Whole Wheat Pita Bread

Ingredients:

2 1/4 t. yeast

1 T. honey *

1 1/4 c. warm water

1 1/2 c. bread flour, divided

1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour, divided

1/4 c. extra-virgin olive oil

1 t. salt

cornmeal, for spinkling

* I used sugar. My honey was caramelized.

Recipe:

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine yeast, honey, and 1/2 c. water. Stir gently to blend.

2. Whisk 1/4 c. bread flour and 1/4 c. whole wheat flour into the yeast mixture until smooth.

3. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside until doubled in bulk and bubbly, about 45 minutes.

4. Remove the plastic wrap and return the bowl to the mixer stand, fitted with the dough hook. Add in the remaining 3/4 c. warm water, 1 1/4 c. bread flour, 1 1/4 c. whole wheat flour, olive oil, and salt.

5. Knead on low speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Transfer the ball of dough to a lightly oiled bowl, turning once to coat, and let rise about 1 hour, or until doubled.

6. Place an oven rack in the middle position. Place a baking stone (or pizza stone, if using one) in the oven and preheat to 500 degrees F.

7. Once the dough has risen, transfer to a lightly floured work surface, punch down the dough and divide into 8 equal pieces. Form each piece into a ball. Flatten one ball at a time into a disk, then stretch out into a 6 1/2 to 7-inch circle.

8.  Transfer the rounds to a baking sheet or other work surface lightly sprinkled with cornmeal. Once all the rounds have been shaped, loosely cover with clean kitchen towels. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes, until slightly puffy.

9. Transfer 4 pitas, 1 at a time, onto the baking surface (can be baked on a baking stone or directly on oven racks). Bake 2 minutes, until puffed and pale golden. Gently flip the pitas over using tongs and bake 1 minute more.

10. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely. Repeat with the remaining pitas. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Rating: 4.5 of 5

These ain't no store bought pitas! To me, store bought pita and tortillas have the same problem: they taste a little plastic-y. No bueno. These pitas take pita bread to a whole new level! Soft and fluffy and full of flavor! Well, as full of flavor as you can get with wheat. We had them with Hummus and Cucumber Tomato Salad, but they would be divine with just about anything inside. Maybe a scrambled eggs for breakfast even? I don't know that I will buy pita bread again in the future.

Source: Annie's Eats, Whole Wheat Pita Bread