Breaking Bread and Making Peace with Friends and Family

As the cycle of the seasons wends its way to another close, I am taking the opportunity to reach out to those people in my life who I haven’t made enough time for in the past year. What better way to make the invitation or break the proverbial ice than to say, “come over for dinner”, “let’s meet for lunch, or coffee, or drinks”!

“Breaking Bread” is a time-honored euphemism for stopping the business of the day and enjoying the company of others. One never breaks bread alone, but always with friends, family, colleagues or strangers.

This holiday season, I am going to take the time to enjoy the abundance of nature; walking in the woods, smelling the bright, fresh air of morning and taking note of the brilliance of the stars in the dark sky of the mountains, where I live. I am also going to make a point of enjoying a meal with my grown children and my new neighbors.

Of course, as a baker, I have the luxury of bringing a hot Ciabatta loaf home to enjoy with my homemade chutney and local goat cheese, but several of my friends would be thrilled to help me bake these easy Ciabatta Rolls.

Ciabatta Rolls

3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (180 grams) tepid water (70 - 78 degrees F)
1 teaspoon (5 grams) instant yeast
1-1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (250 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon (5 grams) sea salt
3/4 teaspoon (5 grams) granulated sugar
2-1/2 tablespoons (28 grams) olive oil, plus more for oiling the pan and brushing the rolls

Pour the water into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the yeast, flour, salt, sugar and olive oil and stir with a rubber spatula to blend into a dough. With the dough hook, mix on low for 3 minutes. Dough should come together. Mix on high and knead until it clears the sides of the bowl and collects on the hook, becoming smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes more.

Keep an eye on the mixer, as it may move, or 'walk' on the counter.

Oil a 7-by-11-inch baking dish. Scrape the dough into the dish and pat it with oiled fingertips to flatten it. Let it rest and relax for 5 minutes, then use lightly oiled fingertips to push and stretch it across the bottom of the dish. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free spot until it has more than doubled in volume and reaches the top of the pan, about 2 hours.

Lightly oil a large baking sheet. Uncover the dough and place the baking sheet, right side down, on top of the dough. Invert the dish onto the baking sheet and shake once or twice to release the dough onto the sheet.

Use a sharp chef’s knife to cut the dough into 6 squares, and use the edge of the knife to push the squares 3 inches apart on the baking sheet. Put 4 short drinking glasses near the corners of the pan and drape a sheet or two of plastic wrap over them so that it covers the dough pieces and keeps them moist but does not touch them. Let the dough pieces stand until they have expanded by about 50%, about 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees. Remove the plastic and glasses and bake the rolls until dark golden brown, about 20 minutes. Brush the hot rolls with olive oil. Let cool completely on the baking sheet before slicing with a sharp serrated knife.

By : Daniel Leader

Amazon al Dente at 9:15 AM PST, December 20, 2008