Ciabatta Bread

This recipe was awesome! I skipped the bread machine business and made it by hand...the dough was sticky but it worked well enough, just start the yeast in the warm water for a few minutes before throwing in the rest of the ingredients. Instead of loaves I made rolls and they turned out great. I also added 3 tablespoons of dried rosemary to the dough which made all the difference. They were a huge hit with my kids, my daughter told me they tasted just like the bread at our favorite Italian food place and she was right! Misting the dough during baking with a spray bottle is a MUST. Don't skip this step, it's what makes the crust so crispy.

Wonderful recipe ~ so easy. Everytime I make it I get rave reviews!! Easy hint, use spatula to scrape out of breadmaker onto a heavily floured board. Then use a metal scraper to scrape/scoop/lift the floured dough into a rectangle and then plop onto a silpat/greased cookie sheet. This is a rustic bread so it will be chewy with large holes. You really can't use your hands, they'll goo up and you won't be able to handle it. Develop the lift and fold over technique with the scraper and it'll be a breeze.

I was really nervous about this recipe after reading how runny it could be but I followed the directions exactly and it turned out fabulous. Yes it was runny, yes I had a real hard time getting a bowl around it cuz it just ran out on the wooden board I used. Yes it got stuck all over my fingers. And yes I put too much flour on the baking sheets. But it turned out to be the best ciabatta bread I have ever tasted. WELL WORTH THE WORK.

I've been looking for a good hamburger bun recipe and this is it. I dump it all in an oiled boil over a pan of boiling water in the oven for an hour after the initial 15 minute relax. With floured hands I form 5 flatten balls, roll them in sesame seeds, spray them to keep them moist and let them rest again while the oven heats (usually for 20 minutes). I spray them at three minutes and 6 minutes and leave the pan of water underneath while they bake. They are perfect, way better than anything you can buy! Thanks for sharing!

I have made many, many loaves of bread using the bread machine to start the dough. The first batch yielded 2 baguettes; I could not get 2 13x14 loaves out of the dough. The 2nd batchThat I made this evening yielded a pool of dough. Anyone know what I did wrong?

I have baked about one to five loaves of bread a week for 40 years. This is a great loaf of bread. For those who had trouble with the dough being too runny, these suggestions: Use only bread flour as called for in the recipe; AP flour does not absorb as much water. Secondly, measuring flour for bread differs from measuring for cake or cookies (sifted or stirred & fluffed) because bread bakers "feel" the dough while they knead in the flour. Air humidity can also affect the moisture. Just lightly scoop the flour, but if the dough is truly runny, add flour a tablespoon at a time after the first five minutes of kneading until it no longer runny but is still quite wet. Keep in mindd the this bread is meant to spread out into a fairly flat loaf. It's other name is "Italian Slipper Bread." Making bread is a sight & feel process, even in the bread machine.

I made the dough in my bread machine. I poured the bread on to parchment paper and watched the dough run in every direction. I've been making bread for years and have never seen a recipe so far off base. And yes, I measured every thing correctly.

This is a great recipe - excellent bread. Instead of making two loaves, I made one and buns out of the remainder of the dough. Only cooked the buns for 13 minutes. One of the best bread machine recipes I've seen. Certainly will make this a lot!

Great recipe! I discovered (quite by accident) that you can eliminate a step in this recipe. When the bread machine is done, just leave the dough in the machine for an extra 20 minutes instead of taking them out. This keeps it from being handled too much and keeps the flour down. I do it this way all the time now!

This bread is so delicious! I made this with proofing yeast, warm water, sugar, and olive oil. I also added 2T of fresh minced rosemary. I slowly added the flour and salt, kneaded and let it rest for 15 minutes, then let it rise for an hour. The dough is sticky and somewhat gooey but as the submitter stated, "resist the temptation to add more flour". I placed a pan filled with water on the lowest oven rack to increase the humidity for the bread. Instead of dividing the dough into 2 small pieces I kept it one large size. I placed the bread on a parchment paper and baked the bread at 450 degrees for 25 minutes. After the first 10 mins of baking, I spritzed the bread with water every 3 mins a few times. This helps to achieve the nice golden color and crusty bread topping. The wonderful aroma of bread baking made my mouth water and I couldn't wait to eat the bread right out from the oven. The bread baked up beautifully into one large round shape. The top was an even golden brown color. I just had to cut myself a nice warm piece of bread. This is a nice, simple, rustic style bread. The outside is crispy while the inside is soft and tasty. This bread recipe is good as is and I don't see a need to change any ingredients or measurements. This complemented my juicy steak, "Balsamic Mushrooms", and "Roasted Tomatoes with Garlic", also from this site. I used the bread to soaked up all the fresh juices from the tomatoes and mushrooms and steak. My family ate up the entire bread!

