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Homemade (and easier than you’d think) Pita Bread

For some reason, I have a problem with leftovers.  I’m not really sure when it started, but it seems that every time I make something for dinner, I never eat the leftovers.  John told me he was really surprised one day when I heated up  Mexican pizza to eat the next day, and that’s when I started to realize – there are 3 foods that I actually like as leftovers: 1) pizza, 2) Thanksgiving, & 3)chicken parm.   However, the fact that I don’t like leftovers doesn’t mean that I NEVER eat them. In fact, last night I made some delicious chicken gyros with homemade tzatziki sauce (one of John’s new favorite meals), and there is so much left over that I would really feel pretty guilty letting them all go to waste. In order to make the leftovers taste a little better, I thought – I’ll make something new to go with them!  And so began the adventure of making homemade pita bread.

For my first time making pita, it tasted great!, but it wasn’t the prettiest thing I’d ever seen….. It definitely didn’t look  like store bought, and I’m not sure you could really call it a “pocket”, but it was delicious fresh out of the oven!   Hopefully you can learn from my mistakes….

One of the things I find the most difficult about making bread, is all the “wait 10 minutes, let rise for 20 minutes…etc”.  So I wrote out the time estimates for each step.  Also, the steps that require you to ACTIVELY be doing something are denoted with a * (as opposed to the steps where you can, if you’d like, stare at the dough while the yeast works its magic).

Recipe for Pita Bread

3 cups plus 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour  (454 grams (food scales are great for flour!))

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons instant yeast

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon honey

1 1/4 cups water, at room temperature

*STEP 1: 10 minutes: Using a spatula, mix ALL ingredients together in the bowl of a mixer (Yep, all at one time – you don’t have to put the yeast in the water and let it sit, and all that jazz).  Using the dough hook attachment, knead the dough for about 10 minutes (speed 4 on the Kitchen aid), or you can work up a sweat and knead it by hand.

It should go from looking like this:

To looking like this:

STEP 2: 8 hrs – 3 days OR 90 minutes: Once the dough looks smooth, place it in a bowl sprayed with oil, and then spray a little oil on top of the dough. Cover and let sit in the fridge for 8 hrs -3 days OR in a warm, draft free place for 90 minutes. (I love this step because the recipe actually says, “for best flavor development, mix the dough up to 3 days ahead” – Yeah for making things ahead of time!)

*STEP 3: 3 minutes: Divide the risen dough into 8 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.

STEP 4: 20 minutes: Cover the dough with a damp towel and let it sit for 20 minutes.  This step allows the dough the relax before you start shaping it – if at any point you have trouble shaping the dough, just let it relax for a few minutes, and it should be easier to shape.

*STEP 5: 15 minutes: On a lightly floured surface,  take each piece of dough and shape it into a circle using your hands and/or a rolling pin.   This is the step that gave me some trouble.  In retrospect, I was trying to make the pita too large, and therefore the dough became very uneven in thickness. The next time I make these, I will try to roll them to about 6 inches wide, 1/4 inch in thickness.

Above – See how uneven they are?  Don’t try to roll them as thin as I did. The most important thing is to keep them even.

STEP 6: 30-40 minutes: Place the rounds on an oiled baking sheet and cover with oiled plastic wrap.  Let rise for 30-40.

STEP 7: While the rounds are rising preheat the oven to 475 degrees. If you have a baking stone, place it in the oven and preheat it as well.  If you don’t have a baking stone, turn a baking sheet upside down and preheat it in the oven.

*STEP 8: 9 minutes: Place as many rounds as you can fit on your baking stone at a time in the oven (I put 3 at a time).  Bake each for 3-5 minutes, and then continue with the remaining rounds, cooking each for 3-5 minutes.

The second time I made them, I made sure they were very smooth and even before baking them and look how nice they puffed up:

(Updated 2/15/11)

Recipe Adapted from the Smitten Kitchen

Posted by  |  February 5, 2011 | Categories: Bread, Tutorial | 2 Comments

Tomato-Basil Soup

Sometimes I think that I missed a few key pieces of information in childhood.  One of them being the definition of a consonant –  I’m pretty sure I missed that day in first grade, and didn’t figure it out until much later.  And the other being that grilled cheese is enjoyed by many people with tomato soup.  One day when I was a little older,  I remember my mom ordering tomato soup and thinking how odd it was for anyone to enjoy a soup that was made entirely of pureed vegetables.  And then I was almost disgusted when  she told me that she used to have grilled cheese and tomato soup for dinner all the time as a kid.

Since my husband loves ALL kid foods (chicken fingers, macaroni, hot dogs…etc), he also loves grilled cheese and tomato soup.  I can’t say I’m a huge fan, but at least eating an entirely vegetable soup makes me feel a little better about eating a cheese sandwich.  I thought this soup would be a great alternative to Campbell’s and it made enough that I could easily freeze some for later (making it just as easy as opening a can next time)!  I used a food processor to blend the soup, but I think this recipe would be great to try a food mill with if you have one.

