Ciabatta pizzas

I woke up this morning all excited to to make a bunch of food today, especially ciabatta loaves for some casual pizzas.  Not every living thing in the house felt the same as the morning began.  Our resident cat, Tom was feeling completely the opposite.   All he felt like doing was lazily watching me from time to time.   He chose a place to lounge where he could see from the living room into the kitchen and so he would lift his head once in a while to check on my progress.  Apparently the making of ciabatta didn't interest him at all.  If only I had opened a can of tuna ...

ciabatta dough in a rectangular container, pre-rise

Ciabatta is so good: a wonderful white Italian bread, usually made elongated and broad and flat, and with many holes once you get past the crust.  There are many variations of this bread.  The ciabatta recipe I am using results in a dough that literally flows out of a container.  To begin with, after mixing, the dough is poured into a rectangular container that is slightly oiled for an initial rise of about 90 minutes.   This container shape is a great help since after the rise to triple its volume the dough is carefully tilted out and slowly flows onto the work surface still keeping the basic shape of the container.  The shape makes cutting segments for each loaf with a bench knife a bit easier.

ciabatta loaves cut after rising 

As can be seen above, even with that shaping assistance they will not come out perfectly symmetrical as the dough is much too soft.  Since these are being cooked on flat baking sheets, they will not be constrained into a firm precise shape as would occur from breads made in a loaf pan.  But they can be shaped somewhat before they sit for a second rise after which they will go into the oven.

ciabatta loaves fresh from the oven

When they come out, they look beautiful, and are just a bit crusty, and lightly browned.  Once they are sliced into top and bottom halves, they are ready for making ciabatta pizzas.

preparing mushrooms for pizzas

Before assembling the pizzas, though, I sautéed the mushrooms in butter, being careful not to put too many in the pan at once.  This makes it easier to move them around and cook them all evenly, and also limits the amount of water sitting in the pan which is inevitably released from the mushrooms as they cook.  I also chose a slope-sided pan which aids in letting steam escape.  Once they were done, I set out all the rest of the ingredients:  mushrooms, two grated cheeses, sliced black olives, pepperoni, and a garlic and herb sauce.

ciabatta pizzas fresh from the oven

After a quick stint in the hot oven, they come out toasty, crispy, and very very satisfying. They work equally well as a meal or a small snack. And the ciabatta doesn't take that long to make.