This bread is super chewy and has a thin and light crusty crust with holly crumb…delicious as sandwich or just dipped into a nice olive oil…and no-knead!

– Hybrid?

Yes, in this recipe I combined two methods… methods that I used when making sourdough and ciabatta bread…and eliminating many steps.

– How this hybrid bread tastes?

Well, pretty much as the name says…sourdough and ciabatta…the bread is a bit chewer than the ciabatta bread with a hint of the sourness from the sourdough.

– Is this recipe easy to follow?

Absolutely, especially if you have sourdough ready to go…mix all the ingredients and just using stretch & fold and stretch & coil method…no-kneading at all. Just be very patient and let time work on the dough and strengthen the dough by development of gluten.

– How do I store the bread?

I usually leave one loaf in the refrigerator wrapped in plastic bag when consumed in a few days. Toast the slices or reheat the whole loaf at 350^oF for 20-30 minutes.

– Can I freeze the bread?

Yes, as soon as the bread cools down, place in a freezer bag, remove as much air as you can and store in the freezer until ready to enjoy. You can thaw the bread by placing the bread overnight in the refrigerator and reheat at 350^oF for 30 minutes or so by spraying the crust with water before placing it in the oven.

– Are you ready to try this easy and yet delicious bread?

Ingredients:

• 180 g sourdough starter (100% hydration)
• 915 g bread flour
• 695 g water
• 2 g yeast
• 15 g salt
• 30 g olive oil

Method:

The tutorial for the 78% hydration ciabatta can be found HERE.

In a rectangle container with lid, mix the water with yeast.  Stir gently until all the yeast is totally dissolved.

Add in the sourdough starter and mix. Next add olive oil, flour and salt.  Mix using a Danish dough whisk or spatula as the dough will be very wet.

Mix until the dough comes together.

Cover the dough and let it rest for 1 hour in a warm environment.

Using a stretch and fold method, wet your hands and gently pull the dough from one side of the container and fold into the middle of the dough. Do the same on the other three sides of the container, folding always into the middle of the dough.

Once all the sides had been stretched and fold over, flip the dough so the fold in on the bottom of the dough.

Cover and again let it rest in a warm place for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Once the time is up, perform the same stretch and fold (all for sides of the container and tuck the fold on the bottom again). Cover and let it rest in a warm place for another 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Next we will be using the coil and fold method. Wet your hands and reach under the dough which is spread on the container and lift slowly, the front of the dough will detach and go under forming a coil, repeat on the opposite side. Then use the same method on the other side.

Let it rest for 45 minutes and repeat the method of fold/coil. Cover and let it rest in a warm place for 45 minutes to 1 hr. The dough will be very giggling…if you feel that the dough does not have enough elasticity, go another round of fold/coil.

Sprinkle flour on the counter and on top of the dough. Turn the container with the dough on the counter and let the dough fall into the flour surface.

Sprinkle more flour on the top of dough and loose the bottom with the help of dough scraper.

Cut into 4 pieces, and gently place them on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.  Sprinkle more flour on the top to avoid sticking. Cover and let it rest for approximately 1 to 1 ½ hour.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 450^oF with an empty pan on the bottom of the oven and boil approximately 1 to ½ cup of water.

Spray the dough with a little water, then place the dough into the oven and carefully add the boiling water on the empty pan to create steam. Close the oven door and bake for 15 minutes at 450^oF.

For the first 15 minutes, spray a little water in the oven every 3-4 minutes. After the 15 minutes, remove the water in the oven and lower the temperature to 425^oF and bake for another 15 minutes.

Turn the oven off and leave the oven door ajar for 10 minutes.

Remove the sourdough ciabatta from the oven and let it cool completely on a wire rack.

– Looking for different bread recipes? Check these out…

Thank you for visiting Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week!

A fresh cup of soy milk just out of the machine is unbelievable delicious, plain, with a bit of sugar or in your coffee.

