Restaurant Review: Yank Sing, San Francisco, CA

Yank Sing, 40 Steven St

San Francisco is one of my absolute favorite cites to eat, second only to New Orleans. And when I'm in San Francisco and I'm looking for really good dim sum, I head for one place: Yank Sing (either at 49 Steven St or in the Rincon Center, 101 Spear St). Yank Sing was the first place where I experienced dim sum, a Chinese cuisine involving small, bite-sized foods served in steamer baskets or on little plates. 

Dim Sum carts at Yank Sing

Typical dim sum dishes are steamed buns and dumplings, fried puffs, roasted meats, steamed vegetables, and more, and the food at Yank Sing is exceptional and absolutely first-rate. At Yank Sing (as with other dim sum restaurants), servers come around with carts filled with steamer baskets and plates, and show you what they have to offer. And you get to know the carts and look for the dishes you want to sample a second time. More than once, I've waited for "that woman with the seafood puffs" or "the sesame balls cart." That's really the only drawback with Yank Sing - you have to wait for the cart that has the food you want. However, if you really want something, you can ask whatever server's closest to send the cart you want over to you.

But beware - it's far too easy to take things off the cart and keep looking for more, and before you know it, you've spent $65 on lunch for two (yeah, been there, done that). Dim sum, and Yank Sing in particular, can be quite affordable, you just have to keep an eye on what you're doing and exercise some restraint.

Sesame balls

Perhaps my favorite dim sum dish is the sesame balls, which are these delightful pastries, rolled in sesame seeds, with a little red bean paste filling. I've been known to stop by Yank Sing on the way to the San Francisco airport, just to pick up an order of these on my way out of town. They're totally bad for you, I'm sure. When you eat them, there's always oil residue left on your hands. So I'm 99% sure they're not a healthy treat. But darned if they aren't just super-tasty. I simply can't resist.

I'm always looking forward to my next visit to San Francisco, and Yank Sing is just one of the many reasons why.

My Yummiest Yogurt Snack Recipe

Lately, as a part of my new health initiative, I've been hunting for some mega-healthy snacks. I'm a snacker. I can't pretend otherwise. And I figure if I'm going to have snacks (and I am), it's good to have healthy snacks, right? But having healthy snacks is something I tend to struggle with. I'm a bit of a carbaholic and my snacks always tend toward the carbtastic, which doesn't quite fit in with my new philosophy. So I went on a hunt for some new options.

I was reading through You: On A Diet and came across a recipe for a yogurt snack that sounded kind of tasty. Now, I like yogurt okay, but it's not at the top of my list of favorite foods, especially not plain yogurt. Plain yogurt has kind of a sour taste to it that I've never enjoyed. But since Roizen and Oz included agave nectar in the recipe, I decided to try the recipe from the book, with a few minor amendments of my own.

Yummy yogurt

Ingredients:
Plain, low-fat probiotic yogurt
Agave nectar
Dried cranberries (which the dried fruit industry insists on calling "craisins" these days)
Kashi Whole Wheat Crunch cereal

I put 6 ounces of yogurt into a bowl and stirred in a tablespoon of agave nectar. You can add more nectar as needed, depending on the level of sweetness you want. Agave nectar is calorie-rich, but is a natural, low-glycemic index sweetener that won't cause insulin spikes. So once I got the taste of the yogurt right, I tossed a few cranberries and some Kashi cereal on top and there's your yum.

The Kashi Crunch cereal is also a great snack when eaten dry (though I prefer dry multi-grain Cheerios), but the crunch is a bit too crunchy to be easily consumed. Adding it to the yogurt, however, allows the Kashi to get a bit of moisture into it so it still brings a nice crunch, without bringing potential danger to your dental work. I've enjoyed this as a snack, as a part of breakfast (as seen in the photo), and even as a dessert. It's multi-functional!

Follow Your T-shirt

Have you ever wished you knew exactly where your t-shirt came from? Here's the thing: we live a pretty disposable lifestyle. You go to Gap, buy a t-shirt, wear it until it's worn out or stained and toss it. Or we buy a pair of jeans, wear them till they develop a hole, and toss them. No thought of repurposing or fixing...we just...throw them away. That is, unless we're civic-minded, and then we donate. Still, it's all very disposable, isn't it?

In The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy, an economist follows one t-shirt, from the creation of the raw materials to the production of the t-shirt. He talks of the people involved in the creation of his shirt and in doing so, somehow the t-shirt becomes more...real, more important. Less...disposable.

