Eurobread
Diana brings us some breads from around Europe
I love making bread, from a simple white loaf to a rich Sally Lunn. But making your own traditional bread recipes from Europe is a great adventure.
Here are three contrasting recipes from across the channel.
Greek Pita
Soft and tasty, serve warm or cold with anything you like from soups to salads. You will need a large flat frying pan or skillet.
Makes 8
Ingredients
320g strong white bread flour, keep about 50g extra flour for dusting if the dough is a little sticky and for rolling out
1.5 tsp salt
3.5 g fast action yeast, half a sachet
200ml warm water 2 tbsp olive oil
Method
Mix the flour and salt together in a mixing bowl and stir in the yeast.
Make a well in the core and add half the water and the oil. Mix with a spoon adding more water to make a soft dough that isn't too sticky. If it becomes sticky add a little more flour.
Use your hands to bring the dough together and knead on a lightly floured surface for 5 minutes.
Place back in the bowl and cover and leave to prove for 30-40 minutes.
The dough should be double its size, if not leave for 10 more mins.
Flatten the dough with your hand being quite vigorous. Divide into 8 equal pieces.
Roll each piece into an oval shape about 5 mm deep.
Heat a little oil in a flat pan over a medium heat until hot and cook the pitas one by one. Cook for 30 seconds each side until the pitas rise and bubbles form as they cook.
Have a plate or baking sheet ready to put the cooked pitas on. Cover with a clean dry tea towel as you cook the others.
If you don't wish to cook all the dough store in a closed food bag in the fridge or freeze.
These are best eaten fresh.
By jeffreyw (Mmm...pita bread Uploaded by Fæ) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons