The 91st Bake:Paul’s Ciabatta

I love Ciabatta but have never made it. I thought it would be a simple case of making bread, but his dough really was unique and different. It comes out so wet and gooey, it’s hard to believe it can turn into a loaf of crusty bread full of air holes! It’s New Year’s Eve, time to start thinking about New Year’s resolutions. And for me, it won’t be doing another baking challenge!!! With less than 30 recipes to go, I am starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel 🙂

Sir Andrew Motion an English poet and novelist who was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom from 1999 to 2009 once said that what we very badly need to remember is that the things right under our noses are extraordinary, fascinating, irreplaceable, profound and just kind of marvelous.

Appreciating ourselves and our surroundings sounds like a fantastic way to bring in the new year. Trying something new is a good way to begin the new year too, like this ciabatta. So delicious to buy and eat but even funner to make, I have provided the link to the recipe below. I started by

adding the flour, salt and yeast to the free standing mixer fitted with a dough hook, then added the water drip by drip. I mixed this for 5-8 minutes until the dough was smooth and stretchy. Then I lightly oiled a container, sealed it and left it for 1 1/2 hours until doubled in size.

I then dusted the bench with flour and semolina and tipped the very wet risen dough out onto the bench and rather than knocking it back, I handled it gently to keep the air in the dough. I coated the top of the dough with flour and semolina, then cut it into four equal pieces.

I then shaped each piece length-ways into a loaf and placed them on a prepared baking sheet covered with flour and semolina. I left the ciabatta to rest for 45 minutes until risen, then baked in the oven at 220˚C for 25 minutes, until golden brown. Here’s the recipe http://paulhollywood.com/recipes/ciabatta/Delicious treat with cheese and especially with my cheese log that I made for Christmas which got devoured in a heart beat. 🙂

https://thebakersdozenbakeoff.com/2018/11/21/cheese-log/