Here's another classic Italian recipe; last week it was panna cotta and this week it's homemade ciabatta (which means "slipper" in Italian). The smell of freshly baked bread is wonderful and so inviting if you have guests coming over for dinner and you want to bake fresh bread to eat with the meal. Also, this recipe makes 2 small ciabattas so it's easy to double the recipe if you would like. And I think this ciabatta recipe is super easy to make and is great to eat warm with olive oil and balsamic vinegar to dip in or slather with warm butter.
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups white bread flour, plus more for dusting
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
2/3 cup warm water
3 tbsp. olive oil, plus more for greasing
In a bowl, mix together the flour and salt together and in another bowl mix the yeast, water and olive oil together
Add the flour mixture into the yeast mixture and mix until a shaggy dough forms
On a lightly floured surface knead the dough for 5 minutes, then place the dough in a greased bowl and let it rest for 5 hours
Gently place the dough onto a floured surface and divide it into 2 pieces
Shape each piece into a slipper shape and place each ciabatta on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and let it rest for 30 minutes
Preheat the oven to 450°F
Bake the ciabattas for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown
Serve it while it's still warm with butter or olive oil