Dark Coconut Pitta Breads (Gluten Free)

This morning I dropped Fin at school and cycled back home against a hard wind, watching cars effortlessly pass as I struggled treacle tyred, up the hill back home. At the top of the hill I saw a bank of dark cloud drifting towards town and had just locked up and set the kettle on the hob when a drench of rain poured out of the sky, hitting the kitchen window like a handful of gravel. I had no patients to see and the shopping I had intended to do, well that could just wait. This was baking weather.

I went to the freezer and got out my new baby, coconut flour. I had been planning to try a coconut pitta with some dark treacly teff and because I knew I was going to be in the house, I thought I would double rise this dough, allowing the yeast to develop a richer flavour. This seems to work best with fresh yeast - fast acting yeast tends to create too much of a fermented gassy flavour if you double rise it with banana in the mix - I guess it's the fruit sugars?

The result was delicious! Not that pretty, as the dough had a rough texture to it, but the crust was chewy and crisp around the edges and the crumb was large and moist with little flecks of coconut apparent when the pitta was split. Teff has a slightly sourdough flavour to it when you mix it with yeast and here, the pudding flavours of coconut and banana are moderated by the depth and slight sourness of teff. If you can't find teff, try amaranth flour (rajagro flour in Indian food shops) which has a similar darkness to it.

These would make a fantastic banana pocket or a PB&J treat mid afternoon or you could stuff them full of leaves and pop a couple of fresh falafels and a nice dollop of tahini sauce inside. I like mine toasted, split and spread with butter and cashew nut butter (I know both are not necessary, but they are good!). I wonder how you will enjoy yours?

Dark Coconut Pitta Breads (makes 8)

1 small ripe fairtrade banana (3oz)
2tsp fresh yeast
150ml warm water (or 125ml warm water and 25ml live yogurt or whey for option 1)
4oz coconut flour
4oz dark teff flour
2oz tapioca flour
2oz millet flour (or brown rice flour)
2tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp sea salt
1 large free range egg
50ml olive oil or melted coconut oil

You can start this recipe 12-24 hours before you plan to make the breads by following option one below. This extra time allows the anti nutrients and enzyme inhibitors naturally present in grains and nuts to be partially removed from the mixture and gives a better rise and fluffier bread! The process renders it much easier to digest and more sustaining and nutritious.

Option one (24 hours before) Put all the flours, salt and warm water mixed with yogurt/whey in a large mixing bowl and put in a warmish place for 12-24 hours.

When you are ready to bake, mash the banana and add it to the bowl, crumble in the yeast, add xanthan gum, beat well and set aside for an hour. Then skip straight to stage 2.

Option two (the quicker method) If your flours are cold, or straight out of the freezer, turn on the oven for 10 minutes, then turn it off and put the weighed flours into it in a mixing bowl.

While the flours are warming mash the banana and mix it with the luke warm water and fresh yeast. Put into a warm place for 15 minutes to froth up.

When the flours are nice and warm add the xanthan gum and salt and whisk to combine all the flours together. Whisk in the yeast mixture until smooth and set aside in a warm place for an hour to rise.

Stage 2: After about an hour, but not much longer than that, beat in the olive oil and egg. Grease some baking trays with unsalted butter or olive oil.

Stage 3: Flour your work surface well. Pinch off large egg sized lumps of dough and roll them around in the flour to coat before rolling flat with a rolling pin. Make sure there is enough flour underneath so they don't stick; maybe turn over once whilst rolling to prevent sticking too. Slide your hand in under one side of the pitta and ease your free hand under the other side. Carry the pitta gently to your greased tray and lay it down like a sleeping baby.

You can also just flatten the dough between floured palms into a rough oval and pat it into shape on the tray.

Repeat with the rest of the mixture and cover your trays lightly with a cloth or some cling film before putting them up to rise in a warm place for about an hour to an hour and a half.

Stage 4: Preheat the oven about 20 minutes before the hour is up and place a shallow ovenproof tray of water in the bottom.

When the oven is up to temperature, sprinkle the pittas with water and bake for 8-10 minutes until golden and hopefully puffed up. Don't worry if they don't puff - you will still be able to split them easily. Repeat the process with any pittas that didn't fit in the oven first time. Cool on a rack and freeze any that you don't eat that day - defrost by grilling straight from frozen.