Whole Wheat Pita Bread

Pitas in White DishWhen Kel and I moved to the boonies, one of the items I didn’t even think about missing was whole wheat pita bread.  But miss it I did.  In D.C., there were two Whole Foods within walking distance of my office and several good bakeries nearby, so getting whole wheat pitas was never a problem.  By contrast, the stores where I now shop offer bland, hard, refined pitas that have that unidentifiable commercial bread taste.  I wasn’t having any of that, so I went in search of recipes.

Pita bread – though one of the easiest breads to make (I now know) – was a mystery to me.  How on earth was I going to get that pocket in there?  Turns out the magic happens in the oven.  Without you even asking.  It’s very cool to watch the flat rounds of dough puff up.  The jumping off recipe for this came from Epicurious.  I upped the whole wheat flour, omitted the olive oil and added flaxseeds (cuz they look great) and dried thyme for that nice warm, summery flavor they impart.

Whole Wheat Pita Bread
Makes 8

1 (1/4-ounce) package active dry yeast (2 1/2 teaspoons)
1 tsp.  agave nectar
1 1/2 cups warm water (105–115°F)
2 cups bread flour or high-gluten flour, plus additional for kneading
1 cup whole-wheat flour
2 tbsp. flaxseeds, optional
1 tsp. dried thyme, optional
1 tsp. salt
Dough Starter
Stir together yeast, agave nectar, and 1/2 cup warm water in a large bowl, then let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. (If mixture doesn’t foam, discard and start over with new yeast.)
While yeast mixture does its thing, stir together flours in another bowl. Whisk 1/2 cup flour mixture into yeast mixture until smooth, then cover with plastic wrap and let stand in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled in bulk and bubbly, about 45 minutes.  Stir in salt, flaxseeds, thyme, remaining warm water, and remaining 2 1/2 cups flour mixture until dough forms.
Turning into Dough

Turn out dough onto a floured surface and knead, working in just enough additional flour to keep dough from sticking, until dough is smooth and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes. Form dough into a ball and put in an lightly oiled bowl, turning to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let dough rise in draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

Ball of Dough on Board

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.  Punch down dough and cut into 8 pieces. Form each piece into a ball. Flatten 1 ball, then roll out into a 6 1/2- to 7-inch round on floured surface with a rolling pin. Transfer round to one of the baking sheets.  Make 7 more rounds in the same manner, arranging them on baking sheets.  Loosely cover pitas with clean kitchen towels (not terry cloth) and let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.
Dough Rounds on Baking Sheets

Set oven rack in lower third of oven and remove other racks. Preheat oven to 500°F.

Transfer 4 pitas, one at a time, directly onto oven rack. Bake until just puffed and pale golden, about 2 minutes. Turn over with tongs and bake 1 minute more. Cool pitas on a wire rack 2 minutes, then stack and wrap loosely in a kitchen towel to keep pitas warm. Bake remaining 4 pitas in same manner.  Serve warm.  These freeze very well when wrapped in plastic wrap and sealed in freezer bags.
Pitas in White Bowl
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34 thoughts on “Whole Wheat Pita Bread

  1. tearoomdelights says:

    I was thinking about whole wheat pitta bread just yesterday. Yours look absolutely fantastic, and must have been a great source of joy when they puffed up and came out looking so professional. What did you have them with?

  2. An Unrefined Vegan says:

    We’ve already eaten this whole batch – let’s see, we stuffed them w/ tofu salad (recipe forthcoming), ate them with hummus and carrot dip, had them alongside some soup…guess it’s time to make another batch!

  3. elle says:

    :O they’re so fluffy!

  4. meizac says:

    The kids are going to love making these with me. Thank you…again.

    • An Unrefined Vegan says:

      Turn the oven light on and let them watch them rise in the oven. I’m 45 and I get a kick out of seeing the pitas puff up !

  5. keepinitkind says:

    I’m with you- nothing beats freshly made pita bread. These looks awesome! And so easy! Thank you for this. :-)

  6. Sweet Posy Dreams says:

    I have gotten quite lazy and haven’t made yeast bread in a long time. This looks like a great way to get back into bread making.

  7. Veggiewitch says:

    Where is the love button? WordPress needs one!
    Thank you for this beautiful recipe, my friend.
    Veggiewitch ♥

  8. The Vegan Kat says:

    These look so good! I’ve really been wanting to learn how to make pita bread. Between this and the recipe for naan that was posted on Bacon is Not an Herb a little while back, I’m feeling inspired to do some more bread baking!

  9. 40 Fit In The Mitt says:

    Amazing job, those look wonderful

  10. Gabby @ the veggie nook says:

    Woah you made pita bread? That is super cool :)

  11. rubbishqueen says:

    I bake a lot but have never made this. Always get the shop bought dry ones, these look delicious!!

  12. My Plant Based Family says:

    I’ve thought about attempting to make pita’s recently. This makes me really want to try. Thanks for the recipe. I’ll have to leave out the flax because my husband can’t have seeds.
    These look beautiful! Yay for fresh pita’s!

    • An Unrefined Vegan says:

      Totally don’t need the flaxseeds. I hope you try them! It’s tough to go back to store bought after eating them.

  13. Shira says:

    These look incredible! Store bought never sounded so unappealing…I am truly impressed by these…amazing!

  14. Rachel in Veganland says:

    Wow! What an inspiring recipe and post! I adore pita more than anything, especially dunked in some delicious homemade hummus! My favorite way to have homemade pita is via the grill!

    • An Unrefined Vegan says:

      Oooh – that sounds yummy! I have a tiny little hibachi (sp??) grill, but I bet it would do the job. Sounds like such a good, summery thing to do.

  15. toxicvegan says:

    Oh wow these look amazing! Can’t wait to try – thank you :-)

  16. Richgail Enriquez says:

    Homemade beats store bought hands down, plus where you live seems like paradise. Those nature photos you took were breathtaking.

  17. meizac says:

    So good I reblogged it: http://meizac.wordpress.com/2012/04/03/homemade-pita-bread-success/

  18. bar says:

    Made it today, and it was a hit! I love your recipes girlfriend! I replaced the flax seed and thyme with a touch of dried basil and oregano (because I didn’t have any thyme or flax seed). I made a bruschetta topping to go on it.

    • An Unrefined Vegan says:

      You made ‘em?! Awesome!! Bruschetta topping sounds perrrrrfect!

      • bar says:

        Yeah, super easy and super yummy. I’m making more today (my family already ate everything I made yesterday). I bought flaxseed and thyme last night, so I’m going to try that this time. :)

      • An Unrefined Vegan says:

        Made my day! Thanks, girl!

  19. [...] Whole Wheat Pita Breads lettuce, tomato, sprouts, avocado…the [...]

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