Drop the store bought! Seriously, drop it and make it yourself. I think pita and hummus has been the unsung hero for my Lenten fast. As we are approaching closer to Greek Easter, I think it is time to bring this classic snack during and post fasting. Both of these are super simple to create. The pita takes about 1.5 hours to make but you will be rewarded with a light pillowy cloud of bread with a rich and creamy hummus.
Ingredients: Hummus
- 1 can of chickpeas (rinsed and drained)
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 teaspoon of cumin
- 2-3 tablespoons of water
- ~1/4 cup of lemon juice
- ~1/4 cup of tahini
- 2 cloves of garlic
Ingredients: Pita bread
- 1 cup of warm water
- 2 tsp active dry yeast
- ½ tsp sugar
- 2.5 to 3 cups all-purpose flour, divided (or 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour and 1 ½ cup whole wheat flour)
- 1 to 2 tsp kosher salt
- 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Method: Hummus
- Drain and rinsed the can of chickpeas thoroughly
- In a food processor or blender, place the chickpeas, a couple tablespoons of water and lemon juice, and garlic and process until the hummus are close to smooth.
- Add the tahini and cumin, along with salt and pepper and blend until it is smooth. Taste for salt and pepper.
- For garnishes, I like to sprinkle a generous serving of paprika and to serve immediately or stored in the fridge for later
Method: Pita Bread
- In a large bowl, combine 1 cup of lukewarm water, 2 tsp of active dry yeast, 1/2 tsp of sugar, and slowly pour in a 1/2 cup of flour. Mix it all to combine and make sure the that all the flour is combined. Let the bowl sit for 15 minutes for the yeast to create a sponge.
- In a KitchenAid or if you prefer going by hand, slowly add the salt, olive oil and flour. I tend to add about a 1/2 cup of flour at a time and alternate with olive oil so that you don\'t dry out the dough. You want the dough to remain hydrated. In a kitchen-aid this should take a couple minutes to create the dough. Additionally, I knead the dough for a couple minutes to make sure that it is a little moist. You don\'t want to dry out the dough. I have added a little extra water or olive oil in case.
- In a large oiled bowl, place the dough ball and cover it in plastic wrap. Let the dough sit to proof in a warm area for one hour or when it has doubled in size.
- Once it has doubled in size, carefully remove the dough onto a floured surface. Cut the dough into 8 pieces. Roll the pieces into small balls. Let them proof under a cloth for an additional 10 minutes to relax the gluten.
- With a rolling pin, roll out the pieces into a circle. Continue to repeat the process for each dough.
- On a hot oiled cast-iron skillet, place each pita for about 1-1.5 minutes on each side. You can tell when you need to flip when you see small bubbles forming. The other side will go a bit quicker. During this process, you will see the pita bread balloon.
- Once cooked, remove and serve immediately with hummus or for gyros.
Hummus and Pita are super simple and the best combination. The only thing is that the pita bread does take an hour and a half to make so be aware of that. However, the result is so worth it and always nice to have fresh pita for gyros or just as a snack for later. I hope you enjoy this. What other recipes would you like to see? As always, I am posting photos on Instagram.