Friday 1 March 2013

Home Made Pita Bread (Delia Smith)

Occasionally, I would buy ready-made pitas from the supermarket and stuff them with vegetables and meat for a quick and light lunch over weekends. Although I love making my own bread, making pitas has never crossed my mind. I have no idea how those huge air pocket in the pitas are created. This home-made Pita Bread is the first Delia Smith recipe I tried out because it is really easy - the bread maker (or mixer) did the kneading and I only rolled them out for baking after one round of proofing. 



Quite magically, the pita's characteristic air pocket developed on its while it was baking away in the oven. The wonderful aroma of the fresh pitas baking away in the oven is so addictive. These fluffy home-made pitas are delicious served warm and has a huge air pocket to hold all the delicious stuffing you want to put in. Definitely a highly recommended recipe! I served mine with Delia Smith's Hummus (recipe to be shared later).


This is for Cook like a Star, Delia Smith blog hop event, hosted by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo from Eat your heart out and Mich from Piece of Cake. Grab the HTML Code for the event here. This is my first time hosting an event and I am really excited. Hope you all will find some time to cook Delia Smith's recipes and join us! The trendsetter who inspires others to make the same recipe as him/her will also receive a special gift. 


Pita Bread (Makes 12)
From Delia Smith's How to Cook Book Three 

Ingredients
  • 1 lb 2 oz (500 g) strong white bread flour, plus 2 tablespoons for dusting
  • 2 teaspooons easy-blend dried yeast
  • 1 oz (25 g) butter, at room temperature, plus a little extra for greasing
  • 1½ teaspoons salt
Method
  • To make the dough, tip all the ingredients, along with 11 fl oz (310 ml) water, into the bread maker in the order stated in your manual. Then set the machine to the dough-only setting and press start. Let the whole cycle run (about 1.5 hours). 
  • If you are using a mixer to mix the dough, let the mixer knead the dough for about 25-30 minutes, then proof it covered for about 1 hour.
  • When the dough is done, pre-heat the oven to gas mark 7, 425°F (220°C). Transfer the dough from the bread maker to a flat, lightly floured surface, divide it into 12 equal portions and roll out three of them to oval shapes measuring roughly 4 x 8 inches (10 x 20 cm), covering the remaining dough with a clean tea cloth. Dust the tops lightly with flour and place them on the baking tray. 
  • Pop them into the oven, on a high shelf, and bake them for 8-10 minutes, or until they have become golden and puffy. When they are done, remove them from the oven and wrap them in another tea cloth. (If they're allowed to cool without this, they get too crisp, and a pitta should be soft, not crunchy.)
  • Serve them fresh from the oven with Hummus or Tunisian Aubergine Salad or, if you're making them in advance, warm them through briefly in the oven before serving.
This is for Yeast Spotting at the Wild Yeast Blog.

This is for Made with Love Mondays by Javelin Warrior.


31 comments:

  1. Your pita bread looks like it turned out perfect. I am not sure either how the air pocket come about.

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  2. Mmmmmmm looks great, Mich! I made some a while back using some other recipe but only 80% had air pockets. :P

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  3. Mich, your pita bread looks exactly like those store-bought ones, it must be good to use them to make sandwich!

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  4. I always buy pita bread!! I forgot how easy it is to make them yourself....I do not have a bread machine...but I like kneading!

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  5. Look at all of those nooks and crannies and perfect pockets for holding some delicious treats in your bread. These turned out gorgeous. How fun to make them at home. Take care, BAM

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  6. My kids love pita bread but like you I have never thought to make my own. Time to try I think!! Yours look so perfect.

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  7. I have never try this pita bread before。 It looks great, i must try it someday..

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  8. Sounds really easy to make ! And I haven't eaten pita bread before :P :D Your pita look perfectly-baked , Mich !

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  9. Hi Mich,
    Your pita bread looks perfect! I can imagine having this with some filling! Lovely!

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  10. Hi Mich! Agree with all the comments above...Your pita bread looks really good... doesn't look like a virgin attempt. Well done!

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  11. I make bread and buns at home all the time but I've never made pita bread myself either. Yours look so beautiful with the perfect "pocket"! I can't wait to try my hands on making some soon. Thanks for the inspiration. Have a beautiful weekend.

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  12. I love this homemade pita bead. I want to try this.

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  13. I heard about that event. Your pitas look perfect! i would stuff it full of hommus and tabouli :)

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  14. Hi MIch,
    Your pita bread looks great. Pretty browning crust and lovely air pockets.
    I always wanted to try to make pita bread. Even tried one but non have air pocket..:p
    Seeing yours i must try this..:D

    I have some awards to share with you, please come collect here:
    http://my123favourites.blogspot.com/2013/02/sesame-roasted-chicken-and-awards.html
    mui

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  15. Doesn't this look amazing! I love pitta bread and this looks an amazing recipe.

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  16. We eat pita bread all the time, so I must must try making my own! I can only imagine how much better they taste. Thank you for sharing with me, my friend!

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  17. Mich - the pitas you made look WONDERFUL
    You probably know that pita-bread are very popular here.

    BTW - although I LOVE butter, originally pita-bread is made with oil (olive oil), not butter.

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  18. Wow love your homemade pita bread, its so perfect.

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  19. Hi Mich,

    Your pita breads look so professionally made... They look very well puffed with lots of air pockets.

    Zoe

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  20. I've never made my own pita bread, but always wanted to. This looks awesom!

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  21. Well, I would much rather have your temptingly delicious pitta bread than buying them in the shop. I seldom make bread but it's good to know pitta bread is quite straightforward to do.

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  22. OMG I want to make homemade pita bread too! I must save the recipe now. It's one of my to make lists that I haven't attempted yet... Yours look perfect!

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  23. Wow! It looks so soft and perfectly made! I have always bought it!
    I'd love to take a bite of this..

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  24. well done! these pitas look perfect! i have not made my own pita bread before!i'm sure the it went very well with the hummus you hv made too!

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  25. Hi Mich, your pita bread look really good. The pocket is perfect. :)

    Best regards.

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  26. Wow! These pita breads look perfectly done. I've never try making it before but I think I'll try this recipe this summer. ;)

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  27. Me encanta …Delicioso y bien hecho…abrazos y abrazos.

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