* Exported from MasterCook *
Bread, Ciabatta
Recipe By : Florentina
Serving Size : 16 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Bread Bread-Bakers Mailing List
Fatfree Hand Made
Italian Posted
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
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For the Bread
2 c bread flour -- organic
1/2 tsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
11 tbsp water -- filtered
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp milk -- plant, warm
For the Starter (Biga)
1 c bread flour -- organic
1/3 c water -- filtered, at room temp
1/8 tsp active dry yeast
2 tbsp water -- warm
An authentic Italian ciabatta bread recipe or slipper bread,
originally from the Veneto, made with an overnight starter and cooked
just like a pizza on a preheated pizza stone.
Invented by Francesco Favaron in 1982, it is the perfect bread for
sandwiches, bruschetta, panzanella, or just to dip in your favorite olive oil.
An authentic Italian ciabatta bread recipe or slipper bread,
originally from the Veneto, made with an overnight starter and cooked
just like a pizza on a preheated pizza stone.
Don't be intimated! This is a sticky wet dough, hence those nice
coveted holes that make ciabatta special and different. Just roll
with it, don't be tempted to add extra flour, all will turn out great!
how to serve ciabatta bread:
fresh out of the oven
with a bowl of soup
grilled for bruschetta
use in panzanella
dipped in olive oil & herbs
make sandwiches / panini
how to store it:
Store your homemade ciabatta in a breadbox or plastic storage bag at
room temperature for 2 to 3 days. Alternatively you can slice it and
freeze it in freezer proof bags up to 3 months. Place the slices
directly in the toaster when ready to eat, no need to thaw them out.
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 50 minutes
Total: 1:10
Makes: 2 loaves
Make the Starter:
Make your starter the night before you plan to bake the bread.
Mix together the yeast with 2 tablespoons of warm water. Allow it to
stand for a few minute.
In a medium size mixing bowl stir together the yeast mixture with the
flour and the water until combined. Cover with plastic wrap and allow
it to sit at room temperature overnight. If preparing it in the
morning then let it sit until evening and up to 24 hours.
Make the Ciabatta:
Use your stand mixer and combine the yeast and the warm plant milk.
Let it sit for a few minutes until creamy.
Add the starter, olive oil, flour, sea salt and water and mix
together for about 10 minutes until everything is incorporated.
Prepare a large bowl lightly oiled with olive oil. Transfer the bread
dough to it and cover with plastic wrap. Allow it to sit until
doubled in size, up to 2 hours.
Turn the bread dough onto a well floured surface and with floured
hands cut it in half. Form 2 long loaves.
Transfer them to a parchment lined baking sheet.
Optional step: Flour your fingers well and create dimples in the top
of the loaves. Sprinkle with some flour.
Lightly dampen a tea towel and cover the loaves. Allow them to rise
again until doubled in size, up to 2 hours.
Meanwhile preheat your oven to 425F with a Pizza Stone in the center
for 1 hour before planning to bake the bread.
Transfer one of the loaves to the preheated pizza stone (together
with the parchment paper) and bake for about 25 minutes until golden
brown to your liking.
Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool completely before slicing
it with a serrated knife.
Notes: 1 To get a crusty loaf make sure to use a pizza stone and also
create some steam in the oven by placing a dish filled with water on
the bottom as the oven heats up. Add more water if needed before
baking the bread. Allow the loaves to cool inside the oven after
baking with the oven door slightly open.
2 If you don't have a stand mixer just use a wooden spoon to mix the
dough together, it will appear to be more difficult this way as we
are dealing with a wet dough.
Question: Not everybody has a stand mixer...I know great shock ...
Wooden spoon then how much kneading?
Reply: No worries, just use a wooden spoon until everything is
incorporated well, a few minutes is all you need.
Question: I do not have a pizza stone, can I use an insulated cookie
sheet instead?
Reply: You sure can, only I think it will be difficult to attain that
crispy crust. Still worth making tough.
Reply: Try a baking steel ... they are way better then a stone and
can be used on the grill as well...mmmm best crust...everytime.
Question: I use cast iron and it works better than my pizza stone!
Reply: No reply
Question: Can the bread be baked, cooled then wrapped and frozen?
Reply: Honestly I haven't experimented with that yet so I wouldn't
want to misguide you. If you do try it please report back tough.
