Twenty five minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 500F with a baking stone. You won’t be using a broiler tray and shelf placement of the stone is not crucial. For one pita you will need: a plum sized piece of dough and flour for dusting.
Flour and cut off a small piece of dough from your bucket. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides rotating the ball a quarter turn as you go. Place the dough on a flour dusted pizza peel or wooden cutting board.
Using your hands and a rolling pin, roll the dough out into a round with a uniform thickness of ¼ inch throughout. This is crucial because if its too thick it may not puff. You will need to sprinkle the peel lightly with flour as you work, occasionally flipping the bread to prevent sticking to the rolling pin or board. Use a dough scraper to remove the round of dough from the peel if it sticks. Do not slash the pita or it will not puff. No rest/rise time is needed.
If you have a ventilation fan, turn it on now, some of the stray flour may smoke. Slide the loaf directly onto the hot stone (it may take a number of back and forth shakes to dislodge the pita). Bake for about 5-7 minutes until lightly browned and puffed. Repeat process 4-6 times or as many times as you like.
For the most authentic, soft crusted result, wrap in a clean cotton dish towel and set on a cooling rack when baking is complete. The pitas will deflate slightly as they cool, the space between the crusts will still be there but may need to be nudged apart with a fork.
Store in plastic air-tight bags to keep soft and moist.
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