Ali Tila’s Pita Bread

In the mixing bowl of a stand mixer, combine the warm water, instant yeast and sugar. Stir with a whisk

until it’s combined. Let it stand until a thick raft forms on top, about 10-15 minutes.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg, olive oil and yogurt until well combined. Add this to the water/yeast

mixture.

Add flour, baking powder, and salt to the mixture and knead on low speed with the dough hook

attachment for 10 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl, releasing the dough

from the sides. Continue mixing it on low speed until the dough completely pulls away from the sides of

the bowl, about 5 more minutes. The dough should be smooth, soft and slightly sticky.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl releasing the dough. Cover it

and let it stand in a warm spot in the kitchen until it doubles in volume, about one hour.

Turn out the dough on a very lightly floured work surface. Gently deflate the dough by punching it down.

Scale it into 3 - 4 ounce portions. Round the portions into balls and space them two inches apart on a

sheet pan lightly dusted with flour. Cover it loosely with a towel or plastic wrap. Let it stand in a warm

spot for about 15-20 minutes or until the balls are puffy and tender when poked with a finger.

Roll the balls into 8 to 9-inch ovals. Lightly dust them with flour to prevent the rounds from sticking to

each other.

Preheat your grill to high and allow to preheat at least 10 minutes. This can also be cooked in a cast iron

skillet in a 500-degree oven. Lightly spray raw bread with oil and place them on the preheated grill. Once

the rounds brown and puff, turn them over, about 45 seconds. Continue cooking them for an additional

45 seconds. Stack them on top of each other to prevent the rounds from drying out.