Dinner Tonight: Ciabatta

1/6/2013

We thought the no-knead bread recipe invented by the Sullivan Street Bakery in New York (we ran the recipe last year) was easy. But as Crocodile Dundee might say, “That ain’t easy. This is easy.” Teresa Stebbins sent in this recipe for ciabatta; it requires no kneading and the dough only rises once. If you mix the ingredients together in the morning, she writes, you can have a fresh loaf of bread at dinner.

Ciabatta

¼ teaspoon active dry yeast

2 cups warm water

1 teaspoon salt

4 cups flour

Dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the salt and flour, and stir to combine ingredients well. It will look shaggy, but that is all right; this is a wet dough. Cover and let sit 8-12 hours.

Place baking stone, if you have one, on lowest rack in oven; if you don’t have one, place a cast-iron pot or skillet on lowest rack. Sprinkle flour or corn meal on stone, or spray cast-iron pot skillet with nonstick spray (or sprinkle it with four or cornmeal). Preheat oven to 400°.

“Dump” dough onto the prepared pan or stone, and bake 25-30 minutes until nicely brown.

— Teresa Stebbins

Have a recipe that is fast and healthy? Send it to food@theblade.com or Dinner Tonight, The Blade, 541 N. Superior St., Toledo, OH 43660.