When growing up in Brazil, my mom used to make soy milk from scratch, she would soak the beans, put them into the blender, and grind until a consistency of milk shake and then strain, then the milk is place into a big pan and boiled.

When the soy milk is cooking there is a very distinct aroma, therefore when I make soymilk I love the smell that comes from the machine as it brings me so many great memories of my childhood.

Now, I make fresh soy milk every 3 days and we use in coffee, with cereal, baking and just as it. Soy milk is an essential part of our breakfast.

– Are looking for a healthy substitute for dairy-free milk?

Soy milk might be the answer for you if you are looking for a no-dairy milk.

– How the homemade soy milk taste?

I would really encourage you to try making soy milk from scratch as it tastes much better than the store-bought ones, no matter which brand.

When buying store-bought soy milk (like many plant-based milks), you will often find unnecessary additives, preservatives and thickeners.

– What is the easiest way to make soy milk?

Well, the most common way to make soy milk is to use a good blender, but I decided to use a soy milk machine, a specific machine that is built to mainly make soy milk.

– What do you need to make soy milk?

Only one ingredient…a good quality of organic soybeans. Really…soybeans and water. The trick is to soak the soybeans overnight or up to 12 hours.

How I do it?

I wash about 5 cup of soybeans and soak overnight. Drain well and store into 2 freezer bags. I use the frozen beans and place directly into the machine with water. After approximately 35 minutes, the process is done.

I pour the milk through a thin colander and the milk is ready to be used. The remaining is stored in a glass container, cooled and stored in the refrigerator.

One important thing is to wash the soy milk machine as soon as you are done, otherwise all the small soy particles will stick on the wall of the machine/blade making it very difficult to wash.

– How do I make soy milk without a machine?

Wash the soybeans and soak overnight.

Blend the soaked soybeans in water until smooth like a milk shake consistency.

Pass the soybean paste through a filter/fine colander or cheese cloth.

Boil the liquid on the stove top and let it simmer for a couple of minutes.

Remove from the heat and serve.

You can make the soy milk more diluted by adding more water to the final liquid.

– Like the freshly made soy milk? You might want to take a look at these…

Did you know that soy contains is a great source of protein? Soy in low in saturated fat and does not contain cholesterol and is an awesome substitute for dairy milk.

Thank you for visiting Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week!

This ciabatta has a super open crumb, it is so light and airy…perfect to dip into an extra virgin olive oil, as your soup companion or as sandwich.

With the present social distancing, for me baking bread has been one of the best therapy, as I twist here and there recipes to see if I can get a better result…and all my friends love it as I tend to send them out very often.

If you are not familiar with ciabatta please look at this post and this one…

– Why is this ciabatta so light?

It is so light because has 78% of water in the dough.

– Is the dough very sticky?

Definitely, since 78% it’s water…as the gluten forms less sticky the dough will be. As the ratio of water increases, harder is to handle the dough.

– What is the secret to work with sticky dough?

Wet hands…yes, wetting your hands before handling the dough makes all the difference.

– Is it really a no-knead bread?

Absolutely…only mix well and use two methods, stretch and fold (all four sides) and coil and fold (2 sides).

– Is it hard to achieve such an open crumb?

Yes, just follow the recipe carefully and handle the dough very gently.

In this recipe I added extra steps as compared to the Easy No-Knead Ciabatta and I believe I got a better texture.

– Ready to check on the recipe?

I end up with 3 loaves and gave two to my friends that live in the area…no need to mention that they were so happy as it is so hard to find freshly baked bread now days due to the lock down.

Ingredients for:

2 loaves

• 530 g bread flour
• 414 g water
• 20 g olive oil
• 8 g salt
• 3 g yeast

3 loaves

• 800 g bread flour
• 624 g water
• 30 g olive oil
• 12 g salt
• 4 g yeast

4 loaves

• 1100 g bread flour
• 858 g water
• 40 g olive oil
• 17 g salt
• 5 g yeast

Method:

In a rectangle container with lid, mix the water with yeast.  Stir gently until all the yeast is totally dissolved.

