Gluten-Free Pita Bread that took me by surprise

This recipe is one that found me, instead of me finding the recipe. This recipe just presented itself when I was making... pizza. Yes, pizza dough is very different from pita dough, in the non-Gluten-Free world. But in my world, which happens to be gluten-free because that is what keeps my son(s) heathy, this is the closest I've ever come to a gluten-free pita bread that actually puffs up and tastes like pita bread. 

I was making my favorite pizza dough, I'll post the recipe here again but you can find it on my blog index as well, rolled it out and punched out small circles out of the dough to  make mini-pizza's to go into our pizza oven. I always pre-bake them before we actually put toppings on them, so that it won't take too long to bake them in the pizza oven, and that's when my mini-pizza's turned into little pita bread. In the oven the dough puffed up and when I took one out and sliced it open, I found out I could stuff it, just like regular pita bread. My youngest, who isn't a fan of pizza, loved it immediately and so while we ate pizza's he at pita bread filled with peanut butter & chocolate sprinkles (my favorite too when I was pregnant with him, so maybe it's true that your kids learn to love certain foods while living in your tummy). I jumped for you, because the ready made gluten-free pita breads I had bought before just didn't cut it. Not by a long shot. But these? These are heavenly and found me by surprise. 

You can stuff them with anything you like, but Gijs recommends peanut butter & chocolate sprinkles. And so do I. ;-)

So, here's the recipe to the pizza dough (which isn't mine but comes from a fantastic cookbook called "recipes for gluten-free kids") and from now on, for lovely pita bread as well. It makes about 12-15 pita's depending on the diameter of the circle you us to punch out the discs of dough. I think the trick is in the amount of yeast you use, but don't pin me down on it. I'm no expert, I'm just a glutenfreemomma trying to make life better for her two boys and hoping to help others in the process. :-)  

Ingredients:

• 410 grams (3 cups) of glutenfree all purpose flour
• 14 grams of yeast (2 packets of 0.25 oz each)
• 2 teaspoons of xanthan gum
• 310 ml (1.25 cup) of warm water
• 60 ml (0.25 cup) of extra virgin olive oil
• 3 egg whites
• 1 tablespoon of honey
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 230 degrees centigrade (450 degrees Fahrenheit). Line baking sheets or pizza pans with baking paper/parchment paper. 
2. Mix flour blend, yeast, xanthan gum and salt in a large bowl. Whisk 1 cup of warm water, oil, egg whites, honey and vinegar in a bowl. Beat the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients with a mixer at low speed until combined. Add additional water by tablespoonfuls until batter is smooth and thick. Beat 5 more minutes on medium-high, scraping the bowl occasionally. If your dough becomes too sticky, add a little bit more rice flour or gluten free all purpose flour till it looks and feels more like regular dough. it will always be a bit more sticky, but you don't want it all sticking to your hands or your kitchen counter.
3. Dust your kitchen counter with gluten free flour and roll the dough out till it's about half a centimeter (a quarter of an inch) thick. Punch out the discs of dough.Put them on the baking sheets. 
4. Bake for 12-15 minutes till the crust is lightly browned and your pita's have puffed up. Be careful when slicing them, the air that comes from inside can cause serious burns, so let them cool for just a few minutes and be careful! 

Enjoy!!