Xanthan Gum Free Whole Wheat Pita Bread

Total time1 hr 36 min

Prep time20 min

Cook time16 min

Warm, pillowy, and packed with nutty whole wheat flavor, these homemade pita breads are the kind of thing that makes you wonder why you ever bought the packaged version. The ingredient list is refreshingly short — just flour, yeast, honey, olive oil, salt, and water — so there's no guesswork about hidden additives or stabilizers that often sneak into store-bought flatbreads. That matters a lot when you're avoiding xanthan gum, which turns up in plenty of commercial breads and gluten-free baking blends as a texture booster. Here, the gluten developed through kneading does all the structural work naturally, giving you a dough that holds together beautifully without any gums at all. The real magic happens in a screaming-hot oven: that preheated baking sheet creates an instant burst of heat from below, causing each round to balloon up into a perfect pocket right before your eyes. Wrapping the finished pitas in a kitchen towel traps steam and keeps them soft and foldable — ideal for stuffing, dipping, or tearing straight from the stack.

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Ingredients

8 servings

1 cup warm water (about 110°f / 43°c)
2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast (1 standard packet)
Fleischmann's Active Dry Yeast Original Signature SELECT Active Dry Yeast - 3-0.25 Oz Food Club Active Dry Yeast, Gluten Free Kroger Active Dry Yeast Fleischmann's - ACTIVE DRY YEAST 3PK
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1 tsp honey
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 tsp fine sea salt
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus more for the bowl

Instructions

1
Combine the warm water, yeast, and honey in a large mixing bowl and stir briefly. Let stand for 5–8 minutes, until the surface is foamy and the mixture smells yeasty.
2
Add the whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, salt, and 2 tbsp olive oil to the yeast mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms, then turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 6–8 minutes, until the dough is smooth, slightly tacky, and springs back slowly when poked.

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