Add in olive oil, salt and flour.  Mix using a Danish dough whisk as the dough will be very wet.

Mix until the dough comes together.

Cover the dough and let it rest for 1 hour in a warm environment.

Using a stretch and fold method, wet your hands and gently pull the dough from one side of the container and fold into the middle of the dough. Do the same on the other three sides of the container, folding always into the middle of the dough.

Once all the sides had been stretched and fold over, flip the dough so the fold in on the bottom of the dough.

Cover and again let it rest in a warm place for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Once the time is up, perform the same stretch and fold (all for sides of the container and tuck the fold on the bottom again). Cover and let it rest in a warm place for another 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Next we will be using the coil and fold method. Wet your hands and reach under the dough which is spread on the container and lift slowly, the front of the dough will detach and go under forming a coil, repeat on the opposite side. Then use the same method on the other side.

Let it rest for 45 minutes and repeat the method of fold/coil. Cover and let it rest in a warm place for 45 minutes to 1 hr. The dough will be very giggling…

Sprinkle flour on the counter and on top of the dough. Turn the container with the dough on the counter and let the dough fall into the flour surface.

Sprinkle more flour on the top of dough and loose the bottom with the help of dough scraper.

Cut into 3 pieces, and gently place them on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.  Sprinkle more flour on the top to avoid sticking. Cover and let it rest for approximately 1 to 1 ½ hour.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 450^oF with an empty pan on the bottom of the oven and boil approximately 1 to ½ cup of water.

Spray the dough with a little water, then place the dough into the oven and carefully add the boiling water on the empty pan to create steam. Close the oven door and bake for 15 minutes at 450^oF.

For the first 10 minutes, spray a little water in the oven every 5 minutes. After the 15 minutes, remove the water in the oven and lower the temperature to 425^oF and bake for another 15 minutes.

Turn the oven off and leave the oven door ajar for 10 minutes.

Remove the ciabatta from the oven and let it cool completely on a wire rack.

Ready to be picked up…

– Looking for more bread recipes? Check these out…

Thank you for visiting Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week!

This soft and cottony bread is loaded with many kind of seeds, super healthy and so tasty.

– Do you remember the post about no-knead multi-seed sourdough bread?

Well, this is pretty much using similar ingredients…without the sourdough starter but with the water roux.

– What is the texture of this multi-seed bread?

It is amazingly soft, so soft that you cannot even tell that is a healthy bread loaded with seeds. This is because I used the tangzhong or water roux method to make this bread.

– How the bread taste?

The bread is super aromatic due to the combination of seeds, especially the black and the white sesame seed.

– Want to learn more about tangzhong or water roux method of bread making?

Please check this post about starch gelatinization.

– Ready to have your hands on the dough?

Ingredients:

Tangzhong or water roux

• 50 g bread flour
• 250 g water

Multi-seed bread dough

• 450 g bread flour
• 100 g whole wheat flour
• 30 g flaxseed meal
• 140 g water
• 8 g salt
• 8 g vital wheat gluten
• 8 g yeast
• 60 g brown sugar
• 20 g poppy seeds
• 30 g flaxseeds
• 30 g chia seeds soaked in 70 g water for about ½ hour
• 50 g toasted sesame seed (black and white)
• 30 g hemp seeds
• 55 g butter

Method:

Tangzhong or water roux

Whisk together the water and the flour until the mixture is well blended and free of lumps.

Stir the mixture while it cooks over the medium heat to reach 65^oC/149 – 150^oF. It takes about 2-3 minutes.

Continue whisking until the mixture starts to thicken. The mixture of flour will have “lines”.

Remove from the heat.

Transfer to a bowl, cover with a plastic film to avoid “skin” from forming.

Ready to add to the bread dough once is cool.

Tangzhong or water roux can bend kept in the fridge for up to 48 hours.

