Bakery

Ciabatta (No-Knead) Bread

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Bread should be eaten warm, crunchy on the outside, and yet soft on the inside.

Perhaps I am a bread purist, but I truly believe that a good loaf of bread should always be fresh from the oven, have a perfect crust, and a soft, inviting inside.

But this is the bread of my dreams.  Only to be found at fancy French bistros, Italian bakeries, or some other magical place where food is an art and the bakers and I don’t speak the same language.

But in a world where good things happen to good people, my bakery dreams have come true.  And where did I find this bread? Italy? France? Not a chance.  I have found the perfect loaf of basic white bread in my little kitchen in Baton Rouge.  I don’t know how it happened.  It was all so sudden, so unexpected, and then suddenly, a perfect loaf of bread.

Allow me to explain myself.

I’ve been cooking my way through Jim Lahey’s My Bread when I had a revelation.  Looking longingly at his perfect “Slipper Loaf,” a Ciabatta bread from Italy, I thought, “I can make that! A simple white bread.  Perhaps the inside of my bread will have the same holes and spongey texture.”  So, I went about combining my ingredients–the flour, the water, the yeast, and the salt.  I kissed my covered bowl good night and woke up to the most beautiful dough ball I have ever seen.  Quick to see if the dough ball would yield its revolutionary promise, I kneaded it and allowed it to rise for 2 more hours.  Then, I cooked it in a preheated dutch oven.

Voila! A golden loaf with a crackling crust and warm, inviting inside. I have made a perfect loaf of bread.

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Readers of Clearly Delicious can make this loaf too without going to Italy or France.  Just follow my lead with these basic ingredients, have patience, and follow the dutch oven instructions exactly.  You will not be disappointed.  Your bread will be warm, crusty on the outside, and soft on the inside with this clearly delicious Ciabatta Loaf.

Ciabatta (No-Knead) Bread 

This recipe comes from my favorite baker, Jim Lahey.  You can find this recipe on page 81 of his book My Bread.

Ingredients:

* 3 cups bread flour

* 1 1/4 teaspoons table salt

* 1/4 teaspoon active, dry yeast

* 1 1/2 cups cool water (55-65 F)

* additional flour for dusting

1.) Mix flour, salt, yeast, and water for 30 seconds.  Cover and allow to sit overnight (12-18 hours).

2.) When dough has risen for 12-18 hours, dust a surface with flour and roll dough ball onto floured surface.  Knead lightly so that the dough is coated in flour and dry to the touch.  Return to bowl, cover and allow to rise for 2 hours.

3.) 30 minutes before baking the bread, add your dutch oven to a pre-heated 475F oven.  Allow dutch-oven to preheat for 30 minutes.  Remove dutch oven from stove (be careful! the oven is hot!) and remove lid.  Using a rubber spatula, or your hands, roll dough into the dutch oven.  I prefer to cook with the dough ball seam-side up so that you get a nice crack across the top as it’s cooking.  Cover dutch oven and return to stove.  Cook for 30 minutes covered.

4.) Remove dutch oven from stove and remove lid from dutch oven.  The loaf should be  golden brown.  Return to oven and allow to cook for 10-15 minutes uncovered until the bread has reached your desired golden/brown consistency.  Remove bread and dutch oven from stove and turn off heat.  Using a metal spatula, transfer bread to a bread rack or cutting board to stop the cooking process.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes and carve.  Enjoy! Makes 10 slices of fresh bread.

Ciabatta (No-Knead) Bread , 3.1 out of 5 based on 14 ratings
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5 Comments

  • Reply
    Will
    October 9, 2011 at 11:26 pm

    I just made this, and it’s the most delicious bread I’ve ever made at home. I’m gonna make another loaf tomorrow!

  • Reply
    Helana
    October 11, 2011 at 12:12 pm

    I’m so glad you liked it Will! Isn’t it SUPER EASY too??? I just love this Ciabatta Bread!

  • Reply
    Clearly Delicious » Chocolate Chip Cookies – New York Times Style
    May 17, 2012 at 3:38 pm

    […] know it at the time, he had introduced me to three dishes that are now staples in my kitchen: a simple and impressive No-Knead Bread that tastes like an artisan loaf, pesto filled with sweet summer peas for this bread, and cookies that I will never turn my back […]

  • Reply
    Bridget
    September 12, 2012 at 5:25 pm

    Pretty! This has been an incredibly wonderful post.

    Thanks for supplying this info.

  • Reply
    Clearly Delicious » Spring Onion Crostini: Pea Pesto Crostini with Red Spring Onions, Shaved Parmesan, and Toasted Pine Nuts
    December 26, 2012 at 3:06 pm

    […] suggest using the Ciabatta Bread recipe from Jim Lahey’s book, but you can easily substitute any whole wheat bread such as Whole Foods’ Seeduction Bread or a […]

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