BABY DARK RYE PITTA BREAD POCKETS

I like making pitta breads. They are so easy to make. You can make them  in the oven or on the griddle, though I prefer to make them in the oven as 8 to 10 of them can be made in the same time versus cooking each one on the griddle.

When I was new to the world of cooking especially food from other parts of the world, I found myself totally enamoured by pitta breads. I didn't know how to make them, so I looked up recipe books but didn't find any recipe in any of the books available in the stores around.

Not one to lose hope or lose interest, I created my very own pitta bread out of the simple everyday bread slices. I cut the slices diagonally and with a sharp paring knife (used for fruit and vegetable carving) slit it right in the middle and created a pocket and filled it with salad. These were very very delicate bread pockets that could tear easily. There wasn't enough room to put in a falafel along with the salad so I grated my salad and chopped my falafel into tiny bits and enjoyed this version till I finally learnt how to make a pitta bread, the easiest of all breads.

It just looks mysterious.


rye pitta bread pockets


I now make them with rye flour, corn flour (masa harina) and have been trying various combinations of flours and vegetables to add to the nutritive value of the pitta pockets. The use of different flours and vegetables gives a different colour to each one as it gives it's own unique flavour.

Dark rye flour gives a dark brown coloured bread. It is high in fiber content and low in fat. It is healthier than white flour and does not cause a spike in the blood sugar levels that white flour is known to cause. It gives a denser bread than white bread. Rye flour does not have a strong gluten hence I have added bread flour(strong white flour) to it. This facilitates the rise of the bread dough.
Pitta pockets are usually served with salad, hummus and falafal.

Recently I spent a lovely afternoon with my friends at a restaurant that serves pitta pocket sandwiches. With renewed interest in this scrumptious, delicious and nutritious sandwich I decided to make these for the week-end meal. It needs a little planning ahead. But once the hummus, falafal and the pittas are ready it takes very little time to put it altogether.

Perfect for a lazy week-end lunch.

PITTA BREAD WITH RYE
Ingredients:
makes 24 small/12 medium/8 large(with a diameter of 3/5/7 inches)
.Bread flour......................................350gm.
.Dark rye flour..................................150gm.
.Ground flax seeds............................1 Tbsp.
.Dry yeast(fast acting).......................2 tsp.*
.Baking powder................................1 tsp.*
.Bread improver...............................1 tsp.*
.Salt..................................................1 tsp.
.Sugar...............................................1/2 tsp.
.Dried mint leaves............................2 tsp.
.Red chili flakes...............................1 tsp.
.Water..............................................300ml +4 tsp.*

.Olive oil..........................................2 Tbsp to coat
.Black and white sesame  seeds........2 +2 tsp. for sprinkling

Method:
.Mix together yeast, bread flour, dark rye flour, ground flax seeds, baking powder, mint leaves, red
 chili flakes, salt and sugar.
.If using a dough maker mix all the above ingredients for at least 3 minutes using the balloon attachment.
 This will mix the ingredients well and aerate them too.
.Add the water and using the dough attachment knead the dough in the dough maker for 7 to 8 minutes
 till smooth, firm, soft and pliable.
.If kneading with hand you may have to knead for a longer time till the desired result has been achieved,
 about 15 minutes.
.Put the dough in an oiled glass bowl, turning it to coat evenly with oil.
.Cover with a plastic cling film and leave to rise for 1 1/2 hour to 2 hours till doubled in size.

.Knock back the air from the dough, cover and leave to rise again for 20 minutes.
.Divide the dough equally into 24 pieces of 34 gm. each and roll each one into a ball.*
.Cover and leave to rise for 20 minutes.
.On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a circle of 1/2cm. thickness.
.Sprinkle the mixture of the black and white sesame seeds and press down very lightly with the rolling
 pin to embed them.
.Cover with a tea-towel or plastic cling film and leave to prove for 30 minutes until risen and
 doubled in size.
. At this point the dough can be proofed for upto 12 hours. This will give a much softer bread.

 How to proceed:
.Preheat the oven to 220 degree C/ 425 degreeF/gas mark 7.
.Dust two or three baking trays (as required) with flour and preheat the trays in the oven for 5 to 7
 minutes.
.Put the prepared dough circles on the hot baking sheets and return to the oven immediately.
.Bake for 2 to 3 minutes on each side until puffy.*
.Remove and wrap immediately when hot in a clean, dry cloth to keep them soft and prevent from
 drying out.
.When cooled completely they can be stored in a zip-lock plastic bag.

.When using cut the pitta into half and stuff the filling into the opened up pockets and grill if liked.

Note:
*The yeast used should be of good quality.
.To check for the workabilty of the yeast you can alternatively mix the yeast, sugar and 1/2 cup of the
 water and set aside for it to rise. Stir to dissolve and add along with the remaining water to the
 flour. I skip this step as I buy the yeast when required.
*Baking powder helps the rye flour to rise.
*Bread improver helps in the texture of the bread.
*Water should be tepid in cold places. In warm places water at room temperature will do the work
 well.
*Basic water requirement for this bread is 300 ml. but I have added 1 tsp. extra for every tsp. of
 added ingredient such as the dry mint leaves, flax seed powder, and chili flakes.
*It is important that the dough is divided into equal sized balls as that will ensure even baking of all.
*It may take lesser or more time depending on the size, but do not leave it long in the oven as it will
 harden and you may end up with crisp bread. If that happens you can serve it with a dip as crisps
 with tea.

To make plain white pitta bread just substitute the dark rye flour i.e. making the bread flour quantity to be 500gm. Mint leaves, flax seed powder, chili flakes and sesame seeds too can be omitted. Remember to remove the extra water added for every tsp. of extra ingredient added, as mentioned above, (i.e remove one tsp. of water for every extra ingredient removed).
*recipes for falafel, humus, tzatziki and pitta pocket sandwich to follow.