Make Ahead Tip: This soup is really easy but there are 2 steps that have to cook for 45 minutes each.  Therefore, if you roast the tomatoes the day before, all you really have to do to get this ready is throw everything into a pot, let it simmer for 45 minutes and then blend it in a food processor.  Also, like most soups it tastes better after it has been sitting for a while, so you could make the whole shebang ahead of time – easy peasy!

Tomato-Basil Soup

3 lbs Tomatoes

4 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper

2 cups chopped onion

6 cloves garlic, minced

Crushed red pepper (to taste)

1 28-oz can whole tomatoes, undrained

2 cups fresh basil

1/2 teaspoon thyme

3 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the tomatoes in half and scoop out the centers.  Place them in a bowl and add 3 Tablespoons olive oil, tossing to coat.  Then sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Cover a baking sheet with foil, place the tomatoes on the sheet and roast in the oven for 45 minutes.

In a dutch oven, over medium heat, sauté the onions, garlic & red pepper flakes with 1 Tablespoon olive oil  for 8 minutes or until the onions start to caramelize. Add the canned tomatoes, roasted tomatoes, basil, thyme, and chicken stock. Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered for 45 min.

Process small amounts of the soup in the food processor  until it seems very smooth. (Remember not to fill past that “liquid fill line”).  Serve hot or cold (or freeze for later).

Adapted from Annie’s Eats.

Posted by  |  February 3, 2011 | Categories: Main Dish, Soup | 3 Comments

Peanut Butter and Chocolate French Macarons

I’ve always been in love with things related to France – French language, French food, French wine and French cities.  When I started seeing French macarons around the blogging world, I knew I had to make them.  Luckily, we found out that we are going to have a SNOW DAY, so it seemed like the perfect time to try these rather complicated French delicacy.  After eating several of them, I can honestly say that these little treats are divine.

I really wasn’t sure what to expect because a no flour, egg white base  sounded a lot like meringue cookies to me, which I happen to dislike.  But these treats are crispy on the outside and almost like cotton candy on the inside. I even liked the plain cookie without the filling.

I learned pretty much everything I needed to know in this tutorial, which I found via Annie’s Eats. But I have a few comments.

  1. You really need to have a food scale to make these (which gave me a good excuse to use some gift cards to go buy one)
  2. The egg whites quickly go from soft peaks to stiff peaks (so don’t walk away from the mixer while you’re beating them …like I did)
  3. I found I liked a lot less filling then the original recipe called for, but if you think you’d like more filling, the original recipe called for 6 oz chocolate and 3/4 cup cream (and I had more than 1/2 of it left over)
  4. Also the original recipe called for blanched, unsalted peanuts, but I accidentally  bought roasted, salted and they worked fine.
  5. I used 2 silicone baking mats to bake these on (which my brother John introduced me to for my birthday). They are awesome for anything baked in the oven and I would definitely recommend buying one!

Peanut Macarons

55 grams slivered almonds

55 grams peanuts (I used roasted, salted)

200 grams powdered sugar

100 grams egg whites (aged at room temperature for 12-24 hours)

50 grams granulated sugar

Chopped peanuts for garnish

Weigh all ingredients. Combine almonds, peanuts and powdered sugar in a food processor and process until smooth.  In large bowl beat aged egg whites on medium-high until foamy.  Slowly add the granulated sugar to the eggs and beat on high until stiff peaks form.  Be careful not to overbeat. Then carefully fold in the almond/peanut/powdered sugar mixture until the mixture seems consistent throughout.

Line 2 baking sheets with silicone baking mats, (or parchment paper if you don’t have silicone mats). Spoon the batter into a pastry bag or Ziploc.  Cut the edge of the bag to leave an opening of about 1/2 inch. Pipe the batter into small rounds about 1-2 inches wide on the baking sheet.  Leave about 1 inch in-between cookies, although they generally do not spread. Now quickly sprinkle with chopped peanuts.  Then let the cookies sit for about an hour at room temperature.

Once a cookies have started to develop a hard shell, preheat the oven to 300 degrees.  Bake the cookies for 11-14 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool on pans.  Place in an airtight container until you want to fill them.

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Filling

4 oz semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

1/2 c. heavy cream

1 Tablespoon butter

1/2 c. peanut butter

Place the chocolate in a heat proof bowl. Heat heavy cream and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until it begins to simmer.  Pour over chocolate and then stir until the mixture becomes smooth. Let the ganache cool until easy to handle.  Transfer to a pastry bag fitted with a medium tip.