Multi-seed bread dough

In the mixer, add all the water roux, all the flours and flaxseed meal, chia seeds except for the other dry seeds and butter.

Turn the machine and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, until a uniform very wet and sticky dough.

Add the remaining seeds and increase the speed to “2” and let it mix for 15 minutes. The dough should be still somehow sticky. Do not add extra flour as the dough will be less sticky as gluten forms.

Add the butter and mix for 10 to 12 minutes more. Take a small portion of the dough (like a golf ball) and stretch gently until a very thin and transparent membrane (windowpane) and you can see light through it.

If the dough tears mix for another 2-3 minutes until the dough pass the windowpane test. demonstrating that the gluten is very well developed, and it will create a very light crumb. The dough should be very elastic.

Remove the dough from the mixer and place in a bowl by covering with a plastic film.

Let dough proof until the dough tripled to its original size.

Knock back the dough and split the dough into two large balls and each large ball into 4 smaller balls. Flatten the small balls making sure that the air is removed, fold into thirds and then roll it like a Swiss roll.

Place the Swiss rolls into a bread pan and let it rise until triple of its original size.

Bake in a preheated 350^oF oven for approximately 25 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven and let the bread cool on a wire rack. Slice according to your like.

– If you enjoy this recipe of multi-seed sandwich bread, you might to check on these other bread recipes…

Thank you for visiting Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week!

This ciabatta has a slightly crispy crust and chewy crumb with all size of holes and loaded with Kalamata olive…delicious for sandwich or just dipped in olive oil.

My husband loves olives, all kind of olive, so when I made this bread he was is awe…and now this is his favorite bread…

his simple and easy no-knead ciabatta uses an overnight poolish, so you need to plan ahead…but after this first step there is not other trick…indeed super simple and easy.

– What is ciabatta?

Ciabatta is Italian means “slipper”, meaning that the bread is so running that has a shape of slipper…mainly flat.

– No-knead ciabatta?

Yes, like all the other no-knead bread, ciabatta can be made using the same method.

– What is poolish?

Poolish is a starter or pre-dough which is made of 100% hydration (equal parts of water and flour by weight) and a pinch of yeast. Allow the poolish to develop for about 12 to 16 hours depending of the room temperature.

– Are you ready to try this recipe?

Ingredients:

Poolish

• 100 g water
• 100 g bread flour
• 1 pinch of yeast

Final Dough

• 325 g water
• 15 g olive oil
• 5 g salt
• 2 g yeast
• 100 g whole wheat flour
• 300 g bread flour
• 150 g Kalamata olive drained and sliced

Method:

Poolish

The night or late afternoon before, in a medium/large bowl dissolve the yeast into the water and add the flour. Mix well and cover. Let the poolish ferment at room temperature for 12-16 hours.

Once the poolish has lots and lots of bubbles and started to collapse on the top and smell sweet, it is time to start the bread.

Final Dough

Measure and add the water and pour into the poolish.  Mix gently to loosen the poolish up. Add the, olive oil, flours, yeast and salt.

Mix it up with a Danish dough whisk or with a fork. Mix until the dough comes together. Go around the bowl (rotating approximately ¼ every time) using a stretch and fold method for 10 times.

Place the dough onto a rectangle container with lid and let the dough rest for 1 hour.

Fold in the sliced Kalamata olives using the stretch and fold method until the olives are evenly spread into the dough (4 times). Cover the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Use the coil and fold method, 4 times and tuck the end of the dough down. Cover the dough and rest for 30 minutes.

Repeat the process for another 2 times. Resting for 45 minutes in between.

After the last dough resting, 40 to 45 minutes, sprinkle flour on the counter and on top of the dough.

Turn the container with the dough on the counter and let the dough fall into the flour surface.

Sprinkle more flour on the dough and loose the bottom with the help of dough scraper.

