Homemade pita bread

25 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
1½ tablespoon Yeast
½ teaspoon Salt
5 cups Flour, whole wheat
6 teaspoons Whole-wheat gluten; opt
1 cup Water
1 cup Apple juice
Cornmeal

Directions

FABULOUS FOOD FOR FRIENDS

Bring all ingredients to room temperature and pour into bakery, in order. Set "baking control" at 10 o'clock. Select "white bread" and push Start.

In saucepan, combine water and apple juice and heat just until warm (about 115 deg). Put warm liquid in large mixing bowl, sprinkle yeast over liquid and allow to dissolve. Add 2 cups flour and the 6 eeaspoons whole-wheat gluten flour, if desired; beat at medium speed of electric mixer for 3 minutes. Cover and let rise in warm place until doubled in size, about 20 min.

Add salt, beat in as much flour as can be beaten vigorously by hand for 6 minutes. Mix as much remaining flour as can be handled when mixing by hand and enough so that dough can be removed from bowl onto floured surface. Cover with a towel and let rest for 10 min.

Knead gently and rhythmically for 10-15 minutes. Keeping dough rolled in a ball. add the remaining flour, a little at a time, kneading after each addition. Be careful not to add too much flour, or the bread will be dry. Keep dough slightly sticky to the touch. Cover with a towel and let rest 10 minutes.

At this point, the dough may be shaped into pita bread. loaves of bread, pizza dough, buns, etc. to make pitas, cut dough in half with lightly floured hands, roll each half into rope 2½ inches in diameter. Cut each roll into pieces and roll with hands into 2 to 3 inch balls, depending on the desired size of pocked bread.

Place each dough ball on flat surface and with a lightly floured rolling pin, roll out from center until dough forms a circle ¼ inch thick. Gently dip bottom of dough in cornmeal and place on back of cookie sheet. Cover with a towel and let rise at room tempeerature for 15 minutes.

The best way to bake pitas is on flat quarry tiles, which can be purchased at any rock and stone outlet. A cast ironskillet turned upside down also works well, but limits you to making one pita at a time. A thrid option, less satisfactory than the others but still workable, is a cookie sheet turned upside down.

Place one of the three items mentioned above in the oven and preheat to 500 degrees. Remove top oven rack for convenience in removing pitas later.

Gently but quickly slip a raised pita onto a spatula and place it on the hot tile, skillet or cookie sheet. Once it touches the hot surface, you cannot move it, so aim carefull. Repeat with as many pitas as your baking method will accomodate. Close oven and bake for 3-4 minutes or until lightly browned. If your baking the pitas on a cookie sheet you may see very few or perhaps no bubbles appear - do not overcook just because bubbles are small and not uniform. If you're using tiles or a cast iron skillet, you will be able to watch pockets form immediately.

Remove pitas carefully from oven with spatula and place on cooling rack. Cut each pita in half while still warm. If difficult to cut.

Place pita in a damp towel for 5 minutes, and then it will cut nicely.

In hot & humid weather, use ⅛ c less water.

Tested in DAK R2D2. Sylvia's comments: To store: Place in plastic bags, 3 or 4 to a bag, while still slightly warm to keep soft. May be frozen.

Posted on GEnie Food & Wine RT May 20, 1993 by C.WILLIAMS [CHIEF] From the recipe files of Sylvia Steiger, GEnie THE.STEIGERS, CI$ 71511,2253, GT Cookbook moderator at net/node 004/005 Submitted By SYLVIA STEIGER On 04-30-95

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