Add peanut butter to another pastry bag also fitted with a medium tip.

Match up cookies so that they match as best is possible in size. Pipe a layer of chocolate onto the flat side of the cookie and top with a dollop of peanut butter. Sandwich cookies together and push down lightly.  Store in an air tight container until ready to eat.  (But I’ll have to say – at the rate they disappear, you might not need to store them :-))

Recipe from Annie’s Eats

Posted by  |  February 2, 2011 | Categories: Cookie, Dessert | 1 Comment

Spinach and Ricotta Pizza

I am on a huge pizza kick lately!  Ever since I started making my own pizza dough, it seems like we have homemade pizza for dinner about once a week.  I love knowing exactly what goes into the pizza, and it’s really not much more work than ordering!!!  I’ll post a tutorial on making your own pizza dough soon, but for now substitute any pizza like dough or crust you’d like!

John even likes this pizza, despite the fact that it has a lot of vegetables!    The recipe for the sauce calls for fresh basil, which can be hard to find and really expensive.  Thanks to Monnette’s Market, I was able to buy a bunch of it for several recipes this week, right here in cold, wintery Toledo. A little hint with fresh basil is to roll up several leaves into a “cigar” shape, and then thinly slice them.  This is how they get the basil to look so fresh and not wilted in restaurants.   But if you can’t find fresh basil, substituting dried would probably be okay.  Also the sauce recipe makes enough for 2 pizzas – but it freezes well.  I usually make one pizza and freeze the other half of the sauce for pizza another week.

New York Style Pizza Sauce

1 (14.5 oz) can petite-cut tomatoes, undrained

1 (6 oz) can tomato paste

2 Tablespoons chopped fresh basil

2 teaspoons dried oregano

2 teaspoons sugar

1  1/2 Tablespoons olive oil

7  Tablespoons water

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir with a wisk.

Spinach and Ricotta Pizza

2 Tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 1/2 cups baby spinach leaves

1 teaspoon (about 2 cloves) minced garlic

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1/3 cup part-skim mozarella

2 Roma tomatos – sliced very thin

1/2 of the above recipe for New York Style Pizza Sauce

Pizza Dough

Olive Oil

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.  If you have a pizza stone (which is an awesome investment because it makes the pizza crisp on the bottom), preheat it as well in the oven.  Roll your choice of pizza dough into a circle or square. Lightly brush the outer crust with olive oil.  Evenly spread the pizza sauce over the pizza, leaving a thin border for the crust. Top with the Parmesan cheese, garlic, and spinach leaves.

Then sprinkle mozzarella over the spinach, and top with small spoonfuls of Ricotta.

Bake in the oven for 10-13 minutes or until the crust looks golden brown.  Carefully remove from oven and top immediately with sliced tomatos.

Slightly adapated from Cooking Light

Posted by  |  February 1, 2011 | Categories: Main Dish, Vegetarian | 6 Comments

Cannellini Bean Dip with Pita Chips

Growing up in with a Dad who was 100% Lebanese, our family had plenty of hummus. I’m pretty sure we started eating hummus before it was sold in a regular grocery store anywhere .  It was so plentiful, that I kind of got sick of it, and found there were many other Lebanese dips that I enjoyed much more. I think that is what inspired me to make this dip.

I had stopped by The Middle East Market on the way home from school, and forgot that they had a minimum $5 credit card purchase.  So I decided, why not buy an extra bag of pita bread and see what I can do with it.  I’m planning on making my own pita bread one of these days, but until then I will continue to buy mine from a specialty store.  It is about 7500 times better than the kind they sell at any regular grocery store.

So here’s the recipe.  Inspired by Giada‘s White Bean Dip.

Cannellini Bean Dip with Pita Chips

1 (15 oz) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

2 large cloves garlic

Juice of 1  fresh lemon

1/4 cup curly parsley leaves

1/4 cup olive oil

Salt & Pepper to Taste

– Puree all ingredients in a food processor until smooth.

Pita Chips

4 large pitas

1/4 cup olive oil

Sea Salt

– Brush the olive oil on the top and bottom of the pitas.  Sprinkle with salt.  Cute pitas into 8-10 small triangles and place on a baking sheet.  Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 7-8 minutes.

Posted by  |  January 31, 2011 | Categories: Appetizer | 1 Comment

Welcome!

I had bought a $15 App my brother told me about called, “Anti-Social”, which blocks almost all the sites that might prevent one from being productive.  I even programmed it to block all of my favorite cooking blogs, and I turned it on this morning so I could get a full day of studying in.  And what do I do instead?  Decide to start my own cooking blog! Today, I just did enough to get the site up and running, but I hope to be posting some culinary adventures in the coming week :-). Stay tuned.

Posted by  |  January 2, 2011 | Categories: Uncategorized | 1 Comment