Lebanese Pita Bread

I'm still working on my pita bread. This version included some of my sourdough starter.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 teaspoon active dry or instant yeast
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 2.5 cups (10.625 ounces) plus 1/2 teaspoon  All-Purpose Flour
  (or 6.625 ounces flour if use 8 ounces of sourdough starter)
• .75  teaspoon Kosher salt
• 7 ounces lukewarm water (or 3 ounces if use 8 ounces of sourdough)
• 1 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon  olive oil 

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl, mix the yeast, sugar, 1 teaspoon of the flour, and 1/4 cup of the lukewarm water. Mix thoroughly and set aside at room temperature to activate for about 5 to 10 minutes. 
2. Place the remaining flour (and 8 ounces sourdough starter if using) into a large mixing bowl and mix in the salt. 
3. Make a deep hole in the center of the flour and add 1 tablespoons of olive oil, the remaining water, and the yeast mixture. 
4. Mix everything with a rubber spatula or a dough hook,
5. Knead the dough for a few minutes (by hand by punching and rolling into it with your fists, then flipping the dough over and repeating the process.)
6. The dough will be moist - but not too sticky. If it’s too dry, add more lukewarm water by the teaspoon; if too wet, add a bit more flour by the teaspoon. Once the dough is soft and bounces back when you press a finger into it, it’s ready.
   (I needed to add more flour - maybe an ounce more.)
7. Pour the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil into the bottom of a large bowl, and roll the dough in the oil until it’s completely coated. 
8. Cover bowl, and let the dough rise until doubled in volume. Depending on the room temperature, this rising could take from 1 to 2 1/2 hours.
   (This took about an hour for me.)
9. Once your dough is nearly doubled, place with two baking sheets (or pizza stones) centered in the oven, and preheat the oven to 500°F.
   
10. Lightly flour a work surface and place the dough in the center, sprinkling a little flour on top as well. Knead the dough for a couple of turns to remove some air.
11. Using a sharp knife or dough cutter, cut the dough in half, then cut each half again to make four pieces.
12. Roll each dough piece into a ball. Let the dough balls on a lightly floured surface for 10 to 15 minutes to make them easier to roll. (Cover them as well.)
13. Stretch and pat each ball into a smooth, flat circle, making sure not to pull so hard as to create holes.
    (If you make holes, reform ball and start over. Patching the holes ruins the air pocketm(
14. Place the circle on the floured piece of parchment paper, and roll or pat dough 1/4” thick, about 8 1/2” wide. Trim the paper closer to the ball.
15. Repeat steps 12 - 14 with the remaining pieces of dough.
16. Slide two pitas onto the hot pizza stones (or baking sheets)  - I did one on each.
17. Bake for 5 to 7 minutes, until the dough puffs up and turns light golden brown. 
18. Remove from the oven and immediately transfer the breads to a rack; cover with a clean kitchen towel to retain the heat. Repeat with remaining pitas.

Carole's Notes:

This pita recipe version was tasty, but hard to split in the middle. I think it was because on at least 2 of then, I tore holes in the dough while trying to move them into the oven, and then I patched them. I've updated the recipe instructions to form the rounds on parchment paper.

This recipe is lightly adapted from http://blog.kingarthurflour.com/2017/07/28/khebez-arabi/