Pita Bread

photo of pita and Mandarin and Romain Salad

Prep. time: about 2 hours (most of which is raising time)

Yield: 6 larger (or 12 smaller) pocket breads

1 Cup wrist-temp. water
1 1/2 teaspoons ( half of a 1/4-oz. packet) active dry yeast
1 Tablespoon sugar or honey
1 teaspoon salt
about 3 1/2 cups of flour (1 cup of it can be whole wheat)
OPTIONAL: 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds
a little oil for the dough extra flour for rolling out
oil or cornmeal, for the baking tray

1) Place the water in a medium-sized bowl and sprinkle in the yeast. Let stand for 5 minutes-it will become foamy

2) Add sugar or honey and salt. Stir until everything dissolves.

3) Add three cups of flour, one cup at a time, mixing enthusiastically with a whisk. As the dough thickens, switch to a wooden spoon and, eventually, your hand. Knead the dough in the bowl for a few minutes, adding up to 1/2 cup more flour, as needed, to combat stickiness. When the dough is smooth, oil both the bowl and the top surface of the dough. Cover with a clean tea towel, and let rise in a warm place for about an hour, or until the dough has doubled in bulk.

4) Punch down the dough and transfer it to a clean, floured surface. Knead it for about five minutes, then divide it into either 6 or 12 equal pieces (depending on what size pita you want). Knead each little unit for a few minutes, then use a rolling pin to flatten it into a very thin circle. (Make sure there is plenty of flour underneath!) The diameter of each circle is unimportant, as long as it is no thicker than 1/8 inch. Let the circles rest for 30 minutes.

5) Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Place a baking tray in the oven for a minute or two, to heat it. Then brush it with oil - or dust it with corn meal. Place as many circles on the tray as will fit without touching, and bake for just 6-8 minutes, or until puffed up and very lightly browned.

6) Remove from the oven, and wrap the breads in a clean, slightly damp tea rowel, then place in a brown paper bag, close up, for 15 minutes. This will keep the breads supple. (if you'd prefer the pita bread crisp and cracker like, bake 10-12 minutes and simply cool on a rack.)

On page 113 of the new revised edition,1992 Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen
I copied it from here because I was to lazy to to type it out myself.

My changes: 1/8 inch was too thin for my taste. They were more like crispy tortillas. Next time, I will roll them to 1/4 inch or a little more and bake them at 400 degrees instead of 500.