I continue to get requests for a ciabatta recipe I mentioned a long time
ago. Here it is:
Ciabatta!
CIABATTA
"Light-as-Air Loaves"
In Italian, Ciabatta (cha-BAH-tah) means "slipper" -- the finished
loaves can look like old shoes.
While the appearance of the loaf is rustic, the bread itself is light
and porous and the flavor is
delicately sour. The dough is extremely wet and sticky; when shaping the
loaves, you must
sprinkle generous amounts of flour on everything the dough will touch.
(This recipe requires a
heavy duty electric mixer such as a KitchenAid.) GUARANTEE: Everyone
loves this bread.
[Adapted from FINE COOKING, Dec. '95]
NOTE: This is messy, but worth the effort. Try not to add extra flour
until you've tried the recipe as is. (Additioanl flour will
cause the texture to be more like that of French bread than of this
feathery light loaf.) The dough should spring up in the oven
and give you a nicely rounded bread, even though it may look flat after
the second rising.
SPONGE
1/2teaspoon yeast
2/3cup water (filtered or bottled), warm (110 F)
1 cup BREAD flour
YEAST MIXTURE
1 1/2teaspoons yeast
1/2cup water (filtered or bottled), warm (110 F)
DOUGH
2cups ice water
27 ounces BREAD flour (5 1/4 - 5 ½ cups)
1 tablespoon salt
1. SPONGE: Dissolve 1/2 tsp. yeast in 2/3 cup warm water. Add 1 cup
flour and stir to
incorporate. Let rise, covered, until tripled in volume (about 4 hours).
2. YEAST MIXTURE: When the starter is ready, dissolve 1 1/2 tsp. yeast
in 1/2 cup warm water
and let stand for 10 minutes.
3. DOUGH: In the bowl of a heavy duty mixer (KitchenAid), combine
-- the YEAST MIXTURE
-- 2 cups ICE WATER
-- 1 cup SPONGE
-- 27 ounces bread flour (5 1/4 - 5 ½ cups)
-- 1 TBL salt
Mix at speed #2 for 1 minute.
4. Add the SALT and mix for 2 minutes. Let rest 20 min. (the dough will
be very wet and will
not hold a shape).
5. After the 20 minute rest, knead at speed #6 until the dough pulls
away from the sides and
bottom of the bowl, about 12 to 15 minutes. -- If the dough first cleans
the sides of the bowl and
later starts sticking again, just keep kneading, for a minimum of 12
minutes. (You can prepare
the ingredients the day before and refrigerate overnight if you wish,
doing the kneading in step 5
the next day.)
6. Decrease speed to #4; knead another 5 or 6 minutes.
7. FIRST RISE: Transfer the dough to a large, oiled mixed bowl. Cover
with a tight-fitting lid
or plastic wrap and let rise until TRIPLED IN VOLUME, about 2 to 2 1/2
hours. (The ideal
temperature is about 75 F.)
8. SHAPING: Pour the dough onto a heavily floured work surface and cut
into two pieces. Flour
your hands. Keep the floured side of the loaf facing down and pull five
ends of the dough from
the outside edge to the center. Press these ends down and flip the dough
over. Cup the heels of
your hands around the dough and rotate, all the while pinching the dough
underneath with the
both heels of the hands to shape a taut, smooth ball.
10. SECOND RISE: Set the loaves (preferably on baking parchment) in a
cool spot, dust WELL
with flour, and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled,
1 1/2 to 2 hours.
11. BAKING: Meanwhile, 20 minutes before the bread finishes rising, put
a baking stone on the
oven's lowest rack and heat the oven to 450 F. To prevent the loaves
from sticking (if not using
baking parchment) sprinkle the baking stone now with cornmeal.
12. STEAM: For a crisper crust, put 1 cup of ice cubes(or 1 cup boiling
water) in a pan on the
oven floor (or lowest rack in an electric oven) just before putting in
the bread.
13. Using a baker's peel or a baking sheet, gently transfer the loaves
to the stone, taking care not
to deflate the dough. Bake until the crust is dark brown, about 30 min.
(For a lighter colored
crust, reduce the temperature to 425 F after five minutes.)
14. Remove the finished loaves from the oven and let cool on a rack
about one hour. Freezes
well.