Pita Bread and Pita Chips
I’ve been making pita bread pretty regularly lately. Warm and fresh from the oven, this almost-flat bread is so delicious for dips, sandwiches, and salads.
If you’re thinking “I don’t really like pita bread, it is too dry and tough,” then STOP. Pita bread, bought from the bread shelf at the grocery IS dry and tough, especially the whole wheat variety. However, baked in your own kitchen, homemade pita bread is a totally different experience and I challenge you to try it.
The basic ingredients are the same as any other bread. Since I’d made pita bread only one other time and it didn’t turn out very well, I decided to do more research. In the process, I found The Fresh Loaf, a website dedicated to helping us bake wonderful bread. This is a great resource and should be bookmarked on everybody’s web browser.
So I checked out what the folks at the Fresh Loaf had to say about pita bread, then tweaked the recipe a bit to include some whole grains and got busy in the kitchen. I’m listing the basic recipe below. For more details or the original recipe, check out The Fresh Loaf.
Pita Bread
makes 12
1 1/3 c. water
2 T. olive oil
1 T. honey
1 1/2 t. salt
1 c. whole wheat flour
1/2 c. old-fashioned oats
1 3/4 c. white flour
2 t. yeast
Combine all of this in your bread machine, following the maker’s instructions, and set the machine to “dough.” (Personally, this is the only cycle I ever use. I never use the bake cycle on my machine. I like to bake bread in my regular oven.) While it runs, clean up the kitchen because you need lots of counter space to prepare these.
An hour and a half later, when the machine is finished working it’s magic and saving your arms, turn the dough out onto a floured board. Knead gently, just for a minute or two, and divide into 12 portions.
Shape each of these into a ball and let them rest on a floured surface (cover with a towel to prevent drying) for about 10 minutes. Next, roll each one out, nice and thin. You should be able to get them thinner than the pitas you see in the grocery. Scatter them on every flat surface in your kitchen, again covering with a towel. (Don’t stack them up - I’ve made that mistake) Let them rest for 10-20 minutes.
Now for the fun part! Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Place either a baking stone or a upside-down cookie sheet in your oven to preheat. Once it’s up to temperature, flop a pita onto the stone or cookie sheet. Generally, I prefer stones, but I can get two pitas on the cookie sheet and only one on a stone. Bake for just 3 minutes and remove. They will puff up and then deflate after you take them out of the oven. The kids love to watch this process. If you get brown spots on the bottom, turn the heat down a bit.
When warm, pitas are every bit as soft and pliable as a tortilla. After they’ve cooled, they will crack when you try to fold them.
Next time I post I will tell you how to easily turn these into garlic pita chips for dipping into hummus or pesto.
February 13th, 2008