Directions: |
Directions:To make filling:
5 small or 3-4 large oranges (food processor: include peelings, all juice)
4 lb. coarsely chopped walnuts
1-1/2 lb. raisins
2 lb. brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. allspice
1-1/2 tsp. ground cloves
Stir together the spices and stir in to the oranges which were ground in food processor.
Add the brown sugar and stir. Add nuts and raisins and stir. Refrigerate 2-3 days. (Will keep even up to a week.) Stir once daily. Note also that filling can be frozen. If filling is a little too dry, sprinkle a little orange juice; if a little too wet or runny, add more brown sugar.
To make dough:
5 lb. bag flour (Robin Hood best)
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. allspice
2 oz. cake yeast or equivalent in packs of dry Fleischmann’s Rapid Rise yeast
Dissolved in
1 c. very warm water (120-130 degrees for yeast to work)
3 eggs
2 c. canola oil
2 c. melted butter
2 c. red cooking wine
Dissolve yeast in water. (I check temperature of water with thermometer to ensure it’s 120 degrees, and let yeast work, for about 5 minutes.)
Mix flour and salt and allspice. Add eggs to water with yeast and add to flour mixture. Mix liquids (oil, butter, wine). Combine all in flour mixture, knead. Dough will be stiff. (? How long to knead….does not need 20-25 minutes of kneading, think 5 minutes was plenty) Takes 1-1/2 to 2 hours for dough to raise. Cover with waxed paper or something
My notes: one envelope Rapid Rise dry yeast = one cake fresh yeast (0.6 oz.)
But full recipe requires family size (2 oz.) cake yeast, so would need 2 pkg. dry yeast (1.2 oz.) for making ½ recipe dough.
5 lb. flour halved is supposed to be ten cups…BUT measured it out of bag and it’s nine cups.
With the yeast, I forgot and used one cup water instead of ½ cup (making half recipe). Dough was pretty wet. Added 1/3 cup flour at a time. Ended up adding total of close to one cup additional flour; dough looked good then.
Was supposed to raise in 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Took 2-1/2 hours (had it in Rock Room, with heat from the woodburning stove).
Full batch makes sixteen large “rosettes.” This, according to my notes from 30 years back. So a half batch would then make eight large rosettes.
Extras needed in supplies:
Flour
Box of toothpicks
Aluminum foil
3 lb. honey needed for after baking
White sugar
To sprinkle on dough (mix these well to sprinkle on dough base):
¾ cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white granulated sugar
The two above ingredients are for full recipe (5 lb. flour)
Mine & Lois’ note says: “Most of the time we had to mix more, so we must sprinkle heavier, but has been very good.”
Also to sprinkle on dough: oil, allspice, and cinnamon
Punch dough down with hands before starting to roll and continue to punch down each time you begin a new section.
Measurements/Equivalents:
M.E.’s notes:
2 lb. brown sugar = 4-1/4 cups packed
2 lb. raisins = 5-1/3 cups
1 lb. nuts = 4 cups
My notes: one envelope Rapid Rise dry yeast = one cake fresh yeast (0.6 oz.)
But full recipe requires family size (2 oz.) cake yeast, so would need 2 pkg. dry yeast (1.2 oz.) for making ½ recipe dough.
5 lb. flour halved is supposed to be ten cups…BUT measured it out of bag and it’s nine cups.
1 c. butter = 2 sticks
My note from mine and Lois’ baking 30 years ago:
1/4 batch makes 9 smalls; ½ batch makes 18 smalls.
Note on oily dough:
The half batch of dough I made late December was oily. Cannot figure out why. Now though, in making up the half batch, I’d determined ½ bag 5 lb. flour to be 9 cups, rather than 10….
Anyway, so oily that I wiped it with paper towels to remove some oil. And did not put (sprinkle, instruction says) any oil at all on the footers or the portions used for filling.
Instructions: And this is for half recipe, which is what I intend to bake….
1. First take from dough the portions for the footers. For half batch, if baking the large, would get eight pitas. I’m going to do the smalls.
For eight large footers, measure out ¼ cup dough each.
