Ok, for all you out there that "Can't make bread", listen up! I can't make bread either. Atleast, not the kind that rises properly and actually LOOKS like a loaf of bread. (mine usually are more brick like) My woes are for another day. BUT, I was directed to a book that has been a life saver! Really. You know the days when you want a nice crusty piece of bread with that homemade soup or salad. Well, even if you can't make traditional bread, you can still satisfy that bread craving.
The book is : Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois.
The recipe I used is : The Master Recipe: Boule What I like about this recipe is that you mix it up it like 5 min., toss it into a bowl and leave it for 2 hrs. It rises. Really. Then punch it down, and put it into a bowl with a lid, and into the fridge. Now, you have ready made dough for the next 2 wks that you can pull pieces off of for what ever you want. Example: pizza dough, crusty rolls, pita pockets, cheesy/garlic bread.... It doesn't need a 2nd rise. It is ready to go straight from the fridge.
3 Cups lukewarm water
1 1/2 tbsp granulated yeast (2 packets)
1 1/2 tbsp kosher salt or other course salt ( I never use that much, maybe 1/2)
6 1/2 cups unsifted, unbleached, all purpose flour (I use the self rising flour)
1. Warm water to about 100 degrees. (pretty WARM to your hand)
2. Add yeast and salt to the water in your mixing bowl. Mix in the flour all at once. It says you don't need to knead it. You don't. But I give it a quick once over so it is all smooth and incorporated. Then place it in a greased bowl, cover and leave it be.
3. Once it has doubled, punch it down and use it, or store it in a container in the fridge for up to 2 wks.
To use it for the pita pockets you will take small amounts of dough and either press into a circle with your hands or use a rolling pin to flatten it to 1/8 of an inch. You don't want it paper thin or they won't balloon up when cooked.
4. You need a baking stone. Pre heat your oven too 500 degrees. That is not a typo. Once you have reached temp, place a couple of your flattened pita dough balls onto the stone, not touching each other.
5. Bake for 7 minutes.
***If you notice that they haven't puffed up, you probably rolled them too thin. Try again. Don't throw the flat ones away though...you just made flat bread!
My Chicken salad recipe:
Several hand fulls of pre-cooked shredded chicken
a couple spoon fulls of mayo
a couple spoon fulls of miracle whip
3 tbsp or so of spicy mustard
a dash of pickle juice
2 pickles worth of chopped pickle
Mix it all up. Fill your pitas. (the puffed up pitas, just gently cut in half with a serrated knife. The flatter ones can sometimes still be coaxed open by cutting in half and prying it open)
^^ TiP^^ When your mustard is almost gone, instead of adding a bit of water to the bottle to coax the rest out, add a bit of pickle juice instead. Shake it up and you have a great little addition to any salad or sandwich!
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