Pita Bread

Pocket full of sunshine.

Pita Bread
1

In a large bowl, combine 2 tsp active dry yeast and 1/2 tsp sugar with 1 cup lukewarm water. Whisk to dissolve.

2

Add 65 g unbleached all-purpose flour and whisk to dissolve.

3

Let rest for 15 minutes, until frothy and bubbly.

4

Add 1 tsp salt, 2 tbsp olive oil, and 220 g unbleached all-purpose flour, keeping the remaining 60g of flour in reserve.

5

Stir until the mixture forms a shaggy mass. Dust with some of the reserved flour, then knead in the bowl for 1 minute.

6

Turn the dough onto a work surface. Knead lightly for 2 minutes, let rest for 10 minutes, then knead again for 2 minutes. Use the minimum amount of your reserve flour. The dough should be soft, moist, and slightly tacky, while still being easy to handle.

7

Clean and lightly grease your large mixing bowl. Put the dough back in, cover it tightly with plastic wrap.

8

Let rise for 1 hour, until doubled in size.

9

While the dough is rising, preheat your oven to 475 ºF. Place your pizza steel on the bottom rack of your oven to get it nice and hot for 1 hour.

10

After your dough has risen, punch it down and divide into 8 equal pieces.

11

Roll each piece into a little ball and place them on your work surface or a piece of parchment paper. Cover them with a damp towel.

12

Let rest for 10 minutes.

13

Working one or two at a time, take the balls and flatten them into disks using a rolling pin. You should be shooting for around 8" in diameter and between 1/8" and 1/4" thickness.

14

Take your disks and place them directly on your cooking surface.

15

Let your pitas bake for 2 minutes on one side, at which point they will be nicely puffed. Then flip and bake for 1 minute. The pitas should be largely pale with some brown spots.

16

After removing from the oven, place them on a wire rack to cool.