Homemade Pita Bread

Oh my goodness--I had such fun making these pita pockets and they were about a bazillion times better than the prepackaged store bought ones.  I didn't even like pita bread until I tried homemade ones.  The ones from the store taste like a piece of cardboard in my opinion--ugh!  These are soft, chewy and delicious!  The best part is they come together pretty darn quick--the raise time is only about 30 minutes !  You will find that these pita pockets make the perfect meal filled with your favorite sandwich makings.  The possibilities are endless. You could try grilled chicken, fish (with tarter sauce), pulled pork, cold cuts or hamburgers add fresh greens/veggies and you are good to go!  I also love them fresh from the oven with some honey butter or dipped in hummus!   Yum! There are about a million ways to eat this bread.  My boys like peanut butter, banana and honey lately.  I usually make a double batch and freeze some for later.  Soon I will share a fantastic Chicken Gyro recipe that I recently tried and LOVED with these pitas!  Are you a pita bread fan?  If so how do you eat them?

Homemade Pita Pocket Bread
submitted by Melanie~www.thesisterscafe.com

1 TB yeast
1 ¼ c warm water
1 tsp salt
3- 3 ½ c flour

Dissolve yeast in water and let sit for about 5 minutes in the bowl of your mixer.  With the dough hook attached add salt and 1 ½ cups flour and combine to make a batter. Add more  flour until a rough, shaggy mass is formed.  Knead 8 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic. You can add more flour if it is too sticky.

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into six pieces for large pitas or ten for smaller.  Form dough into balls, then flatten with a rolling pin into ¼ inch thick discs. Try and keep an even thickness as this is what helps them ‘puff’.  Let rest on the floured surface 30-40 minutes until slightly puffed.

Preheat oven to 425F.

With a large spatula, flip the rounds of dough upside down on to a baking sheet. Bake 10-15 minutes until light golden. You may want to pull up a chair and watch through your oven window the show--within 5 minutes these thick blobs of dough turn into a 4 inch high pita!  Pretty cool!

These store for 2-4 days in an air tight container (or ziploc bag) or frozen for three weeks.

Recipe Source: Under the High Chair