Question: Can the other loaf of dough sit out while the first one
bakes and should I heat up another pan while the first one is baking!
Reply: Yes it can, you'll bake it on the same pizza stone you baked
your first one. Also, you could bake them together if your stone/pan
is big enough. I'm guessing you are a using a pan.
Review: Thank you for sharing such a delicious ciabatta recipe! It is
by far the best I have made.
Question: Hi, I am making this bread right now, but the dough is so
soft I could not shape or touch it at all. It's ready to go in the
oven but I can't do one at a time because if I touch them they start
to turn into blobs so I can't even move them off the parchment paper.
I followed your recipe to the letter, but I'm not sure wht went
wrong, any suggestions?
Reply: This is kind of a sticky dough which is ok. You can transfer
the bread dough into the oven with the parchment paper. Remember to
also add a dish with water in the bottom of the oven if you want to
get a crispy crust. Hope that helps.
Question: I'm unsure of what you mean by "form two long loaves" so am
I rolling out how is that done??
Reply: Take a look at this video for Crusty Bread, you'll basically
fold the dough onto itself into a round or a long loaf. Hope this
helps: https://ciaoflorentina.com/rustic-crusty-bread-recipe/
Review: This is a really great Bread, if you really want it to become
crusty you have to add a dish with water for steam in the oven. It
will still be a good Bread if you don't but it won't be crusty, so
just keep that in mind when making this recipe. A keeper for us.
Thank you for sharing.
Review: Tried the recipe and it turned out great. A nice airy crusty
ciabatta. I'm going to try baking it in a deep cast iron pot to see
if I could get a thicker bread with the same airy consistency. Not
sure if this will work, but a fun experiment.
Review: Not this particular recipe but I freeze baked Ciabatta and
reheat from frozen for 10 minutes at 200C.
Question: I have a cast iron griddle for my stovetop. Can I use it
instead of a stone?
Reply: Yes you can!
Review: I drizzled some honey on top of the bread once it came out of
the oven. Both loaves were quickly gobbled up. Going to add honey to
the mixture the next time I make this (today).
Question: Hey, the bread tasted good. But, mine did not have any
holes in it. Did i use too much flour?
Reply: Sounds like you overworked the dough and maybe added too much
flour as well. It is a sticky dough.
Review: It turned out so good. Didnt get the same look on the outside
but inside was perfect. Crust is nice and crunchy. Inside so soft.
Question: Plant milk???
Reply: Cashew or almond milk!
Review: This recipe is delicious. I was worried at first because the
dough was so wet and sticky, but it surprised me and baked nicely.
However when I put the room temperature dough onto the hot stone,
after being in the oven for two minutes, my stone cracked in four
places. I have never had anything like this happen, so I can only
assume it was due to putting something cold on a hot pan. So be
careful. Despite that, I will be making this recipe again, it was
just that good.
Response: So sorry about your stone Alison, i've never had that
happen to me so i'm thinking maybe the stone you have is not meant to
be heated that high... I have a glazed stone from Emile Henry that
i've been using for the last 10 years at least and i actually leave
it in the oven at all times so it heats up multiple times during the
year even if i don't make bread. Happy you loved the bread Xo's
Review: I made the ciabatta bread and followed the recipe using a
stand mixer and pizza stone. It tasted fantastic, but it did not have
the old world look with the holes in it that I was hoping for.
Question: Mine seems very flat- I'm soooo tempted to add more flour,
but alas it seems delicious. It's gone in a day.
Reply: Ciabatta is usually kind of a flat bread, If you think it was
out of the ordinary flat maybe the yeast was not at its prime...Or
try a 1/4 tsp extra next time. Hope that helps!
Review: The bread came out pretty good! I followed the recipe
exactly, however my dough was never wet. it came together pretty
easily and it didn't have the holes inside, I used all purpose flour
and thought maybe that could be the reason.
Question: Since I am allergic to nuts, so plant milk is out, could I
use raw milk instead?
Reply: Oat milk is great!
S(Internet address):
https://ciaoflorentina.com/ciabatta-bread-recipe/
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 102 Calories; 1g Fat (12.1%
calories from fat); 3g Protein; 19g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary
Fiber; trace Cholesterol; 178mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 1/2
Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 0 Non-Fat Milk; 0 Fat.
NOTES : 2021 - 0201