For the smalls, with just one “roll-up,” use 1/3 cup dough, which is then divided in half to make two footers. I made 9 smalls and 2 short fat logs from first portion, and 9 smalls and a flower-type thing the same size from the second portion. Ran out of filling (because I’d eaten several cups of it), or could probably have made 12 from that second portion).
So….appears I could easily make 22 smalls.
2. Remainder of dough is divided in two portions. The dough for the second portion to be baked (including the footers) is left in dough bowl covered with heavy towel (or lid for the bowl) until ready to work with it.
NOTE THAT IF TWO PEOPLE WORKING, ONE IS ROLLING OUT LARGE SECTION OF DOUGH WHILE THE OTHER IS GETTING FOOTERS READY.
3. To prepare the footer: Roll footer on floured kitchen counter (I have to use my dining room table). Spread oil with fingers VERY LIGHTLY on dough, then sprinkle lightly with sugars mixture.
4. To prepare large section of dough: Working with one section of dough, roll out on a LARGE, flat, floured area, as thin as possible (so thin you can just about see through it).
It’s going to be a rectangular section. Think mine rolled out to about 24” long by maybe 18” wide.
Then oil VERY LIGHTLY and sprinkle lightly with the sugars mixture.
Then sprinkle fairly heavy the cinnamon on it, then the allspice (but not as much as of cinnamon).
5. Starting at the long edge, put filling (use a silverware teaspoon, not a soup spoon), about ½” back from edge, about two finger-widths high, to make a “roll-up.” (Just spread filling for one roll-up at a time.)
Cut along edge with pizza cutter.
Roll the filled dough over to seal.
6. Place this roll-up in center of a prepared (oiled and sugared) footer.
7. Trim edges of footer to maybe 1-1/2” and fold up over the roll-up.
Fasten with toothpicks, which are removed as soon as pitas are taken from oven.
Sprinkle white sugar medium heavy on pita before placing on baking sheet.
8. M.E.’s directions to me and Lois of 30 years ago state to prepare a batch of four (the large size) and let them set until a second batch of four is prepared. This lets the first batch set about ½ hour before putting in the oven, to let raise some before baking.
I hardly let mine set longer than to prepare a sheet of them before putting in the oven. It did not affect them.
9. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. If doing the large size, they would take 45 minutes to an hour.
Pitas are done when the bottom crust looks baked, so have to lift to check crust.
10. Remove from oven, place immediately on counter and pour honey, fairly heavy, over them. Honey is poured from center to just about edge of the footer. M.E.’s instructions to me and Lois 30 years ago says “warmed” honey. Don’t remember doing this at Barb’s, and I didn’t warm the honey when I baked them in 2012.
11. Let set overnight. The honey soaks in.
12. Wrap well (double wrap in aluminum foil), then put in freezer bags. Can be frozen for up to 12 months. When removed from freezer, M.E. says to let thaw partially and then dribble a little honey over the top (I’ve never added honey at this point), and to reheat in oven at 275 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes (have never done this either) and that it tastes very fresh.
Instructions for roll-ups when making large pitas:
After placing the first roll in center,
Then roll up mixture again from the base and cut and place on footer and reverse roll to unwind around center.
Continue with roll-ups until footer is as large as you want your cake to be.
Trim edge with pizza cutter and pull edges of footer up and tuck with toothpicks. Pull up a little higher than edge of cake.
Sprinkle top with plain white sugar and about 1 tsp. oil for small pitas and about 2 tsp. oil for large ones. Let raise about half an hour. When baking, check occasionally and add oil if they look dry.
NOW FOR M.E.’S INSTRUCTIONS BY PHONE 12-28-2012:
If you roll left to right, then make sure you do the same for the second roll-up; it has to be left to right also. MUST roll the same way.
When you unroll the second one, then you take it and unwind it around the first one. Remember, once you turn it, give it another turn, like a ¼ turn or a ½ turn.
As you take the dough and start to turn it, it’s just turned ½, then take and give it another ½ turn.
When you cut the footer to pull up (before putting in the toothpicks), needs to be more than big enough to pull up the side. If you only bring it to the top, as it raises, it shrinks. |
This recipe for Pita Piata is from