One of the downfalls of living in Mississippi is the lack of good grocery stores. If you buy anything and everything at Wal-Mart, this doesn't apply to you. If you are like me, and like to venture on the foodie side, you must go to Memphis to find what you want. Even in Memphis, you are fairly limited with choices, but they do have a Whole Foods and a Fresh Market.
While we were at the beach, my friend Carla and I went on a daily trip to Publix. I know, quite the shopping mecca. If you have never been to a Publix, you are in for a treat. I honestly believe they had almost anything and everything you might need. Carla is a much better shopper than I, and finds the hidden, random things that I would never notice. One such item she picked up was mini pita bread. I know we have all enjoyed the beauty of this little flat-bread, and possibly amazed by it's little pocket in the middle. However, I had never seen the little mini version, and they had them in whole wheat to boot!
After our trip, I longed for those tender little pitas. I have searched high and low, and to no avail. I have found the regular sized, but not the mini. When posed with an issue, I try and search for a solution. The solution to this problem was to make my own little mini pitas! I scoured the volumes of cookbooks I have, and failed to find a recipe. Next I resorted to the internet, and I was successful, but not quite right. I wanted whole wheat, not white. I adapted the recipe to make it my own, and the result was a huge success!
Don't be intimidated. Pita bread is fairly simple. The hardest part is rolling out the dough. It is basically a French bread that is risen, allowed to rest, and then shaped into the pitas. They are then baked in a super hot oven for about 5 to 10 minutes. That's it. I think it took me about 30 minutes to bake up an entire batch. They were super delicious, and I think I will definitely try them again soon! I can promise, I am not likely to purchase them again, they were so easy, and so much tastier!
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| My pretty little pitas. The perfect companion for basil hummus! |
Pita Bread
3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, or a little more if needed
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 packet active dry yeast
2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 cup warm water
Combine the flour, olive oil, yeast, salt and sugar in a food processor. Turn the machine on and add the water through the feed tube.
Process for about 30 seconds, adding more water, a little at a time, until the mixture forms a ball and is slightly sticky to the touch. If dry, add another tablespoon or two of water and process for another 10 seconds.
Remove dough from the food processor bowl, and gently knead a few times. Place a little olive oil in a large bowl, and place dough in the bowl, turning over so that the dough is coated with oil. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise until doubled in size. This step took about 2 hours, maybe longer...
When dough is ready, punch down down and form it into a ball. Make the ball into a rope, and cut it into pieces. Mine made bout 24 pieces for mini sized pitas. roll each piece into a round ball on a lightly floured surface. Cover with the towel and allow to rest until they puff slightly. About 20 minutes.
Roll each ball out to less than 1/4 inch thickness, using additional flour as necessary to prevent stickiness. As you work, spread the flat disks out on a floured surface and keep them covered. When all are rolled out, preheat oven to 500 degrees. If you have a pizza stone, this is a great chance to use it! Place your stone on the lowest rack in your oven and allow it to preheat as well. If you don't have a stone, lightly spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray and put it on the middle oven rack.
To bake on the stone, slide the individual disks onto the stone with a large spatula. Put as many as will comfortably fit on the stone. Or bake 2 disks at a time on the cookie sheet. Or, if you don't have an oven, you can bake them in a very heavy skillet over medium to medium low heat, until lightly browned on the stove-top. Baking time will be between 5 and 10 minutes.
As the bread finishes baking, remove from the oven. Allow to cool, and then place in a plastic, zip-top bag. To reheat, place in a 300 degree oven or skillet before using.
* If you too want whole wheat pitas, substitute half of the regular flour with whole wheat flour. It's that easy!
I hope you enjoy this as much as we did. These were awesome with basil hummus!!!
Until next time, keep adventuring and looking for joy in the small details of life!
Sarah
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