Okay, now I’m dating myself and getting another song stuck in my head. So now that we’ve had a few layovers for Royal wedding celebrations and fiestas, we’re back on track for our next international cooking destination and dad is taking us to Egypt! Tonight we had a great Egyptian dinner that began with a homemade Wheat Pocket Pita.
Both Miss A and Mr. N were big helpers today. Miss A and I began in the morning by dissolving the yeast and sugar in warm water.
We then took a 15 minute break as the yeast water rested and we practiced our “ballet” to various music boxes (which all must be wound at the same time). Then we added the water to a large mixing bowl with our flour and salt. We used 1-1/2 cups of all-purpose flour and 1-1/2 cups of whole wheat flour. Using our hands to form a dough, we incorporated another cup of warm water in the flour. Then it was time to begin kneading. 
Miss A handled the dough like a professional. She happily worked the dough for a good 10 minutes. 
Miss A let me handle the last five minutes of kneading to make sure the dough was good and springy. Once it was ready we coated it with olive oil and placed it in a bowl to “take its nap.”
We let the dough rest for three hours and it was definitely good and doubled. 
Mr. N then punched it down for us and we formed nine smaller balls which we let rest for another 10 minutes. 
While the dough was resting, we preheated the oven to 500F and placed the oven rack on the bottom setting. We also threw a baking sheet in the oven to preheat as well. Next Mr. N helped us to roll out the dough, forming six-inch rounds about 1/4″ thick.
We then removed the hot baking sheet from the oven, greased it and added four pitas at a time on the lowest rack. We baked the pitas for four minutes on one side, flipped them and baked them for another two minutes. 
The pitas will puff slightly, so we gently depressed them and set them aside for dinner. They can also be stored for about a week in a pantry or cool space. 
We were very happy with our wheat pocket pitas. The pockets formed easily when the pitas were cut in half allowing us to fill it with some delicious chicken and couscous (recipes to come soon). The pitas also had a great, fresh taste. Finally success with a yeast-based bread! Yay!
As for our spoon ratings Dad, Mr. N and I gave the pitas 3 spoons. Miss A gave them 4 spoons after snatching one before dinner and eating it like a cookie! She deserved a snack before dinner though after all that kneading! The recipes for our pocket fillings will be along shortly. Have a great weekend!
Print this recipe: Wheat Pocket Pitas
Eat, Play, Love 
I love that you are making pita’s with your kids. I bet they were good! Great site. I am visiting from mine, basilmomma. You can find me on blogspot, facebook and twitter 🙂 Have a great day!
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Thanks for visiting! We liked the pitas and the kids loved making them.
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The pitas look great. I went to Egypt when I was in college and they sold pitas everywhere, usually with lots of flies around them. But they were so good. I really enjoyed the Egyptian food. I can’t wait for the chicken and couscous recipes. Couscous isn’t something we eat a lot of, but I just recently bought some and haven’t used it yet.
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I’ve always wanted to go to Egypt! My good friend was just there last year and her pictures were amazing. Someday… 🙂
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This looks like too much fun! I am obsessed with the photo focused on Miss A’s hands kneading the dough. Great shot. Looks like the pita was delicious!
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Thanks Caroline! So glad I got these shots in because me darn camera broke yesterday evening. UGH! At least it was good up until the end. 😉 Have a great weekend!
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I love that Miss A and Mr. N really got into pita making. They look just adorable and the pita looks divine. And wait, is that a tattoo on Miss A’s arm? She is already a rebel LOL. Love this girl.
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Oh she loves her ink! Each week at tumbling they get new stamps. She asks for them on each leg, each arm and her tummy. Cracks me up. Have a great weekend!
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That’s wonderful. I messed up pitas the first time I made them. Getting that pocket can be tricky, I guess unless you’re small enough to sit on the counter while you knead the dough.
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Small, but mighty I tell ya. 😉 Have a good weekend Greg.
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I’ve been wanting to make homemade pita bread for ever, just never had the time. Mainly because my one year old was on a gluten-free diet for 6 months, just recently his doctors want him a a gluten rich diet to get retested in 3 months.
I’m thinking this recipe will be a fun one to make with the kids. Your daughter is so adorable, I love how she’s sitting on the bay window kneading the dough. Rolling the dough looks like a fun job too, Mr. N is really working his strong arm muscles! lol. It’s great to see kids in the kitchen.
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The pitas were definitely good homemade. And while it took time, it was mostly just due to the rising, so there’s really not much to it. And it’s totally one the kids will love – it’s a lot like playing with playdough! 😉 If you end up needing more gluten free bread recipes – check out the pao de queijos under Brazilian cuisine. Those little things are yummy! Have a great weekend!
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“after snatching one before dinner and eating it like a cookie”
Hahaha, awesome 🙂 I bet Mr N really enjoyed punching the dough down afterwards too! The pitas look great – I always buy mine but they’re so disappointing and dry so maybe it’s time to start home-making them.
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He definitely took a good crack at the dough – Miss A was rolling on the floor laughing! You came to mind today – I’m out of town for the weekend and found a store that carries only products from Britain. I had a blast in there. Sampled a ton of fruit curds – bought the raspberry one. I also got a can of black treacle and they carried the golden syrup! I was so excited to find this little place. 🙂 Have a great weekend!
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Aaah, black treacle! You can make incredible gingerbread and ginger cake with that, as well as treacle toffee. I’ll try and fish out the recipe I use for gingerbread and cake and send it your way if you’re interested?
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That would be wonderful! I would love the gingerbread and ginger cake. 🙂 Are fruit curds common in England as well? This store had a ton of them – and oh were they good!
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Strange – it won’t let me reply to your most recent comment so sorry if the order is a bit screwed up. Regarding the recipes for gingerbread and whatnot. I usually use this recipe for Ginger Cake. Use the treacle where it calls for molasses syrup. If you can’t find candied ginger it’s not the end of the world – the cake is unbelievable without it – sticky and gooey and moist and delicious. I use this recipe for Gingerbread, although for both recipes I usually fiddle a bit with the quantity of spices and lemon zest and so forth because I love strong spicy flavours.
As for curds – I have to say the only one I’m really familiar with is lemon curd (which is amazing if you’ve never tried it)! I must try and get my hands on (or make) some other fruit curds – they sound really interesting, thanks! Have a good week 🙂
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Found it! 🙂 Thank you for the recipes. I’m definitely going to use these – and soon!
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