Nothing beats the taste of warm, fluffy pita bread straight out of the oven. And when it's made with a sourdough starter, it's even better!

I spent the weekend trying out ambassador Hayley's recipe and I'm thrilled with the results. These pitas have the perfect balance of tangy sourdough flavor and soft, chewy texture. They're perfect for dipping in hummus, stuffing with falafel, salad, or using as a base for homemade pizza.

PREP:  10m
COOK:  3-5m each
NOTES:  This recipe makes 8 regular size pita pockets or 10 smaller sized pockets. 
TIP:  Rolling the dough out too thin, and cooking it for too long will cause the dough to become crunchy like a cracker in the most thin spots.
RECIPE CREDIT:  Hayley Brazeau

PITA BREAD DOUGH

• 400g bread flour / strong flour
• 200g water
• 100g active starter
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 1 - 2 tbsp honey
• 3-5g salt

PROCEDURE:

1. Add all the ingredients to your mixer and mix low/medium about 10 min with the dough hook attachment.
2. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with your reusable bowl cover and rest at room temp 4-6 hours.
3. Tip out dough onto well floured surface and divide into even balls. 8 -10. Cover and rest 30 min - 1hr.
4. While resting, preheat  your oven with a cast iron pan inside,  at 500°.
5. Roll out pitas to 6 inch disks.  Thickness is important so that they puff - aim for approximately 1/4" thick.  If they are too thin, the dough will overcook and become crispy like a cracker. One at a time, pop onto the cast iron skillet and bake.  Puffing should start to occur around the 3 minute mark.  TIP:  Let the pan come back up to temp each time to make sure it stays super hot. 
6. Cook the first side 3 or 4 minutes, allowing it to mostly - fully puff before flipping over and cooking the second side around 1 minute.   It's important to note that the lighter the color on the dough the softer and chewier it will be.  A darker colour pita will be a bit more tough and potentially crunchy.