Saturday, September 8, 2012

Ciabatta with egg salad

The best place to eat is always at home (and in my case, especially if I am staying with my parents haha!). Not only is everything prepared with loads of TLC, but you can be sure about quality. No MSG or excess oil usage and thus, guaranteeing your wellbeing;)

Sadly enough, I live alone so I have to pretend to have an imaginary family to cook for otherwise I would end up with all sorts of nutrient deficiency issues. This time, I played with dough (once again!) but rather than attempting a sweet outcome as seen here, I opted for something that I can nibble at with savoury condiments.

Ciabatta:
375g bread flour
1 tbsp dried yeast
1 1/4 cups warmed water
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoon salt

I have added all the ingredients into a mixer at low speed and bumped it it medium speed whilst slowly incorporating the salt. Mix it at medium speed for 20 minutes before transferring to a floured bowl and allowing to rest for at least two hours in warm room conditions (I placed mine in front of a fan heater hehe).

After 2 hours, you should notice some rising. Place dough on a flat baking tray and flatten it whilst creating some "dimples". If you like, you could add olives or dried tomatoes in those "dimples". Coat with a thin layer of olive oil before sending it to a preheated oven at 215C for 15 minutes.

I've always had this unopened bottle of olive oil in my pantry..must have bought it because it was on special in the supermarket # howtobeacheappo101

Doesn't look promising at the beginning...

And some oven magic happened!

And now, I present to your ciabatta sticks for nibbling on. This reminds me of a scene in Lady and the Tramp when the two doggies had their Italian date:)

Tiny holes to symbolize life (in the form of yeast!)

So...yours truly decided to get more creative with her photo taking skills and played with food placement. Egg salad can be easily made by mashing two boiled eggs and mixing it with a dollop of mayonnaise and a generous handful of cheese (whichever suits your fancy). I've added some parsley into mine for that extra popped of colour. Don't forget to season your egg salad too!!:)



Top three pictures are quite generic, I have to admit:P



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