I love pita bread. We buy it every week or two to snack on with hummus. So, when I saw this recipe on Brown Eyed Baker I immediately added it to my Must Try list. I really enjoyed this recipe. I think next time I’m going to try half wheat flour and see how they turn out.
My only note to the recipe is that it turned out a lot stickier than I was expecting- must more so than any bread recipe I’ve ever done before. I actually threw away the first batch because I thought I’d messed something up. It turned out great in the end, though.
Pita Bread
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Ingredients:
3 cups flour
1 ½ teaspoons salt
1 Tablespoon sugar or honey
1 packet instant yeast
1 ½ to 1 ½ cups water at room temperature
2 tablespoons olive oil, vegetable oil, butter, or shortening
Directions:
Mix the yeast, flour, salt and sugar together in a bowl. Add in the water and olive oil and mix with a wooden spoon until the dough forms into a ball. Add a bit more water as needed.
Place the dough ball on a clean work surface and knead for about 10 minutes,or at low speed in an electric mixer for 10 minutes.
Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and roll it around to coat, then cover with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towl. Set the dough aside to rise for about 90 minutes, or until it has doubled in size.
Punch down the dough, then divide into 8 equal-sized pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, then cover with a damp kitchen towl and let rest for 20 minutes.
Pre-heat oven to 450°. Place a baking stone or upside-down cookie sheet into the oven while it heats.
Sprinkle a bit of flour on your work surface and roll out one of the dough balls either using your hands or a rolling pin until it is 1/8-¼ inch thick and 6 inches in diameter. If the dough will not stretch properly, cover with the damp towel again and let rest for an additional 5-10 minutes.
Place each of the shaped dough discs on a lightly greased surface and let rise, uncovered, for about 30-45 minutes. They will barely double in thickness.
Place the pitas on the hot baking surface, as many as can fit easily, and bake until puffy and slightly golden, about 3 minutes.
Source: Brown Eyed Baker
