Country-Style Whole-Wheat Pita

The first thing I think of when describing these is FUN! I just love different methods of delivery for all sorts of foods.
Now on a slightly different note: I did not exactly have what you would call success with this recipe, they didn't bubble up really at all. I cut them in half, cut out some of the bread and still filled them, and they were delicious!

But I think I can chalk up this failure to having no experience making this type of bread, and I am DETERMINED to figure it out. So I am sharing the recipe for those of you who know all the secrets. And as for me, well I will do "Pita Revisited" when I figure out all those secrets! Hopefully in the next few months. leave a comment if you have tips/advise for me!

Start with 1/2 a cup of warm water (105-115 F), to which you sprinkle over the top 1 packet (or 1 tablespoon) active dry yeast and a pinch of sugar (or drizzle of honey).

In a large bowl: 2 cups of warm water, 3 cups of whole-wheat pastry flour, 1/4 a cup olive oil, 1 tablespoon of salt.
Mix well, then add the yeast mixture, as well as 3 cups of unbleached all purpose flour, 1/2 a cup at a time. Mix well with each addition.
Feel free to change up the amounts of each flour if you want to. I didn't have pastry flour so I used two cups of regular whole wheat, put it in the food processor for several minutes to make it a little more fine, then added 4 cups of the white.
I used the dough hooks on my hand mixer, but you can use a stand mixer if you have one. Or you can mix by hand.
When the dough leaves the side of the bowl scrape it onto a floured work surface and knead about 5 minutes. You want a firm, but soft, dough. It kinda feels like a sweet roll dough.

Then place in a greased bowl and cover with plastic. Let raise 1- 1 1/2 hours. Or until doubled.

 Preheat the oven to 475 F with a baking stone set on the lowest rack.
Gently deflate the dough and divide in half.

Place one of the halves back in the bowl and cover with plastic while you work with the other.

Divide into 8 balls, then let rest while you divide the second half. You want to handle it as little as possible (similar to tortilla dough) so the gluten doesn't fully awaken and make it difficult to flatten each ball.

You can use a rolling pin, or flatten with your hands. Which is what I opted to do. You want them about 1/4 an inch thick. Sit them on a floured dish towel. Don't stack.

Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and place 8 circles at a time.
Place the pan on the baking stone and bake 10-12 minutes. Then do the same with the second 8.

Cool completely. I let mine sit overnight to have them completely cold.

Fill with anything that sounds good!

Blue Corn Tortillas

I loved the look of these with my enchiladas! I couldn't find blue corn meal at my local grocery store but found a good deal at vitacost.com(You can also get it from Bob's Red Mill) It was coarse ground, not exactly what the recipe called for. But they turned out great anyway even though they didn't roll as thin as they would have with the finer meal.

In a large bowl: 1 cup blue corn haranilla or masa harina para tortillas (or in other words, fine ground blue corn meal)
3/4 cup yellow or white masa harina para tortillas (I used instant masa mix)
1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. Salt
1 cup minus 1 tablespoon hot water (add the water a little at a time)

Mix thoroughly until evenly moistened and you have a ball that is firm and not sticky. If it's too dry add 1 teaspoon of water at a time. Cover and let rest for 1 hour at room temperature. Cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap, blue corn meal dries out super fast.

Divide into 12 portions and shape into 5 inch rounds.

Keep under the cloth while you are working.

Heat the cast iron (or if you don't have one a skillet will work fine). Bake 30 seconds one each side, you may need a thin metal pancake turner if it sticks.
These are best eaten within an hour.

Indian Fry Bread

Have a hankering for some Navaho tacos? These were perfect for ours!

In a mixing bowl:
4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 cup nonfat dry milk
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

To the flour mixture add 4 tablespoons shortening or lard.
I prefer to mix this in with my hands. You can also use two knives, or a pastry cutter would also work well. The shortening should be about the size of peas when you are done.
Add 1 1/2 cups hot water and mix well. Knead briefly, no more then 10 times. The dough should be smooth and soft. But not sticky.

Cover with plastic wrap (or a kitchen towel!) and let rest about 30 minutes.

Pull off knobs of dough, about 2-3 inches in diameter, enough to make 15-20 pieces. Roll out with a rolling pin (or shape by hand) and place on a pan (or counter top) cover with plastic and let rest about 20 minutes.

In the pan of your choice (I prefer the cast iron, but you can also use a wok, heavy kettle or deep fryer), heat 2 inches of oil. (I would also add salt, about 1/4 a teaspoon).
Cook two minutes each side.

Place on a stack of paper towels. You can serve these with honey-butter, plain honey, or some delicious tacos!

Flour Tortillas

Mmm, homemade tortillas are super tasty. It takes a little practice to get the shape right but it's totally worth it. I really like this recipe, it's easy to work with. 5 stars.

Directions: (Makes 15 5-8 inch tortillas)
In a bowl by hand or heavy duty mixer combine 4 cups unbleached all purpose flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 cup shortening and enough water to make a dough (1 to 1 1/2 cups)
Mix until you have a nice dough that's not sticky. Let rest for 30 minutes to 2 hours. (I recommend covering the bowl with a warm wet towel)
 THEN roll into balls and let rest again for 20-30 minutes. (But there's no hurry, it they end up sitting for another hour that's okay)

With a light sprinkling of flour over a work surface and your favorite rolling pin: Take the ball of dough, flatten, sprinkle some flour over the top (as well as some flour rubbed onto the rolling pin).
This is how I do it: Imagine a clock, roll up or down (whichever you choose) at 12, rotate to 3, roll, rotate to 6, roll, rotate to 9, then roll again. Keep in mind if the dough is being stubborn and doesn't want to roll out easily then let it rest for a few minutes.

  Cook on medium heat in an ungreased frying pan or well seasoned cast iron skillet. My husband calls it "Cast iron Nirvana!" you want to be able to cook these without them sticking! If you do want to use the cast iron and are worried about sticking you can always fry up a piece of bacon on it first, then wipe clean!

You can tell it's done on the first side when it bubbles up. Only cook the second side for 10-30 seconds, or until browned.

 The possibilities are endless! We do love our tortillas!