Homemade Olive Pita Bread

Estimated reading time: 8 minutes

Making homemade olive pita bread is easy, and it’s easy on the grocery budget.

If you don’t like olives in pita bread, leave them out or replace them with a different ingredient or spice.

How To Make Homemade Pita Bread
How To Make Homemade Pita Bread

Homemade Olive Pita Bread vs. Store Bought Pita Bread

You can buy fairly inexpensive pita bread, but NOTHING beats homemade olive pita bread straight from the oven.

There’s no comparison to store-bought vs making homemade bread of any description.

We’ve been buying pita bread to get away from traditional loaves of bread, and it’s much more versatile for us as a couple.

Although we usually buy it, we wanted to try and make homemade pita bread to see if it was worth all the hoopla in the kitchen.

It was worth every penny and the time and effort to make it.

This will now be a regular recipe in our home, although I may modify the flour for my wife, who would want a whole wheat pita.

Switch up the ingredients by adding various olives, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, garlic, ginger, chives, and parsley to your bread.

You can also add any spices you like to this recipe so you enjoy it the way you want it.

Types Of Flour For Pita Bread

I used white all-purpose flour, although you don’t have to, as there are other options, such as whole wheat flour.

If you can’t have white bread, you can make whole wheat pita bread by substituting the white flour.

However, you’ll need to add a bit more liquid.

The other option is a gluten-free pita bread recipe, which is great for those on a GF diet.

Homemade Olive Pita Pocket

I’ll admit that I thought there was no way this bread would have a pocket.

I cut the pita bread in half and amazed myself when the pita spits down the center.

Now, I had a pita pocket to fill with my favorite meats, cheeses, and vegetables.

pita bread fresh

When guests come over, make some healthy appetizers using pita bread to lighten the load for snacks.

We make some of our creamy hummus and the easiest pita chip recipe.

Cutting the pita bread into triangles, baking 350 degrees, and flipping them until crispy..

Sometimes, we add a bit of spice on top while they are baking for even more flavors. 

There are many pita bread fillings, but you can stuff one with whatever you like.

We’ve made a pita sandwich with tuna salad, egg salad, veggies, meat, and cheese.

Our Greek friends like to dip pita bread in a tzatziki dip, which is a yogurt-based dip, but it is also a big part of their culture.

In the fast food and food truck industry, you will find pita bread to wrap gyros, falafel, kabobs, and souvlaki.

One other recipe we make with pita bread is pizza, which is dead easy to make, and you don’t get doughy crust like you would with a traditional pizza recipe.

I’ve even had toasted pita bread with cream cheese and fresh homemade keto chia seed strawberry jam. To die for!

Where Can I Buy Greek Pita?

You can now find pita all over North America, and for most, it is a staple in their home and replaces a traditional loaf of bread.

We typically can buy Middle Eastern Lebanese pita bread, or you may find a Greek Pita from Food Basics for around $1.00 for a pack of six.

I find both have different textures; one is chewy, and the other is soft, like a flatbread.

They are not nearly as tasty, and the pita freshness and aroma you get making homemade pita bread, which you can’t buy in a bag.

Paying $1.00 for a package of pita is not a bad price, but nothing beats homemade.

The easy part was making the dough a somewhat round pita bread.

However, the tedious part was cooking the pita one at a time on my hot pizza stone in the oven.

I’m sure there is some fancy pita bread pan on the market, but I will use our Pampered Chef Pizza Stone, which Mrs. CBB purchased over ten years ago.

We dream of having an outdoor bread oven where we can bake pizza, bread, and whatever else all at once and have it cooked in minutes.

Is Pita A Healthy Bread?

Homemade Olive Pita Bread

Mrs. CBB is on a Low GI (Glycemic Index) diet, and her dietician has given her a list of foods to choose from.

Choosing 100% whole grains will be your safest bet, with higher fiber and other nutrients than refined white flour, as I use today.

Eating foods in moderation is a more innovative way unless you have dietary restrictions or are watching exactly what is going into your diet.

Although pita is low in fat and calories, it’s higher in carbs depending on the brand and what’s stuffed inside.

Store Bought Pita Bread Nutrition

Store Bougth Pita Bread

The kind we buy is a Lebanese Style White Pita Bread called BY BLO, and it says it’s low in fat and cholesterol-free.

Sodium per pita is 240 mg, providing 35 grams of carbohydrates, 1g of fiber, 7 grams of protein, and 15% iron.

The serving size is one pita with 180 calories, 1 gram of fat, and 0% saturated or trans fats.

There are not many ingredients in pita bread for this particular recipe.

I turned to my handy Australian Woman’s Weekly Bread and Scones cookbook.

In the cookbook, I found a fresh pita bread recipe that I adapted to my liking by adding olives and different measurements.

When I was ready to bake the bread, I heated the oven to 350 degrees and put my stone in to get very hot before I put each pita in the oven.

I watched each pita as it cooked and flipped it when the tops got brown because they can burn quickly.

Don’t overcook them as they cook fast at 5 minutes on each side, although everyone’s oven temperature may differ.

You cannot leave your oven during the cooking process.

You can find the full printable version of this recipe below.

