The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread
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Recipe Reviews
bhnyc from New York, NY
The Pita Bread recipe is a variation of the Lavash Crackers. Maybe because it is not the main recipe, the directions are not specific enough. It took me two times to get this right. First of all- if you follow the recipe exactly, it will only make two pitas- both 8 inches in diameter. That seemed really big to me (and a lot of work for two pieces of bread) so I made 4 smaller ones. I wasn't sure how thinly to roll them out. The first time they must have been too thin since they didn't puff completely. The second time I made them one puffed really well and that was the one that was a little thicker than the others- so now I know. These require a lot of kneading time to pass the 'windowpane test'. I had to knead for over 15 minutes.
The recipe does not indicate how long these take to bake. It just says to wait for them to puff, count to 10 and then take them out of the oven. Well watch these carefully! Mine took about less than 3 minutes to bake. You really have to keep the oven light on and station yourself so you can watch. Don't walk away from the oven.
The recipe also says that you can prepare the dough and retard it in the refrigerator overnight, which I did the first time I made them. However, it doesn't say how long to let the dough sit at room temperature (if at all) before you shape it. I wasn't sure about this step so I left it out for about an hour. The second time I made the pita, I did it all in one night instead of retarding overnight.
The first time I made these I followed the ingredient measurements exactly and thought there was too much honey. When I made them again I reduced the honey in half and I thought they were much better. These are really good. I just wish I could figure out how to make a whole wheat version.
(edited 12th August 2010) (0) comment (1) useful
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