Ciabatta
Having just returned from Rome (and finally over the airplane crud), I thought it would be nice to thank the friend who drove us to/from the airport with an Italian dinner. This requires ciabatta for the bread course. Need to make bread? Who ya gonna call? The Big Dog:
Of course, it’s another one of those. I much prefer my sandwich bread recipe, which does not have so many touch points.
As you can see, it mostly worked. All the problems are my own fault, which is good because that means I can fix them.
Brian says “strong AP flour”. He even gives a number: 11.7% protein. Do you know how much protein is in your AP flour? Neither did I; I just used it. It’s under 10% (3g per 31g serving). The bread flour is 4g per 31g serving, which is 12.9%. Based on the issues (another 5 minutes before the dough cleared the bowl and a dense crumb on the bottom), 10% is problematic. Next time, bread flour.
Brian says “dark crust”. He likes his crusts done to what I call “nearly burned”. In this case, he may be correct. I was certainly wrong. This light (I don’t think it’s all that “light”) crust is insufficient. The bottom is not quite fully done. The bread squishes when one cuts it. Definitely needs more time in the oven.
There was great oven spring even without the foil pan to tent the loaves. I’m not sure that boiling water at 500 degrees is good for my cast iron pan’s seasoning, though.
Afterward, I cross referenced his recipe against this one:
That leads to the same conclusions.
I’m not going to do another test loaf. Next time, it’s for the customer!
By the way, Rapid City has an olive oil and balsamic vinegar store. Whoda thunk? I’ve been meaning to go there since I noticed it. What a great excuse. Wow, do they have choices! Sample pack for the win.
Marked Up 