Pita bread stuffed with falafel

Pita bread

Ingredients:

Wheat flour      - 1 cup

Jowar atta        - 1 cup

Maida  - 1 cup

Salt      - 1 1/2  tsp

Sugar(or honey)            - 1 tbsp

Yeast   -2 tsps

Olive Oil or any other oil           - 2 tbsps

Warm water     - 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups

Method:

Mix the yeast with a little sugar and 1/2 cup water and keep it covered for about 10 minutes till it turns frothy.

Take the flours, salt and the remaining sugar in a large bowl. Make a small depression in the middle and pour yeast water in the depression.

Slowly add 1 cup of warm water, and stir with wooden spoon or rubber spatula until elastic.

Place the dough on a floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes till the dough is no longer sticky and is smooth and elastic.

Smear a large bowl with oil and place the dough in the bowl. Roll the ball of dough around in the bowl so that it has a light coat of oil on all sides. 

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp cloth or cling film and set aside to rise for about 45 minutes.

Once doubled, roll out in a rope, and pinch off 8-10 small pieces. Place these balls on a floured or nonstick surface. 

Cover with a cling film and keep it for 10 minutes. While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Be sure to preheat your baking sheet also.

Roll out each ball of dough with a rolling pin into circles. Each should be about 5-6 inches across and 1/4 inch thick. Bake them for about 3 minutes when they will puff up. If you want them to be crispy and brown you can bake them for an additional 3 to 5 minutes.

Falafel

Falafel is very popular in the Middle East as a fast food. 

Ingredients:

1 cup dried chickpeas (Bengal gram) soaked overnight

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 Green chilli cut fine

1 teaspoon coriander

1 teaspoon cumin

2 tablespoons flour

Salt

Pepper

Oil for frying

Method:

Pressure cook the soaked chickpeas with 2 cups water for 15 minutes. Cool and open the pressure cooker.

Drain and keep aside to cool. Run it in the mixi , add garlic, onion, coriander, cumin, salt and pepper (to taste) in medium bowl. Add flour.

Form the mixture into small balls, slightly flatten. Shallow fry them and drain

Salad for filling:

Shred carrot and cabbage, add salt, pepper, a little olive oil and sprikle some vinegar. Mix well.

The final preparation:

Cut the pita bread into half, then split it to accommodate the filling. Apply tomato ketchup on one inner side, slide in the falafel, the salad and sliced tomatoes. 

And enjoy the Middle Eastern food!

You can see an easier version here.