Rosie always has homemade bread in the house.
Always.
I have a go-to recipe - my food processor baguettes, below.
You mix the dough, knead it, and let it rise all in your food processor. After the third rising, you shape into baguettes, give it a final rise, then bake these beautiful loaves.
Of course, slather with buttah.
Super simple and super delicious.
Now, I've been experimenting.
Let me introduce you to my ciabatta.
Ciabatta - my new favorite loaf to make.
Today, I'll show you how to make these ciabatta loaves.
The only special equipment you'll need is a pizza stone, which is necessary for the loaves to do their extraordinary rise in the first five minutes in the oven.
Also, know that this is a two-day recipe.
The first day, you make the starter; the second day you make the bread.
Believe me, it's worth the time!
Holey ciabatta!
Now for the recipe.
Rosie's Ciabatta
First day:
Make the starter or sponge or biga. This is a flavor-builder. The yeast ferments overnight, producing lactic and acetic acids which give this bread its characteristic sourness.
Starter:
1 cup unbleached King Arthur AP flour
1/2 tsp yeast
1/2 cup warm water
Combine flour, yeast, and water in medium bowl, stirring with a wooden spoon until you form a uniform mass. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature overnight.
Second day:
Make the dough.
Dough:
2 cups unbleached King Arthur AP flour, plus extra for work surface
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp yeast
3/4 cup warm water
1/8 cup heavy cream, room temp
1/8 cup skim milk, room temp
above starter
(You could use 1/4 cup whole milk. I use what I have on hand and I never have whole milk, but I always have cream and skim, so I use half of each.)
Instructions:
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix dough ingredients on low speed until roughly combined and shaggy, about one minute.
Add in the sponge and continue mixing on low for another minute, scraping down sides as necessary.
Increase speed to medium and mix for 5-6 minutes until dough becomes a uniform mass and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Switch from paddle to dough hook and continue kneading at medium speed until smooth and shiny, about 10 minutes. Dough will be sticky.
Transfer dough to large bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until doubled in size - an hour or so.
Spray a bowl scraper or spatula lightly with oil and gently fold the dough over itself by lifting and folding the edge toward the middle. Turn bowl 90° and fold again. Keeping turning and fold six more times for a total of eight turns. Cover with plastic and let rise about an hour. Repeat folding.
Cover again and let rise until doubled - about 60 minutes.
Place baking stone on oven rack and heat oven to 450°. Let stone heat at 450° for at least 30 minutes.
Cut two 6 x 12-inch pieces of parchment paper, place on non-rimmed baking sheet, and dust with flour.
Transfer dough to floured work surface, being careful not to totally deflate dough. Flour top of dough and divide in half. Turn one piece of dough cut side up and flour lightly. With floured fingers, press dough into a rough 6 x 12-inch shape, or thereabouts. Fold shorter sides of dough toward center, overlapping like a business letter. Repeat with other piece of dough. Transfer loaves, seam side down, to parchment sheets, dust with flour, and cover with plastic. Let loaves sit at room temperature for another hour. The surface will develop small bubbles.
Evenly poke entire surface of each loaf to form a 6 x 10-inch rectangle. Spray lightly with water. Carefully slide the parchment with loaves on the baking stone. Bake, spraying the loaves again after 5 minutes, until the crust is a deep golden brown and center of loaves registers 200-210°, about 20 minutes. Rotate loaves after 10 minutes and cover with foil if loaves are darkening too much. Transfer to wire rack, discarding the parchment, and let cool to room temperature, about an hour, before slicing and serving.
Now for the recipe.
Rosie's Ciabatta
First day:
Make the starter or sponge or biga. This is a flavor-builder. The yeast ferments overnight, producing lactic and acetic acids which give this bread its characteristic sourness.
Starter:
1 cup unbleached King Arthur AP flour
1/2 tsp yeast
1/2 cup warm water
Combine flour, yeast, and water in medium bowl, stirring with a wooden spoon until you form a uniform mass. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature overnight.
Second day:
Make the dough.
Dough:
2 cups unbleached King Arthur AP flour, plus extra for work surface
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp yeast
3/4 cup warm water
1/8 cup heavy cream, room temp
1/8 cup skim milk, room temp
above starter
(You could use 1/4 cup whole milk. I use what I have on hand and I never have whole milk, but I always have cream and skim, so I use half of each.)
Instructions:
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix dough ingredients on low speed until roughly combined and shaggy, about one minute.
Add in the sponge and continue mixing on low for another minute, scraping down sides as necessary.
Increase speed to medium and mix for 5-6 minutes until dough becomes a uniform mass and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Switch from paddle to dough hook and continue kneading at medium speed until smooth and shiny, about 10 minutes. Dough will be sticky.
Transfer dough to large bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until doubled in size - an hour or so.
Spray a bowl scraper or spatula lightly with oil and gently fold the dough over itself by lifting and folding the edge toward the middle. Turn bowl 90° and fold again. Keeping turning and fold six more times for a total of eight turns. Cover with plastic and let rise about an hour. Repeat folding.
Cover again and let rise until doubled - about 60 minutes.
Place baking stone on oven rack and heat oven to 450°. Let stone heat at 450° for at least 30 minutes.
Cut two 6 x 12-inch pieces of parchment paper, place on non-rimmed baking sheet, and dust with flour.
Transfer dough to floured work surface, being careful not to totally deflate dough. Flour top of dough and divide in half. Turn one piece of dough cut side up and flour lightly. With floured fingers, press dough into a rough 6 x 12-inch shape, or thereabouts. Fold shorter sides of dough toward center, overlapping like a business letter. Repeat with other piece of dough. Transfer loaves, seam side down, to parchment sheets, dust with flour, and cover with plastic. Let loaves sit at room temperature for another hour. The surface will develop small bubbles.
Evenly poke entire surface of each loaf to form a 6 x 10-inch rectangle. Spray lightly with water. Carefully slide the parchment with loaves on the baking stone. Bake, spraying the loaves again after 5 minutes, until the crust is a deep golden brown and center of loaves registers 200-210°, about 20 minutes. Rotate loaves after 10 minutes and cover with foil if loaves are darkening too much. Transfer to wire rack, discarding the parchment, and let cool to room temperature, about an hour, before slicing and serving.
Here's my sponge.
After a while, the starter is starting to grow.
It's alive!
It's alive!
Nice and bubbly.
Here's the starter the next day. You can see where it's risen and deflated.
It's smells yeasty and alcoholic.
It's smells yeasty and alcoholic.
It's ready to add to the dough.
And here's the dough.
Cover and let double in size.
This is such a pretty dough - nice, satiny, elastic.
Fold dough over itself quarter turns for 8 turns.
Cover and let rise again.
Gently turn out onto floured surface.
Halve.
Press into 6 x 12 shapes, or thereabouts.
It gets nice and dimply.
Fold like a letter.
Place seam-side down on parchment paper.
Flour lightly and cover with plastic.
Pokey-pokey.
Ready for the oven.
Slide parchment with sprayed loaves onto heated 450° pizza stone.
Spray again after 5 minutes.
I turn the loaves halfway through.
Cover with foil if it's browning too much.
Cover with foil if it's browning too much.
Let cool on wire rack.
They're beautemous!
You'll be glad you did.
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