Sunday, March 30, 2008

Pocket Bread and Hummus


One of my favorite appetizers at California Pizza Kitchen is their Pita Bread and Hummus. Pita (also called and more commonly known as pitta or pita bread and pronounced "pitta" in Greek[1]) is an often round, brown, wheat flatbread made with yeast.Hummus (also variously spelled hamos, houmous, hommos, hommus, hummos, hummous or humus) is a dip or spread which in modern recipes is made from blended chickpeas, sesame tahini, lemon juice and garlic. Hummus has been a dietary staple in various local forms throughout the Middle Eastern world for thousands of years.[1] The dish is served in a variety of cultures.


Wrap in cotton kitchen towels after baking and your pita will deflate as it cools. I made family style pita's....meaning they were pizza size since we were cutting them into wedges for dipping into humus instead of filling the pocket like a sandwhich.
PITA is also the acronym for PAIN IN THE ASS
example: "Wow, that girl Sandy is a real pita".


Yes, that is my thumb in the picture. I work on a tight budget here....I don't have any oompa loompas to hold open my pita's while I take a shot. Cut me some slack, this isn't Wonka World people....this is real life and thumbs sometimes get in the way.


Tahini is a paste of ground sesame seeds used in cooking.


I really love this recipe because it uses cannellini beans instead of chickpeas. Cannellini's are known as the white kidney bean. They are very popular in Italy, especially in Tuscany and also in the Swanson house.



End Result......Hummus topped w/roasted red peppers w/Pita dippers.

Last but not least........I MADE FRICKIN PITA BREAD. Who the hell makes pita bread???? ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

5 comments:

Lora said...

MOST IMPRESSED!!!!! Did you just cut the pocket? Now that would take a steady hand! I will not tell you that I don't like hummus either. I seem to be VERY narrow minded when it comes to my tastes. Never thought I was-OH NOW I AM DEPRESSED! And then there's the thing about not trusting me-OH WELL---I will repeat-I AM MOST IMPRESSED WITH YOUR CULINARY TALENTS!

Obsessive Foodie or Food Addict....You Decide said...

Lora~no I didn't cut the pocket. The baking creates the pocket and then you wrap them in towels to cool and they deflate and when you cut them in half....voila....the pocket is there. I have to say I was quite impressed w/myself. I was a little leary that I would not be able to get them to turn out. It is a recipe from the book Artisan Bread in 5 minutes a day.

k said...

That is awesome!! I want to make pita bread...on a scale of 1-10, how difficult was that? I make my own hummus, but I've never tried to make a pita. I have fallen lately for a flax style pita found at Wal-mart. Softer, and lower calorie and tastes better than any storebought pita I have found.

I am sad that the Oompa Loompa don't show up to help you with photography. It's tough these days to find any kind of good labor without Johnny Depp around. (I would come and be the thumb, if you have Johnny...by the way.)

Obsessive Foodie or Food Addict....You Decide said...

K~The pita is a breeze. I will post the recipe on www.recipesschmecipes.blogspot.com

you must be young also to reference the willy wonka w/johnny depp hahaha. I was referencing the one w/Gene Wilder.

k said...

I'm not that young! Gene Wilder was definitely my first. I just love Depp! The original is hard to beat though. Thanks for the recipe!