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons of dry yeast 7g
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 1/4 cups of warm milk
  • 4 1/4 cups of plain white flour
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/2 cup plain yogurt
  • 1/4 cup of water
  • 1 egg lightly beaten
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups of pitted olives
Rolling the pita bread

Instructions

  • Combine your yeast, sugar, and milk in a bowl and whisk it until the yeast is dissolved.
  • Cover with cling wrap or a towel and let stand for about 10-15 minutes or until you see the yeast activated and frothy with bubbles.
  • In another bowl, combine your yogurt, egg, water, and oil.
  • Add your flour and salt into a large bowl, then add the yeast mixture, the yogurt mixture, and olives, then mix until you get a soft textured dough.
  • Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes until soft and elastic.
  • Put the dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let stand in a warm place for about 1 hour or until it has doubled.
  • Once doubled in size, turn onto a floured surface and knead the dough again until it is smooth.
  • Divide your dough into eight equal parts.
  • Knead each portion into a ball of dough and then cover and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size 25-30 minutes.
Shaping The Pita Bread Homemade
  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees as you want it very hot, and place your pita stone or pizza stone inside to heat up.
  • Roll each ball into a circle about 25 cm round but don’t worry if they aren’t perfect, look at mine, and they turned out great.
Olive Pita Bread on Pita Stone
  • Place one pita on the stone and put it back in the oven for about 5 minutes, then flip to brown the other side.
  • Never walk away from your oven, or you risk burning or overcooking the pita.

Stuff Your Pita And Love Your Sandwich

Enjoy, cover with a tea towel in a baking pan, and stuff your Olive Pita Bread with whatever you’d like.

Store your bread in the bread box for up to a week, or you can freeze it for up to six months.

You can find all of my delicious recipes at The Free Recipe Depot

Yield: 8

How To Make Pita Bread

How To Make Homemade Pita Bread

Pita bread is cheap to buy, but it’s even better to make. The crispy outside is chewy, with a soft bread texture in the middle. Keep this recipe plain, or add other spices.

Prep Time 1 hour 55 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 25 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons of dry yeast 7g
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 1/4 cups of warm milk
  • 4 1/4 cups of plain white flour
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/2 cup plain yogurt
  • 1/4 cup of water
  • 1 egg lightly beaten
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups of pitted olives

Instructions

  1. Combine your yeast, sugar, and milk in a bowl and whisk it until the yeast is dissolved.
  2. Cover with cling wrap or a towel and let stand for about 10-15 minutes or until you see the yeast activated and frothy with bubbles.
  3. In another bowl, combine your yogurt, egg, water, and oil
  4. Add your flour and salt into a large bowl, add the yeast mixture, yogurt mixture, and olives, then mix until you get a soft textured dough.
  5. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes until soft and elastic.
  6. Put the dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let stand in a warm place for about 1 hour or until it has doubled.
  7. Once doubled in size, turn onto a floured surface and knead the dough again until it is smooth.
  8. Divide your dough into eight equal parts.
  9. Knead each portion into a ball of dough, then cover and let stand in a warm place until doubled in size 25-30 minutes
  10. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees as you want it very hot, and place your pita stone or pizza stone inside to heat up
  11. Roll each ball into a circle about 25 cm round, but don’t worry if they aren’t perfect; look at mine, and they turned out great.
  12. Place one pita on the stone and put it back in the oven for about 5 minutes, then flip to brown the other side.
  13. Please do not walk away from your oven, or you risk burning the pita or overcooking them.

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15 Comments

  1. Interesting that you make your pitas in the oven Mr. CBB. I make mine on a seasoned cast iron crepe pan (low edges = easy flipping) heated screaming hot on the stove top. They cook very quickly and puff up wonderfully from that sudden shot of dry, direct heat.

    1. I have a couple of cast iron fry pans, and a gas stove…think it would work on the stove top with the fry pan????? Any thoughts on that????

    1. I try.. haha.. check out Pauline’s version of this recipe she made yesterday and posted on my Facebook wall.. she used green olives which I will try next. Next week crock-pot lasagna and then I’ll be whipping up this amazing zebra cake that I just found today on pinterest!

      1. Sure a cast iron frying pan would work. Cook on the bottom of the pan rather than inside it so you don’t have an issue with the sides getting in the way as you work. You might try heating it in the oven to 500F or so and then inverting it over a gas flame to keep it hot.

    1. It’s awesome… let me know how you like it Laurie! Pauline made it yesterday and posted her photos on my Facebook wall, go check them out if you have a moment. I love when fans make my recipes.

  2. Mr. CBB
    You literally post the most fabulous recipes – I am going to try this one for sure! And perfectly paired with hummus. What a beautiful idea – poetry in oven-form, my friend. Thanks for sharing this one!

    1. Thanks! I make olive bread and flat bread so I thought ah what the heck I’ll make an olive pita bread. All we ever see is plain or whole wheat pita so why not jazz it up! It’s awesome!! Cheers mate

  3. Other than the olives, these look really good!!! I had a thought… For those of us that do not have a pizza stone, do you think a cast iron fry pan would work?? Would you oil it first or just fire the dough onto the pan? I don’t have the pizza stone but I have 2 cast iron fry pans, a big one and a really big one……

    1. Sure why not that would work fine, you could give it a light coat of oil, that would work!! You can take the olives out, add something else you like. There’s no reason that we have to eat plain boring pitas… this pita is amazing. I might even start my own Pita business now haha

  4. thank you for sharing! do you cook them one by one because your oven is small? I am trying right now, with green olives stuffed with bell peppers. Don’t want to mess up, last time I cooked the flatbreads too high so they were brown outside but uncooked inside… cheers!

    1. No I cook them one by one because my stone is small but the oven is standard size from what I can tell in Canada. If you find the temp it too high lower it.. every oven is different it’s sometimes trial and error. When I bake though I stick to 350… it seems to be the one number on the dial that makes magic happen. Let me know how it goes… i love these pitas.. you should see the olive bread I made this week.. well i put a pic in my fri or sat post.. it was HUGE… I thought it was going to run away on me when it was proofing lol.

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