Here's the thing - you can make loads of stuff out of what you already have. When you feel the urge to go shopping for something new, whether it's clothes or home furnishings, start with what you already have. Look around. What needs a facelift? What could be re-purposed?

I recently found this site: http://www.giannyl.com There are several others in a similar vein, but this girl, GiannyL, is a 25 year-old Paraguayan who is awesome with recycling stuff like t-shirts, sheets, and pillowcases into really cute clothes, and she has tons of videos showing how she does it. Now, some of the clothes are a little young-ish for me, but this site gives you a really good idea of what's possible. I once spent an entire weekend watching Gianny make awesome clothes and looking over the projects at Instructables.com, Threadbanger.com, CraftStylish.com, and a few other sites, and I got dizzy at all the possibilities! It's pretty amazing what you can do.

In fact, there are ideas all over the place. If you watch HGTV, you'll find great ideas for re-purposing vintage treasures, flea market finds, and resale shop salvages. I've personally transformed many a coffee table with crafty paint and a creative eye, and even had some of the resulting "art work" commissioned for sale in a couple of shops in Broad Ripple. So, see? Sometimes re-purposing is great for freshening up your home, and sometimes it can even create a little side income.

The whole point is, what seems like trash can be transformed into treasure. In the coming months, I'll be sharing some of my own re-purposing ideas, complete with instructions for you to follow. In this economy, being able to look at stuff that you own and see those things in a new light will serve you very well. So stay tuned and look for cool projects to come!

What's Labor Day, Anyway?

I always knew people took Labor Day off from work, but I never really knew where the holiday originated from or what we were supposed to be celebrating. I figured it might be a day to celebrate workers and maybe also a day to rest. So I decided to find out.

As usual, Wikipedia had a useful, succinct explanation for Labor Day. It's been around since 1882, was established by Grover Cleveland to celebrate the spirit and strength of the working people. We used to have parades and speeches. Today, it's pretty much just the symbolic end of summer and a sign for "back to school." time. Labor Day means the fun's over and it's time to get back to work....er...labor. 

As for Labor Day weekend, well, it's a time for barbecues, last-minute family trips, and department store sales. Kind of seems sad that we don't honor and value the men and women who work so hard every single day...but then, maybe that's why so many jobs are getting farmed out to Third World countries. Happy Labor Day, folks!

An Abe and Willa Update

Those of you who have been following this blog for awhile know that Leo and I have two hamsters named Abe and Willa. Since I hadn't posted an update on them for awhile, I figured it was time.

So here are the updates:

Willa, 9/1/10

• Both Abe and Willa have grown a remarkable amount. That was to be expected, since we got them when they were about 6 weeks old, but they've doubled in size, at least.
• Willa's an adorable, chubby teddy bear hamster. She's taken to eating in her sleep and is starting to look a bit fat. She's completely precious, and fairly normal. 
• Abe, on the other hand, has turned out to be a longhaired hamster, which is very interesting. Sometimes he looks very...pretty. Other times, he's a bit scraggly. The long-haired thing makes him look less "teddy bear" and more "skunk" or "porcupine," and kind of detracts from his masculinity, the poor little guy.



Abe, 8/27/10

• That said, there's absolutely no question whatsoever now that Abe is male. All he has to do is turn his back on you and...well, it's quite obvious. And given the...aherm...flurry of nightly activity in Hamster Town, I'm pretty sure if Willa isn't already pregnant, she soon will be. At this point, I think she's just fat, not pregnant, but I'm not really sure.
• Both hamsters are getting quite used to being held and are much more comfortable with us than when they first arrived. I attribute much of this to the kids, who during their August visit, were as enchanted by Abe and Willa as Leo and I are.
• Finally, both hamsters have shown a great affinity for Cheerios and Rice Krispies. Willa stuffed 17 Cheerios in her cheeks one day and 24 Rice Krispies another day. It's one of the funniest things I've ever seen.

So that's the Abe and Willa update. I'm sure it won't be long before I'm blogging that "Willa's Got Some Buns in the Oven," so stay tuned!

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Hotel Review: Marriott-Owned Hotels, United Kingdom, Part 1

I've stayed in London several times, and every time, I've stayed in a Marriott-owned property. Why? Because I'm a member of the Marriott Rewards Points program and happen to have more than a few points to burn, and if I can spent points instead of dollars to stay in a luxury hotel, why not go for it?

