I sometimes make our Pita bread from scratch . It's so easy to do and if we want wraps and I have no Pita then I will make it with just a few ingredients.

Makes 8

Recipe by The Mediterranean Dish

INGREDIENTS​

• 1 cup lukewarm water
• 2 tsp active dry yeast
• ½ tsp sugar
• 3 cups plain flour, divided ( I sometimes use bread flour )
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil , plus extra for the bowl

INSTRUCTIONS​

1. In a large mixing bowl add the lukewarm water and stir in yeast and sugar until dissolved. Add ½ cup flour and whisk together. Place the mixing bowl uncovered in a warm place, . Give it 15 minutes or so, the mixture should bubble.

2. Form the pita dough: Now add salt, olive oil and almost all the remaining flour (keep about ½ cup of the flour for dusting later). Stir until mixture forms a shaggy mass (at this point, the dough has little to no gluten development and just looks like a sticky mess and you can easily pull bits off). Dust with a little flour, then knead the mixture inside the bowl for about a minute to incorporate any stray bits.

3.Knead the dough: Dust a clean working surface with just a little bit of flour. Knead lightly for a couple minutes or so until smooth. Cover and let the dough rest for 10 minutes, then knead again for a couple more minutes. The dough should be a little bit moist, you can help it with a little dusting of flour, but be careful not to add too much

4.Let the dough rise. Clean the mixing bowl and coat it lightly with extra virgin olive oil and put the dough back in the bowl. Turn the dough a couple times in the bowl to coat with the olive oil. Cover the mixing bowl tightly with plastic wrap then lay a kitchen towel over. Put the bowl in a warm place. Leave it alone for 1 hour or until the dough rises to double its size.

5.Divide the dough. Deflate the dough and place it on a clean work surface. Divide the dough into 7 to 8 equal pieces and shape them into balls. Cover with a towel and leave them for 10 minutes or so

6. To Shape the pitas. Using a floured rolling pin, roll one of the pieces into a circle that's 8-9 inches wide and about a quarter inch thick. It helps to lift and turn the dough frequently as you roll so that dough doesn't stick to your counter too much. (If dough starts to stick, sprinkle a tiny bit of flour). If the dough starts to spring back, set it aside to rest for a few minutes, then continue rolling. Repeat with the other pieces of dough. (Once you get going, you can be cooking one pita while rolling another, if you like).

7. To cook pita on stovetop: Heat a skillet or heavy frypan over medium-high heat. (Test by adding a couple drops of water to the skillet, the skillet is ready when the beads of water sizzle immediately). Drizzle a tiny bit of extra virgin olive oil . Working with one pita at a time, lay a rolled-out pita on the skillet and bake for 30 seconds, until bubbles start to form. Using a spatula, flip the pita over and cook for 1-2 minutes on the other side, until large toasted spots appear on the underside. Flip again and cook another 1-2 minutes to toast the other side. The pita is ready when it puffs up forming a pocket (sometimes, with this method, the pita may not puff or may only form a small pocket. Try pressing the surface of the pita gently with a clean towel). Keep baked pita covered with a clean towel while you work on the rest

NOTES​

• Make ahead : You can prepare the dough ahead of time. Once it has risen, you can store it in the fridge until you need it! If you don't want to bake all 8 pitas on a given day, you can bake 1, 2 or however many you need at a time. Save the rest of the dough in the fridge for later (if stored properly, the dough will keep in the fridge for up to 1 week).
• For Wholemeal Pita: Use 1 ½ cup wholemeal flour and 1 ½ cup plain flour
• For Gluten Free Pita: Replace the flour here with the same amount gluten free plain flour