Pita Bread

 

To make the dough, please see the separate recipe for Universal Bread Dough. Once you get all the way to the final step in that recipe, come back and continue here. 😘

Directions:

1. The dough will have a lot of gas in it, so form it into a ball again (for help with this, see steps 14 and 15 of the other recipe). 
2. Cut your dough ball in half.
3. Then form each half into another dough ball.
4. Cut each of those dough balls in half.
5. Then form each of those dough balls into another dough ball.
6. Then cut each of those dough balls in half to make 8 dough balls.
7. Make sure they are all formed into balls now.
8. Place one dough ball on a clean work surface.
9. Pour 1/3 cup all purpose flour next to it, but out of the way of it when you roll it out.
10. Using a rolling pin, roll your dough ball into a disk.
11. Only roll it until it sticks to the rolling pin, then remove the disk and flip it over.
12. Grab a pinch of the loose flour that's nearby and sprinkle it over the top of the disk.
13. Spread it evenly with your hands until the whole disk is lightly dusted.
14. Use the rolling pin to roll the disk into a thinner disk.
15. Only roll it about 5 times, then flip it over.
16. Repeat steps 12 through 15 until you have a 1/8 inch thick pita (about 10 flips). 
17. Do this for all 8 of your dough balls. They can stack on top of each other on a plate.

To cook the Pita's:

1.  Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
2. Brush it lightly with 1 tsp of Butter and 1 tsp EVOO.
3. Fry each pita, one at a time, for 3 minutes on each side.
4. They don't always puff up, but that's okay. More on this later. 
5. Transfer to a plate to cool. 
6. Once they have cooled, use a cutting board to cut each pita in half to form 2 half moons. 
7. Then grab one half moon at a time and use a sharp knife to gently slice open the pita's without cutting all the way through to the bottom. 

Note: It takes a little practice, but gets easier as you go. I like to make 1-inch deep cuts at a time in rows. 

To meal plan using your Pita's:

I like to stuff these boogers ahead of time with something like American and Cheddar cheese,  if I'm planning to eat them hot. When I'm ready to eat them, I just take 2 out of the fridge and put it right on the top rack of my oven. I don't even preheat it, I just turn it to 350 degrees fehrenheit, and set a timer for 8 minutes. Depending on the confidence of your cheese-stuffing abilities, you might want to use a baking sheet to catch any melting cheese, but I've never had a problem.

If I plan to serve these cold, with something like crab salad, I won't stuff them until I'm ready to eat. I still cook the pita in the oven for the same time and temperature as for the grilled cheese, but I stuff it after it's done toasting up in the oven.