Ciabatta Bread

This is a rustic rectangle like bread with big, airy holes in it and a crisp crust surrounding its soft interior. It requires a preparation of a starter which has to rise overnight. The remaining ingredients are then mixed with the starter and then rise for several more hours. This is my first time making it! Here is where I found the recipe! :♥)

For Starter (Biga)

1/4 teaspoon instant dry yeast
1 cup water, at body temperature
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

~For starter, mix yeast and water to dissolve. Mix in flour by hand and stir just until blended (no lumps). Mixture will be very wet and sticky. Cover and refrigerate for at least 12 hours. One cup of this mixture will be needed for the bread.

over 12 hours later

For Bread
1 teaspoon instant dry yeast
3 tablespoons 2% milk, at room temperature
2/3 cup water, at body temperature
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt cornmeal, for baking 

~Stir yeast and milk and mix in the bottom of the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add yeast, water, oil, starter and mix with the paddle until blended (or dough can be mixed by hand in a bowl with a wooden spoon).

~Switch to the dough hook and add flour and salt in, kneading on low speed for 2 minutes, then increasing to next speed up, kneading for 3 minutes. Slap the dough with your hand in the bowl, until it feels stretchy and springs back. Place dough into an oiled bowl, cover bowl with plastic and set in a draft-free, warm area to rise for about 60 minutes. The dough should have lots of big air bubbles visible when ready. 

not alot of airy bubbles but there are some there!

~Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and roll up into a cylinder (like you would for a loaf or bread), but then stretch and pull the flexible dough into a rectangle about 20 inches by 8 inches. Cut dough in half (so that each piece is about 10-x-4-inches) and place each on 2 parchment-lined baking trays sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover loaves gently with a slightly damp tea towel and let rise another 90 minutes.

I made buns from mine :)

Raising again, I was too impatient and only did 45mins

~Preheat oven to 425 F and place a baking tray upside down in oven to heat. Remove hot tray from oven, and slide parchment with bread onto hot tray and return to oven quickly. Spray tops of loaves with a little water, close oven quickly and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, spraying again with water after 10 minutes.

These were used for hamburgers! I didnt know how big they would get, so I could have made 8-10 buns instead of 6! Not bad for my first time but I think I'll follow the rising times of the recipe and not be so impatient. This recipe is sooo good, a keeper for sure! :♥)