The Tale of Two Ciabattas (British Baking Show

The Tale of Two Ciabattas (British Baking Show - Bake #3)

The simple Paul Hollywood Ciabatta Recipe. How simple is it? The ingredients are few and the technique seems simple but there is also a bit of practice makes perfect needed here. So far I have made two tries at it. The flavor was good in both but I made a crucial error on the 1st try so it was a bit dense. I should have paid attention tot the kind of yeast - Instant Yeast means Fast Acting Yeast and I just breezed right past that distinction the 1st time. I have some pics of both tries below.

They both mixed up very well and formed a lovely dough ball.

Gluten is really amazing to watch form.

Try 1

Try 2

The problem was in the rise - see difference in size of dough before and after proofing

Try 1 Before

Try 1 After

Try 2 Before

Try 2 After

The shaping of the dough is a little harder than it looks.
The dough is quite soft and sticky so you have to be decisive with your cuts and getting it on the cooking stone or tray.

Try 1

Try 2

This shows the difference in rise between 1st and 2nd try.

But they both tasted delicious. I can't believe how three ingredients and water can make something so delicious and how you can use the same ingredients in a different way to make a different bread.

Try 1 - They look great

Try 2 - They taste good too!

Comments

Sizzlers (Mom M and Papa Recipe #3 )

I am absolutely positive that these will not taste exactly the same even though I am using the recipe written out in my grandmother's hand. They will not taste the same because my Papa did not get the little sizzler steaks from the Publix butcher where he worked after my grandparent's retired to Florida. They will not taste the same because I am not making them on my grandparent's little gas grill. They will not taste the same because I never found out what "lemon juice (?)" means. They will not taste the same because my grandmother did not make them and my grandfather did not grill them. They will not taste the same because I can only hear in my mind, my grandmother saying "Well, these turned out pretty good". And mostly they will not taste the same because I am not eating them at the table with my "Mom and Papa". But I will have the memories. ...

Don't Waffle about your favorite recipe (Down a Sourdough Rabbit Hole #3)

I tried two different waffle recipes, One was using an overnight sponge and one was mixed 1/2 hour before making. The 1st time I made the overnight sponge recipe, I thought thye were really good but the the next few times, they were ok. I saw this quicker recipe without the overnight wait and gave it a try. I think I like the quicker version better. They seem to hold up better if sharing them and if eating over the next few days. This may already be a known idea, but reheating the waffles using the waffle iron the next day makes them turn out like you just made them. I also experimented with some whipped butters. I made a maple with maple syrup, a raspberry with raspberry jam and a lemon with a bit of lemon juice and zest. The raspberry was the biggest hit. Here are the two recipes I tried: Overnight Sponge Waffles And here is the 30 minute version 30 Minute Waffles My opinion is that the overnight ones seems a bit lighter, but the 30 minute ones were tastier and easier....

4th of July Honey Drops (Mom M Recipe #5)

It has been a little hot for baking lately so there has been a little hiatus in trying recipes from the box. I got some great honey from the farmers market a couple of weeks ago and had been wondering what I was going to use it in. Then I saw this recipe in the box for Honey Drops. I don't recall having these before, but the recipe looks well used so they must have been made a time or two. The recipe makes a nice dough that is easy to roll into balls for baking. Though I was not sure that this was the prescribed method since this like many of the recipes listed only ingredients and no directions. But they baked up just right. You have to make the balls on the smaller side since you are putting them together in sandwich fashion. I suppose you could make a giant sandwich cookie, but I prefer the smaller size. Sin...

My Grandmother's Recipe Box

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