Ciabatta Bread

Adapted from: The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook

Sponge:

1 cup (5 oz.) bread flour

⅛ tsp. instant yeast

½ cup water, room temperature

Dough:

2 cups (10 oz.) bread flour

1 ½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. instant yeast

¾ cup water, room temperature

¼ cup milk, room temperature

For the sponge, combine all ingredients in a bowl until a uniform mass forms. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature overnight.

For the dough, place the sponge and all the dough ingredients in a bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Mix on low until roughly combined. Increase the speed to medium-low and mix for 5 minutes. Switch to the dough hook and knead for 10 minutes. Transfer dough to oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled (mine took about 2 hours).

Spray a spatula with cooking spray, fold the partially risen dough over itself by gently lifting and folding the edge of the dough toward the middle. Turn the bowl 90 degrees and life the dough again. Turn the bowl 90 degrees and repeat 6 more times. Cover the dough and let rest for 30 minutes.

Repeat folding from last step and let rise again for 30 minutes.

Cut two 12X6 inch pieces of parchment paper and place them on an overturned cookie sheet. Transfer the dough to a floured surface and divide dough in half (careful to not inflate dough). Press each dough half into a 12X6 inch shape using your hands. Place each piece of dough on parchment paper. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.

While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Place a pizza stone in the oven to preheat (you need to preheat for 30 minutes).Once the dough has rested, using your fingers, poke the entire surface of each dough into a 10X6 inch rectangle.

Lightly spray each loaf with water using a squirt bottle. Place each loaf (with the parchment paper) on the preheated pizza stone. Bake for 22-27 minutes, squirting twice during the first 5 minutes of cooking.

Transfer baked dough to a wire rack and cool completely before cutting.

Printed from SweetLessons.blogspot.com