Renaissance Chancery Court,
London, England

I'll start my reviews with my favorite hotel in all of England, the Renaissance London Chancery Court Hotel in (obviously) London. This place is my favorite for several reasons. First, it's a block away from the Holborn Tube station and is on the Picadilly line and the Central line, which means getting pretty much anywhere is fairly simple and cheap. Plus, you can take the Tube straight to Heathrow for just a few pounds, which is pretty rocking, considering the cost of a taxi is around 100GBP.

Second, the hotel itself is pretty fabulous. It was built in 1912 and has the most gorgeous courtyard (which often has some incredible cars parked in it) and a stunning marble staircase. Room service has the most delectable options (assuming you opt out of the myriad of culinary options in London), they have an absolutely insane spa, and the service  throughout the hotel is impeccable. I've stayed here twice and I've had no complaints whatsoever. Rates start at 199GBP, but can go as high as 495GBP for a two-level suite.

London Marriott Hotel
Maida Vale

And now, my least favorite hotel in all of the UK: The London Marriott Hotel Maida Vale. I chose the Maida Vale last January because about 90% of the Marriotts in London are what's called "Category 7" in Marriott lingo, which means that spending a few nights will suck up your Rewards points pretty fast. Maida Vale is a Cat 6, which still eats up the points, but a little slower. It's well-located, close to the Maida Vale Tube station, and Maida Vale is kind of a neat, diverse neighborhood, so I figured we ought to give it a whirl.

Now, it happens that Maida Vale is where Leo was bitten an impressive 34 times by bedbugs during our very first night's stay there. So I have to confess that I'm a little bit biased against this hotel, not just because of the fact that this happened at all, but because of how they handled it. In my opinion, discovery of bedbugs are a serious problem that warrant the attention of and apology of a hotel manager, but the manager of Maida Vale apparently disagreed, though he did send his minions to relocate us to the Presidential Suite for the remainder of our stay (it sounds cooler than it actually was - sure, it was big and had a kitchen, but do you really want to cook your own dinner when you're staying in a hotel in one of the coolest cities in the world?). Even aside from the bedbug issue, I would never stay at Maida Vale again, simply because the property isn't as well-maintained and the service isn't quite as stellar as other properties in London.

London Hotel Marriott
Park Lane

Two other Marriott-owned properties in London are London Hotel Marriott Park Lane and London Hotel Marriott County Hall. Park Lane is a fairly schmancy hotel, a bit more contemporary than some of the other London Properties. I have to confess, I felt a bit...uncool...walking into Park Lane. I don't know why, exactly, just that there was something a bit snooty about Park Lane and I felt a little uncomfortable. That's saying a lot, actually, because there isn't much that can actually trigger that feeling in me.

As a side note, I think that's what I like most about Chancery Court. It's a super-schmancy hotel, but the staff are so friendly and nice to you that you never feel uncomfortable, even if you walk in wearing flip-flops. But at Park Lane, I felt uncomfortable walking in wearing my nicest clothes, and that speaks volumes. That said, the fish and chips with mushy peas from room service is absolutely delightful, and the view of Hyde Park is quite stunning, which might be enough to persuade me to set aside my discomfort to give them another shot.

London Hotel Marriot
County Hall

Now, I have to confess that I myself haven't stayed at County Hall,which is why I can't list it as a favorite, but Leo and the kids did stay there and absolutely loved it. The proximity to the London Eye and Big Ben is a pretty cool thing for anyone, plus it's located near one of our favorite fish and chips places in all of London, the Red Lion (review forthcoming).

Next week we're heading north, where I'll cover four other UK Marriott properties, in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Manchester, Durham, and Edinburgh.

It's Turtles All The Way Down, Stephen Hawking.

British theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking is coming out with a new book called The Grand Design, co-authored with Leonard Mlodinow. In this book, Hawking puts forth the notion that God did not create the universe and the "Big Bang" was an inevitable consequence of the laws of physics.

 

I've been mulling over this one for the last couple of days. Most of the physicists I know (and I know a few, since my grad school office was located quite near to the Van Allen physics labs where they make some pretty schmancy stuff to go into space) believe in God. Why? Because ultimately, there's always an unanswerable question looming out there: no matter what you're able to explain with mathematics and physics, no matter what you can comprehend, there's always something bigger, something outside that universe.

