Its a Saturday morning when I decided to make pita bread instead of my usual whole wheat bread. I usually spend my Sunday morning making bread but because I'm going for dim sum tomorrow and will not have time to make the basis of my lunch (i.e bread!) in school, that's why I made it on a Saturday morning and decide to make something different - whole wheat pitas!
I've searched the web to look for 100% whole wheat pita but most recipes contain either white flour or other flour that lets our body goes through a phase of sugar dip which results in us looking for bad sugars and carbs such as chocolates, potato chips, ice-cream and so on. To me a 100% whole wheat bread means that it shouldn't contain elements of other flour, otherwise its not 100% (it just makes sense).
Anyway, since no recipe could meet my requirements. I just had to improvise and come our with my own 100% whole wheat pitas. I'm glad the results turned out quite good although its my first attempt! Best part, not much trial and error needed......
RECIPES: Serves 3
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 3 tablespoon warm water
- 2 tablespoon orange juice
- 2 teaspoon nonfat milk powder
- 1/2 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, mix together 1/2 cup flour, salt, yeast, milk powder and honey .
- Add water, orange juice and oil into the mixer bowl and stir to form a dough (should be sticky at this moment).
- Move the dough out into a well-floured surface but not over-floured surface and knead.
- Continue adding flour 1 teaspoon by 1 teaspoon gradually till the dough becomes smooth, elastic and pliable. The trick is to make the dough smooth and pliable with the least amount of flour.
- Note: After adding 1 teaspoon of flour, knead till the dough has 'absorbed' the flour. If it is still moist and sticky, then continue adding the next teaspoon.
- Once desired texture and quality of dough is achieved, place it back to the mixing bowl and allow it to rise for an hour, till it doubles in size.
- Punch the dough down and place it on a well-floured surface again. Cut equally into 3 sections.
- Roll each section into a ball and allow it to rise for 30 minutes.
- Pre-heat the oven to 230 degrees Celsius.
- After 30 minutes, take each bowl and roll out into circles about 12cm (5 inch) in diameter and thickness is about a 1/5 cm. The measurements are really based on individual preference but I would suggest not to make it too thin.
- Place the rolled out dough into a baking sheet and bake in the oven till the pitas puff out like in the picture. This would take roughly 5 minutes.
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