Cut into 2 pieces and place them on a flour couch. Do not worry about its shape. Sprinkle more flour on the top if necessary, to avoid sticking. Cover for approximately 45 to 50 minutes.

In the meantime, preheat the oven to 450^oF with a pan containing water.

Gently transfer the dough to a pan lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 15 minutes at 450^oF. Remove the water in the oven and bake for another 10 minutes. Lower the temperature to 425^oF and bake for another 5 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let it cool completely on a wire rack.

\

– If you enjoy this simple and easy recipe of no-knead bread, you might want to look at these…

Did you know that olive is a fruit? Kalamata olives were originally from Greece and in now days these olives grow in United States and Australia. Olives are considered healthy, as they are a good source of fiber and vitamins.

Thank you for visiting Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week!

A simple touch of cocoa powder in the bread dough can add so much color and aroma to your everyday slice of bread.

Hello everyone…yes, I have been incognito for a few weeks…a combination of work load and other things in my life that I want to prioritize…such as travel (vacation)…and suddenly here we are past mid January…

Time indeed flies…even faster as older I get and so much has been happening around me, I just want to take in and enjoy every moment…I tried to take a small break from blogging and see how I felt…well…I miss it, so here I am back to the world of sharing recipes by blogging.

Okay, enough of this…and let’s talk about cocoa bread…

– How the cocoa bread taste?

Honestly not much different than the plain one, the color is very deceiving as I have imagined biting into a big chunk of chocolate…sorry to disappoint you…does not taste like chocolate.

– So, why bother adding cocoa powder into the bread dough?

Cocoa powder does not contain fats or sugar, therefore makes the bread a bit healthier and smell so good.

– Tangzhong method?

Yes, this recipe uses tangzhong method, which you can read more about it here.  The bread stays soft, cottony for many days.

– Are you ready to give this recipe a try?

Ingredients:

Tangzhong or water roux

• 40 g flour
• 200 g water

Bread dough

• 450 g bread flour
• 35 g honey
• 25 g sugar
• 25 g unsweetened cocoa  powder
• 5 g yeast
• 5 g salt
• 80 g heavy cream
• 70 g water
• 30 g butter

Method:

Tangzhong or Water roux

Whisk together the water and the flour until the mixture is well blended and free of lumps.

Stir the mixture while it cooks over the medium heat to reach 65^oC/149 – 150^oF. It takes about 2-3 minutes.

Continue whisking until the mixture starts to thicken. The mixture of flour will have “lines”.

Remove from the heat.

Transfer to a bowl, cover with a plastic film to avoid “skin” from forming.

Ready to add to the bread dough once is cool.

Tangzhong or water roux can bend kept in the fridge for up to 48 hours.

Cocoa bread dough

In the mixer, add all the water roux, and all the other ingredients under bread, except for the butter.

Turn the machine and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, until a uniform very wet and sticky dough.

Increase the speed to “2” and let it mix for 15 minutes. The dough should be very sticky. Do not add extra flour as the dough will be less sticky as gluten forms.

Add the butter and mix for 15 to 20 minutes more. Take a small portion of the dough (like a golf ball) and stretch gently until a very thin and transparent membrane (windowpane) and you can see light through it.

If the dough tears mix for another 2-3 minutes until the dough pass the windowpane test. demonstrating that the gluten is very well developed, and it will create a very light crumb. The dough should be very elastic.

Remove the dough from the mixer and place in a bowl by covering with a plastic film.

Let dough proof until the dough tripled to its original size.

Assembly

Shape the dough as you like.  I used two different pans, one bread pan and the other one I made into small dinner rolls.

Knock back the dough and split into desired size and shape and let it rise until triple of its original size.

Cover the pan and bake in a preheated oven of 350^oF for approximately 25 minutes.

Remove from the oven and flip the bread into a wire rack to cool.