Let's say you understand our universe (ha ha), let's even say you understand the Big Bang (bigger ha ha). Taking that assumption, what caused it all? What created it? And let's say you come up with an answer to that question, and the answer is...I don't know...whatever...a giant turtle (we'll use that, because I once heard that some ancient culture or another believed that the world was balanced on the back of a giant turtle, and I think it's funny).

 

So say you decide that a giant turtle created the universe. Well, what created that giant turtle? Let's say you come up with an answer to that question - a bigger turtle created that giant turtle, of course. Well, what created that turtle? The thing is, those questions never really end. They extend into infinity, because there's always the question of what created the biggest thing you can possibly comprehend.

This is the dilemma that has always tripped me up with my belief in God and my personal faith (and please, don't try to convert me or start a religious debate- I'm neither interested nor truly equipped to argue on this topic- I just know that philosophy and science often get in the way of my faith, but I still  sort of believe in God anyway, somehow, even though my concept of God might be different from yours). The truth is, I can't comprehend of anything that's so big that there's nothing bigger, or so big that it wasn't created from...something. 

 

Maybe my brain's too puny to figure this one out. I'm sure Stephen Hawking's massive brain can conceive of things I can't even fathom. And maybe he can understand nothingness, which is a concept I can't really wrap my brain around.

 

But ultimately, for me, it's a lot like the last scenes in the Men in Black movies, where Tommy Lee Jones shows Will Smith how infinitesimally small we really are, whether it's that Earth is actually the marble in a giant alien's game of jacks or we're just the wee locker people in a much, much larger universe. I always think, "Okay, so if there is a God, who created God?" And I always end up going back to the same old answer: it's turtles all the way down.

My Top 10 Favorite Movies of All Time, Part 2

Last week I started the list of my top 10 favorite movies of all time. Today, I'm finishing the list with a few more surprises.

6. French Kiss
   Like Sabrina, French Kiss captures the feeling of France quite beautifully. Kevin Kline is absolute, pure comic genius in this role, and Meg Ryan, pre-facelift, is a breath of fresh air. Add in Jean Reno and Timothy Hutton, and you've got a surprising cast with a stunning chemistry.
   
   I've seen this movie so many times that I fell in love with the blue dress Meg Ryan wears when she finally has the chance to get back her man, and contacted the costumer for the film to compliment her work and to inquire about the dress. Much to my surprise, the costumer (an Academy Award winner in her own right, for Pete's sake!) e-mailed me back and said she was so grateful for my words and told me all about the dress, which Meg Ryan also loved so much that she kept it. So French Kiss remains one of my top 10 movies of all time for many reasons.
   
   
7. Rat Race
   Rat Race is just about one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. The all-star cast is absolutely incredible, including John Cleese, Whoopi Goldbert, Jon Lovitz, Kathy Najimy, Seth Green, Kathy Bates, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Rowan Atkinson, Paul Rodriguez, Dave Thomas...the list goes on. Rowan Atkinson is undoubtedly one of the funniest human beings of all time, and seeing him as an Italian narcoleptic has me in tears, pretty much every time I see this movie. John Cleese as a giant-toothed casino magnate getting his customers to bet on anything and everything he can conceive of is at his most hilarious. Add in about a hundred Lucille Ball impersonators and a cameo by Gloria Alred, and this movie can do absolutely no wrong. See it. As soon as possible.
   
   
8. Chocolat
   Okay, Chocolat is a romantic movie. It's not a comedy and there's no action or aliens. So while it's true that this film doesn't quite fit into my usual fare, it does have three things I adore: 1) Chocolate, 2) France, and 3) Johnny Depp. I think Juliette Binoche is one of the most beautiful women of our time and I confess, I was surprised that Carrie-Anne Moss was able to carry her role in this film, but she did okay.
   
   A word of advice: First, while watching this movie, make sure you actually do have chocolate with you, otherwise there's just no point. Second, if you must, after watching this movie, try hot cocoa with chili in it, do give a look to the mixture offered by Hotel du Chocolat. While it's not something I personally enjoy, the quality is good and it'll taste far better than if you try to make it on your own.
   
9. Every Star Trek Movie...ever.
   I do love Star Trek. I wouldn't say I'm a "Trekkie," though. I don't dress up and I don't speak Klingon, but I have seen every episode of Next Generation and Voyager, and most episodes of Deep Space Nine and the original Star Trek series (and yup, even Earth: Final Conflict). And I've seen every movie, sometimes all in one day. So I can admit that I'm pretty geeky, but the truth is, from a purely sociological standpoint (watch me try to justify my nerdiness right here), I have always appreciated the point Gene Roddenberry was trying to make...or at least the one I think he was trying to make.
   
