Pita Bread

Ingredients

• 3 1/2 cups bread flour (plus extra for dusting)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 packet dry active yeast
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 1/3 cups water

Directions

1. 1

   Sift flour and salt together in a large bowl.

2. 2

   Combine yeast, sugar and 1/3 cup very warm water-give a quick stir and set aside for 5 minutes to activate yeast.

3. 3

   Make a well in the flour/salt mixture and add the yeast, 1 cup warm water and the olive oil.

4. 4

   Gently stir to gather dough into a ball-you may need a touch more water-depending on where you live, altitude.

5. 5

   Turn out and knead for 10 minutes.

6. 6

   Put into a LIGHTLY greased large bowl, cover and place in a warm spot for around 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

7. 7

   Punch down and knead to smooth.

8. 8

   Cut dough into 12 pieces, form into rounds, roll out and place on a dusted baking sheet, cover and let rest for 45 minutes.

9. 9

   Preheat oven to 500F degrees.

10. 10

    I use my large cast iron skillet for this part, so I place it in the oven and when really hot I place in two pitas and let bake for around 3 minutes-you can broil for 1 minute if you like, just to get the tops browned.

11. 11

    I wrap the cooked pitas in a slightly damp tea towel for a minute or two-then cool and place in plastic bags.

12. 12

    This process can also be done on a cooking sheet.