Pita Recipe

In a break from scheduled holiday posts.....

Dinner tonight was awesome so I want to keep the recipe for the future.  I've added the calories to the recipes because someone asked for them.

I ate some of the pita before I thought to stuff the tabbouleh into the pockets. 

We had kingprawn tabbouleh with homemade pita.

The pita recipe was from farmgirl fare, I would add less salt in future but this was an incredibly quick recipe (considering that it was bread). It's reproduced here, converted into UK measurements:

the smell is amazing, wondrous puffy balls of yeast

Serves 8, calories in each pita 177

310g strong bread flour
1 tsp salt (reduced from 2 tsp in the original recipe)
1 Tbsp granulated sugar (for the yeast to eat)
packet of instant yeast
2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup warm water

1. Preheat the oven to the highest temperature (ours didn't go up to 275). 
2. Cut out 4 bits of tinfoil (all that would fit in the oven) to put the pita on. We didn't preheat the tinfoil. 
3. In a mixer (or with a spoon) combine 125g flour with the salt, sugar and yeast. 
4. Add the oil and water
5. BEAT for 3 minutes (I just used the dough-hook and the fastest setting)
6. Stir in the rest of the flour a bit at a time (dough-hook on lower setting)
7. Knead for 6 minutes (I used a dough hook, but kneading is pretty much just folding and stretching)
8. Divide the dough into 8 pieces (I used a pizza cutting wheel)
9. Roll into balls, sprinkle on some flour and cover with a damp teatowl
10. Leave next to the oven for 30 minutes
    Now is the time to make your actual dinner/accompaniment
11. After 30 minutes, flatten 4 of the balls and then roll out to very thin (1/4 inch)
12. Put each onto foil and then use a metal spatula to slide into the oven straight onto the shelf
13. Cook them for 4 minutes, meanwhile roll out the others
14. After 4 minutes, turn them over and swap the shelves. 
15. After another 2 minutes put back onto the now less damp teatowel and wrap them up so that the pockets happen
16. Cook the others in the same way

And that's it! Took less than an hour in all of which most of it was pottering. Minimal mess too. I have pita left over for lunch today too (Mike ate his lunch portion on top of dinner). 

The tabbouleh was a spontaneous random recipe and made enough for 2 generous dinners and lunch. (Total 1292 bulky calories, 20% protein entire meal of pita and tabbouleh could happily feed 5 or 6, 8 with olives, hummous and extra salad). 

1. Pour 1 pint of boiling water over 125g uncooked bulgar wheat and leave for 30 minutes, you might need to sieve it at the end. 
2. Stirfry a packet of king prawns with 2 handfuls of mixed vegetables (we used some of Sainsburys big basic stirfry mix which is carrots and cabbage basically) and some pinenuts (optional). 
3. Meanwhile chop up an avacado, plenty of cherry or, my new favourite, vittoria tomatoes, 1/2 a cucumber, a spring onion and a handful of parsley
4. Make tzadziki (or use shop bought which we did and added extra mint to) and mix into the salad
5. combine everything with added lemon juice. We also added greek basil because it's lush.

Enjoy, for several days. 

Claire