– Looking for more bread recipes?  Check these out…

Did you know that cocoa powder is healthy? Chocolate is made from cocoa plant by adding fat, sugar and vanilla, therefore need to be consumed in moderation. Unsweetened cocoa powder is a great source of iron, magnesium, zinc, manganese and other minerals. Moreover, studies have found cocoa powder to exert anti-inflammatory properties.

Thank you for visiting Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week!

This sourdough bread is loaded with complex flavor baked from a sourdough starter that was cultivated for 21 days…super easy no-knead method.

I had made many sourdough breads in the past, and a few month ago decided to start a new sourdough starter. Since sourdough culture varies from location to location…I wanted a starter from our new (not so new) place.

I browsed through internet and came up with 20% whole wheat flour mixture with bread flour. It all started with 10 g of the flour mix plus 10 g of water (bottle), and after many feedings and pampering the sourdough starter and 21 days later I was content with what I got. It might have taken longer that usual as the weather was cold.

This recipe was a composition from mainly two YouTube videos, Full Proof Baking and Bake with Jack.  If you are into making sourdough bread, I highly recommend these videos as I learned a lot and use their techniques when baking bread.

– Why using sourdough starter?

It seems that baking bread with sourdough starter is healthier than using the conventional bread yeast due to the bread’s prebiotic content, therefore easier to digest.

– What is sourdough starter?

Sourdough starter is a culture of wild yeast found in flour. Like any fermented food, sourdough bread is fermented using lactobacillus. The combination of wild yeast (found in flour) and lactic-acid bacteria is what makes the dough rise.

– Is sourdough bread easier to digest?

Scientists believe that the prebiotic content in sourdough bread may improve gut health and ease digestion. Moreover, gluten levels are lower in sourdough bread as compared to traditional yeasted bread.

– Are you ready to try baking sourdough bread?

This particular recipe uses 80% hydration…meaning that I used 80 g of water for every 100 g of flour.

Ingredients:

• 200 g mature sourdough starter (100% hydration)
• 400 g bread flour
• 300 g water
• 10 g salt

Method:

In a medium bowl whisk the bread flour and water until all the water is totally incorporated into the flour. Cover and let it rest for about 2 to 3 hours, this is called autolyze.

Add the sourdough starter to the dough and mix until the starter is completely mixed to the dough. Use the stretch and fold method around the bowl, approximately 50 times. There will be gluten forming.

Cover the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Add the salt and mix again using the stretch and fold method until all the salt is incorporated into the dough.

Rest for 30 minutes. Spray the counter with a little water and place the dough on it.  Laminate the dough and fold into thirds, twice. Place the dough back into the bowl and cover.

Rest for another 30 minutes. Spray the counter with a little amount of water and place the dough. Stretch and fold the dough to the center, 4 times around it. Place it back to the bowl and cover.

Rest for 45 minutes and repeat the stretch and fold the dough to the center.

Rest for 45 minutes. Place the dough over the moist counter and fold and coil the dough twice.

Rest for 45 minutes and repeat the fold and coil.

Rest for 45 minutes.  Sprinkle flour on the counter and on the top of the dough. Flip the bowl on the counter and let the dough fall on the flour surface.

Pre-shape the dough by stretching and folding to the center of the dough.

Flour well the banneton and place the dough seam up.

Place the dough in the refrigerator overnight, uncovered.

Next morning, pre-heat oven to 475^oF with a tray of water.

In the meantime, boil more water.

Flip the dough from the banneton to a floury surface. Using a soft brush, gently brush off excess of flour. Make the cut on the dough and spray with water. Place the dough into the hot oven.  Carefully add the boiling water to the tray. Close the oven door.

Spray more water on the dough every 3 minutes, 3 times. After 15 minutes of baking, remove the water tray and the parchment paper underneath the bread. Lower the temperature to 375^oF, bake for another 20 minutes.

Remove the bread from the oven and let it cool on a wire rack. Make sure the bread is completely cool before slicing.

– Looking for more bread recipe?

Check these out…

Thank you for visiting Color Your Recipes…have a colorful week!