I was so glad I decided to take yesterday off from work. We slept in until around 8:30. Made some coffee, blogged, read blogs, relaxed. I had the laziest breakfast ever – a 100 calorie bagel with a schmear of butter, a cheese stick and a juicy nectarine:
I started the laundry, cleaned the kitchen and then we had to drop off one of our cars for service. I decided we try a new restaurant for lunch near my office.
Tony got a burger that was really juice and flavorful. However, his coleslaw had no flavor at all. I was eyeing the Reuben sandwich (or crack sandwich in my book!) when I spotted this on the appetizer menu:
![OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA](http://biz319.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/a-005.jpg)
Out came three tiny corned beef sammies on pretzel bread. These were really good! The corned beef was tender, but the best part was the mustard they brought to the table. How have I not heard of this mustard before?
![OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA](http://biz319.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/a-0071.jpg)
With a side of fries that Tony and I split. We brought almost 3/4 of them home and Hannah ended up eating the fries with the third slider I didn’t eat – she loved it too!
Last week I saw Beantown Baker make chicken gyros and I immediately put that on my list of things to make. She even had a recipe for making homemade pitas, and since I had the time, figured yesterday would be the day. Funny thing though, I am reading her recipe, and I read “mix oil and water and stir with a wooden spoon.” I didn’t realize that she meant to add the oil and water to the flour mixture and then mix with a wooden spoon. As I was mixing the water and oil I was like “what is the point of this??!!” Duh!
![OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA](http://biz319.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/a-015.jpg)
![OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA](http://biz319.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/a-012.jpg)
I did all of the kneading in my stand mixer. I let it run for 10 minutes. If you want my Whole Wheat Pita print out with calories, check it out here. You know you have the right consistency when nothing sticks to the bowl.
It has to rest for 90 minutes, so when Hannah got home from work we headed to our favorite thrift store and then to the grocery store. They had a whole display of clowns which was kinda creepy. Are you afraid of clowns?
I was so happy I finally remembered to bring my reusable grocery totes! We had a big freezer one too, so unloading the groceries was easy because we put all the fridge/freezer stuff in that bag.
By now it was time to punch down the dough. I pre-heated the oven to 400 degrees. I weighed my dough and divided by 8 and each ball should weigh 3.25 ounces. Once formed, let rest for 20 minutes before rolling out.
My MIL was nice enough to bring me her baking stone – it doesn’t fit in her oven anymore and mine broke a couple years ago. I heated the stone when I pre-heated the oven. While they are puffy when they first come out, the air falls out pretty quickly.
I baked them for 4 minutes. They were light, chewy and delicious!
While I was grilling the chicken gyros, I made twice baked potatoes on the side. My pita was so filling though, I never ate one!
One slight problem, my chicken was sticking to the grill! I managed to save them though 😀
![OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA](http://biz319.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/a-056.jpg)
Have you read about our 101 Days of Summer Challenger John? He is attempting to do 40 races before he turns 40. Stride Gum is sponsoring the event, and if he gets enough votes, he could win 10,000! Voting begins today at noon. John has already lost 105 since December 29, 2009 – keep up the great work John!
Guess what I am off to do . . . ride my bike outside! 😀 I am all set with my Road I.D.
Have a great Tuesday!
They look beautiful. I wonder why my pita dough is always sticky. I think I should try your recipe next time.
Wow! Never thought to make pitas! Great idea!
Enjoy your ride, the pitas look great!
Really? The only other game I’ve ever been to was a White Sox game! haha How ironic. (:
All the foodie pictures has got my stomach growliiiing! It all looks delicious!
And clowns definitely freak me out. haha
oh man! Clowns have always freaked me out. I wonder about people who find them to be cute and sweet. hahah.
Those mini corned beef sammies with the pretzel bread! I want one! I love pretzel bread. it’s so good and I can never make it right.
Oh my goodness, your pitas looked AMAZING! I just got a pizza stone this weekend and am SO excited to try it out. My boyfriend loves to make his own pitas and naan but we never had the stone before. This should be the key to perfection! Enjoy your bike ride!!
Clowns are totally creepy!
We have chicken gyros on our menu this week too after my disappointment with the gyro I got at the fair! Your homemade pitas look awesome!!!
what a fabulous day! love getting up early and enjoying the morning…..hope you had a good bike ride 🙂
Your pitas look perfect, and that meal? Scrumptious!!!
When you first wrote about having a flat tire, I was all confused, thinking how would that affect a spinner bike – doh! 🙂
That pita looks fabulous!
Have fun on your bike ride. I got mine in earlier and had my RoadID with me too…never know when you might need it. I had a crash last fall that convinced me that having it could potentially save my life.
Agreed on the clowns, in stores or even worse, in person!
I can’t find the calories on the pitas? I love them and am hoping they are point friendly.
Thanks for posting the link to the BeanTown Baker, I am adding that to my Google Reader!
Can you see it here? They are 210 calories each.
How about this link?
https://docs.google.com/document/edit?id=1S0GrzSYNYCpKu6HT7iPWSNW9R0qNZaEpSiIr-8VrCt0&hl=en
Thanks! You must have thought I was a dumb a@@, but I swear your post linked back to the original poster and not your Google doc!
Clowns scare me!!! YIKES! lol
I was going to pack my own lunch to take to the farmers market but they have a stand that sells chicken pita (not as tasty looking as yours!) so now I want to buy lunch today! lol The power of suggestion! Those pitas look so good- but Im not sure I have the patience to make them. lol Plus I do not have a stand mixer.
I need to make these pitas! I’ve never tried them before….maybe on a rainy day, with some extra time:)
yum! I was off yesterday too…but I just managed to make two loaves of bread and zuchinni muffins. I guess that’s something!
I’m not afraid of clowns I just think they’re creepy! Who actually LIKES them?! People are crazy if they do!
Glad you had a good day off! Lazy mornings are the best. In fact if I have to be somewhere (work/school) in the morning, I wake up extra early so I don’t have to do things right away. Hope you have a good Tuesday!
The pitas look delish although I’m sure some of my Greek friends would be falling over with you and your spinach “messing up” the gyro! Did you make your own tzatziki sauce too?
I HATE clowns. My husband thinks it’s hilarious.
OMg those gyros + twice baked potatoes look insanely good! I’ve always wanted to make my own pitas too – fabulous!
I’m very afraid of clowns. My mom once got me a shirt that said “Can’t Sleep. Clowns will eat me.”
I love the pita recipe! I’ve always wanted to make my own!
Clowns are creepy!!
Wow, I have always wanted to make my own pitas! Thanks for sharing that recipe. Your gyros look healthy and delicious 🙂
Reubens are like crack to me too 🙂 What’s the yogurty looking sauce you put in your gyro? It looks tasty!
It’s actually tzatziki sauce – a cucumber sauce. I used to make it until my store started selling it for $1.99 a container!