   Star Trek, you see, isn't just a sci-fi concept. It's a social one. Star Trek examines a society in which we've gotten past racism, hunger, illness, war, even the need for currency, and have evolved into a race that seeks knowledge, understanding, and betterment. I've always wondered how Roddenberry thought we got to that point. Bottom line: Star Trek pretty much rocks on all levels. The movies have action, drama, and if you understand the Trekkie culture, even some comedy. And I'm just geeky enough to love it.
   
   
10. Every Christopher Guest Movie...ever.
    I'll tell you something - the saddest movie day I've had in a long time was the day Christopher Guest said he wasn't doing mockumentaries anymore. From "This is Spinal Tap" to "A Mighty Wind" to "Best in Show" and "Waiting for Guffman," Guests movies are unparalleled comic genius. Period. I don't know a single person who hasn't seen his movies and agreed.
    
    One of my favorite things about a Christopher Guest movie is looking at the cast and trying to figure out who's who from the other movies - Guest in particular is a chameleon who's appearance, voice, and accent shift dramatically from film to film, whether he's the flamboyant director of a small-town play, a backwoods bait-and-tackle shop owner who loves his bloodhound, or a curly-haired banjo player. It's really quite remarkable, if you can even pay attention to it in between fits of laughter.
    
    The comedy isn't always "ha ha" funny, but more like a "Wow, that's genius!" kind of clever, but you'll be in stitches no matter which film you watch.

Honorable Mentions:

Pirates of the Carribean movies...all of them: Truth is, this one should've been in the top 10, but I only had 10 spots, and sorta forgot about these until I'd already posted the first five. If I hadn't already posted those, I would've adjusted my top five so that "Pretty Much All Marvel Comics Movies" was just one listing. That would've given me back a few more spaces. But since I can't do that, I'll just say that Johnny Depp is genius in these movies, and if you add in the Orlando Bloom eye candy, these films are fine, fine viewing. Even with the copious bad dental work.

Men in Black 1 and 2:  Like Pirates, I kind of forgot about these movies until today. But the comedy genius of putting Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith together with Rip Torn just can't be beat. Of the two, the second is my favorite, but they're both phenomenal. And the cameos by Michael Jackson and Martha Stewart totally rock.


Amelie: I love this movie because a) it's in French, and b) it's quirky and sweet. Period.

Spaceballs: I remember thinking Spaceballs was the funniest movie of all time, and that's why it rates a mention here. Mel Brooks is so funny and the films he spoofs in this movie happen to be my favorites: Star Trek, Star Wars, Alien, Planet of the Apes...all the greats are included. Sadly, when I tried to share Spaceballs with my husband, I realized that in adulthood, Spaceballs seems a bit naive in the level of comedy, and is a bit less enticing than I remembered.

The Alien movies: I loved the Alien franchise from the first movie through the third. Sigourney Weaver rocked all three of these films in slightly different ways. I loved the military power of Aliens and Charles Dutton's performance in Alien 3, but the movies beyond that, especially Resurrection have flopped for me, which is why the Alien franchise hasn't made it into my top 10.

The Hulk movies: I liked the first Hulk movie, and loved the second. Ed Norton rocked as Bruce Banner. But the reason this Marvel franchise doesn't make my top 10 is because they keep changing actors, and I don't like that. I didn't like it with Batman, and I sure don't like it with The Hulk. (I also don't care for the use of the Human Torch as Captain America, but nobody asked me)

So there you have it, my top 10 favorite movies of all time, including the honorable mentions. If you add them to your Netflix or Blockbuster lists and take a peek at any of them, let me know. I'd love to hear what you thought.

Restaurant Review: Rhubarb, Terminal 3, London Heathrow Airport, England

I rarely enjoy airport food. With the massive hustle and bustle and noise in the terminals, I can barely hear myself think, much less enjoy the cuisine, which is a word I think is a bit too generous for all of the Macaroni Grill-style chains that seem to pepper the hallways of every airport.

But in London Heathrow Airport, right in the heart of Terminal 3, there's a delightful restaurant called Rhubarb, which has become my favorite dining oasis. Now, don't get me wrong - I'm a huge fan of Gordon Ramsay's Plane Food in Terminal 5 at LHR. But since the Baroncini-Moe family's official British Airways Ban of 2010, we're never really in T5, so I may never dine there again (sigh).

