tea towel so that these small, flat, breads dont dry up and get too crusty.
