Ciabatta Bread.

What makes it so good?

Tuesday, 28 May, 13

Ciabatta Bread.Ciabatta bread was introduced to North America in the 1980's, when a few select Chicago and Ohio bakeries imported some Italian talent to produce the ciabatta on a larger scale.

In fact, the bread did require some skill to perfect here, but was so quickly accepted by the public as a specially Italian bread, the product rapidly expanded throughout the USA, Canada and Great Britain.

Ciabatta Bread.

Tuesday, 28 May, 13

Ciabatta Bread. There are three distinct features of Ciabatta that makes it so well loved. The actual flavour of the bread, that comes from using a "biga" or starter in the recipe, the light but crispy outer shell, and the tender heart of the bread filled with over-sized air pockets.

All of these features require a delicate balance of baking skill and patience.

Ciabatta Bread.

Tuesday, 28 May, 13

Ciabatta Bread.

The biga, or commonly referred to as a "starter" in North America is essentially a fraction of the recipe started well before the actual recipe. In some cases more than 24 hours earlier. Technically, it is a pre-ferment and can be used in virtually any kind of bread baking you like, but is definitely a requirement for ciabatta and other breads such as sour dough.

Now, what happens to this mini dough recipe is that the yeast has time to actually ferment at room temperature, and this is where the basis of the flavour of ciabatta starts. Using a starter adds flavour complexity as well as texture. When the full recipe is made, the biga is added to the flour and yeast mixture, essentially combining to different yeast and flour doughs to create one.

A biga is also known as a poolish,starter, or pre-ferment.

Tuesday, 28 May, 13

Ciabatta Bread.

The crispy outer shell is partially because of this biga, but also with the ingredients itself. A ciabatta dough is much more loose, even wet when preparing. This is why it's called "ciabatta" because that means "slipper" in Italian.

You should really not be able to form a ciabatta dough into something like a traditional loaf. It sort of spreads out, like a slipper on the pan, which is also why the shape of a ciabatta bread can take on many (somewhat flat) forms.

A biga is also known as a poolish,starter, or pre-ferment.

Tuesday, 28 May, 13

Ciabatta Bread.

The airy pockets inside a ciabatta are a result of the wet dough mixture, and the folding of the dough during the raising process.

Our ciabatta bread goes through 12 hours of raising and folding before it goes in the oven.

Tuesday, 28 May, 13

Ciabatta Bread.

The characteristics of Ciabatta make it an excellent bread for sandwiches, paninis, or cold cut platters with antipasto.

You can also make some amazing salad and soup croutons with the crusts too.

Tuesday, 28 May, 13

Ciabatta Bread.

We invite you to come into Francesca Bakery and try our authentic Ciabatta bread.

Francesca BakeryFrancescaBakery.com2 Invergordon Ave.Toronto, OntarioM1S 2Y8416-299-1174

Tuesday, 28 May, 13