Leo and I went there for the first time last January, on our way home from spending the holidays in Spain. We were excited to try it out because we were engaged at a restaurant in Edinburgh called Rhubarb (not at all the same company) and we liked the name and the style of the restaurant in T3. We were enormously pleased with our choice.

So now, if I'm departing London in the morning, I'm thrilled to wait for breakfast until I get through security, because I know that the most delightful vegetarian English breakfast awaits me at Rhubarb. The plate is generous and includes portabello mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, a poached egg, a mini-croissant with butter and jam, and a small pot of yogurt with berries, granola, pistachios, and almonds. The omnivore's version includes the tomatoes and mushrooms in smaller quantities, the egg, croissant, yogurt, some ham, and a Cumberland sausage. The food is exceptional and the presentation quite lovely. I'm actually looking forward to trying some of Food Design's other restaurants next time I'm in London, and have a hankering to visit the Admiral's Club in T3 as well, now that I know that the same catering company is presenting a buffet inside the club. Yummy!

The service is pleasant and friendly, if a little harried. During our most recent visit, our server went to the kitchen to find out for us how the mushrooms are prepared, so I can attempt a version of my own.

All in all, breakfast at Rhubarb is a lovely way to await your flight...and the food's better than anything else I've tried in that area of the airport. So if you're stuck in T3 at LHR, give Rhubarb a try. I can't imagine you could be disappointed.

Yummy, Fresh Pita Bread

The pita bread recipe I use comes from The Bread Bible, an absolutely wonderful book by Rose Levy Beranbaum.

I've written the recipe using the variations I used, but in the book, Rose provides a hand-kneading method, an all-white pita, an all-wheat pita, and instructions for cooking the pitas on the stovetop using a cast-iron skillet.

Ingredients:1 1/2 c plus a scant 1/8 c unbleached all-purpose flour (Gold Medal, King Arthur, or Pillsbury)

1 1/2 c plus a scant 1/8 c white whole wheat flour.

2 tsp salt

2 tsp instant yeast (Fleischmann's Bread Machine Yeast or Rapid Rise, Red Star's QuickRise or Red Star's Instant Active Dry)

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 1/4 liquid cups water, at room temperature.

Equipment:a baking stone or a baking sheet

Mixing Using the Mixer Method: In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine all the ingredients. With the paddle attachment, mix on low speed (#2 if using KitchenAid) just until all the flour is moistened, about 20 seconds. Change to the dough hook, raise the speed to medium (#4 KitchenAid), and knead for 10 minutes. The dough should clean the bowl and be very soft and smooth and just a little sticky to the touch. Add a little flour or water if necessary.

Rising: Let the dough rise. Using an oiled spatula or dough scraper, scrape the dough into a 2-quart or larger dough-rising container or bowl, lightly greased with cooking spray or oil. Press the dough down and lightly spray or oil the top of it. Cover the container with a lid or plastic wrap. With a piece of tape, mark the side of the container at approximately where double the height of the dough would be. Refrigerate the dough overnight (or up to 3 days), checking every hour for the first 4 hours and pressing it down if it starts to rise.

Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F 1 hour before baking. Have an oven shelf at the lowest level and place a baking stone or baking sheet on it before preheating.

Shape the dough: Cut the dough into 8 or 12 pieces. Work with one piece at a time, keeping the rest covered with a damp cloth. On a lightly floured counter, with lightly floured hands, shape each piece into a ball and then flatten it into a disk. Cover the dough with oiled plastic and allow it to rest for 20 minutes at room temperature.

Roll each disk into a circle a little under 1/4 " thick. Allow them to rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes before baking.

Bake the pita: Quickly place 1 piece of dough directly on the stone or baking sheet and bake for 3 minutes. The pita should be completely puffed but not beginning to brown. The dough will not puff well if it is not moist enough. See how the pita puffs, then, if necessary, spray and knead each remaining piece with water until the dough is soft and moist; allow to rest again and reroll as before. (However, those that do not puff well are still delicious to eat.) Proceed with the remaining dough, baking 3 or 4 pieces at a time. Using a pancake turner, transfer the pita breads to a clean towel, to stay soft and warm. Allow the oven to reheat for 5 minutes between batchs. The pitas can be reheated for about 30 seconds in a hot oven before serving.