Mystery Solved! I think I solved the reason for the wide differences in quality results in the reviews. Use ALL PURPOSE FLOUR not bread flour in the recipe.It gives you a much firmer dough using exactly the same 31/4 cups of flour. Bread flour gives you a runny self- leveling dough that spread out and will not keep the loaf shape you make it into.Using a cookie sheet to contain the dough from flowing over in your oven it will give you a baked loaf about one inch high. My second try I used all purpose flour,the same amount,31/4 cup.I could form a slipper shape loaf. Hope this helps.

Awesome recipe! I actually did everything in my bread machine using the French bread cycle, and it came out perfect. I did add about 2 tsp of yeast, and a half a cup more of flour from taking the others´ advice, but my bread machine did everything, and NO MESS!! The French bread cycle lets it rise a little longer, and I even extended it by 20 min. in the rise cycle, chose dark crust and extended that by 20 mins. as well. It came out perfect and I am scared to make it again, it´s to irresistible so we have been eating it non-stop! THANKS FOR A GREAT RECIPIE!!!

Have to try this again. Maybe I would put the loaf a few minutes shorter in the oven. Because mine got a pretty tough crust.

I've tried this recipe 2 times. With different batches of yeast. This is too runny for Ciabatta and does not rise enough. I've made Ciabatta before and dough is wet, but not this wet.

I made w/o bread machine--here's how: mix warm water, sugar, yeast, and oil. Let sit until foamy. Then add flour and salt, mix in KitchenAid with dough hook for a few minutes and continue with step 2 in recipe. (used 1 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast instead of bread machine yeast, and included 3 TBSP vital wheat gluten in 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour instead of bread flour) Both loaves turned out beautifully--going to try w/ paninis tonight!

Big hit with the family! Thank you for the excellent recipe. I have been experiementing with this recipe and found that the dough is a lot less sticky and easier to deal with when using cold water (from fridge) instead of room temperature. The bread also turned out much softer on the inside with this method. I also brushed the loaves with water every 5 minutes which made the crust more tough and chewy. I also baked at 425 for the first 15 minutes and then 475 for the last 10. During the last 10 minutes I brushed each loaf with olive oil and continued to brush with water every 5. Everyone loved it and my husband said I should stop making other breads and just make this one only! Thanks again! 5 Solid Stars *****

Marina! i love love love this bread. i can't stop making it. LOL it's sooooo easy and comes out awesome each and every time. it makes great panini too! oh and i love one of the reviewers "mistakes" where she forgot to take the bread out of the machine to let it rest, and ended up letting it rest in the machine! one less messy step! Thanks for a great recipe Marina :)

Simple no nonsense bread. I found that if you spritz the bread too soon while it's in the oven, it stops the bread from rising while baking. So wait 10 minutes or so before spritzing.

I made this as directed in my Zojirushi. I let the dough rest for 15 minutes in the machine and then poured the dough into 2 well oiled 9-inch cake pans. I then sprayed cooking spray on top of the dough and covered with greased plastic wrap for the rise time. I baked about 25 mins with a pan of water on the bottom oven shelf. I didn't spray the dough. Turned out two round, fairly even, inch and half high loaves. I sliced the loaves flat across and filled with deli meat and cheese. Sandwiches for a crowd! Will use again and again.

My hubby loves this bread (so do I). I use 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour and 2 cups bread flower. It makes the dough easier to work with and adds to the nutritional value. It is great for paninis.

Wow, this is good! I make a lot of homemade bread, so it takes a lot to impress me, but this bread is great. Yes, it's really sticky, but it bakes up beautifully. I made this to take to a potluck goodbye for a friend and was going to bring both loaves, but I'm only going to take one loaf now! This is great for eating with butter, with bruschetta (what I made it for) and with some oil as dipping. Plus, it's super easy and I'm sure would be easy to double since it makes pretty small loaves. I definitely plan on making this again! Thanks for the recipe!

great & versatile recipe, marina. thx a million. CAN'T TOUCH THIS? my breadmaker took 2hrs and 20min to yield a blob with half the flour on it still untouched. still wonder why... BEATING THE STICKY PART undeterred, i scooped out the mysterious mud onto a lightly floured surface. by dusting my hands in flour on and off, i bypassed the sticky part altogether to form 8 awesome buns. THE PAN'S INCOGNITO here's how to bypass the reported "bowl-size issue": cover the pan with a teatowel and send it incognito (oven power off). drafts will be wondering "where is cognito?" BOWL IN THE OVEN took the culinary student's advice re the boiling water bowl. good idea. just remember to add salt in the water. why? c'mon. no rain, no rainbow. no salt, no steam :-) ADD-ONS i'll also take some other chefs' advice about adding garlic or olives or both next time. HEADLINE NEWS thx for your reviews everybody. this ciabatta became an instant classic in my family. Greek Lover Boy has the story... hasta la vista, baby.

My husband loves ciabatta rolls for making sandwiches. We usually buy them at BJ's. Thought I would try my hand at this recipe because in the reviews 2 important words kept coming up. 1. Delicious 2. Easy. I doubled the recipe and made it in my kitchenaid mixer and followed the directions exactly exept for the dimpling of the bread... After I got it in the oven I looked up dimpling and it said to make dimples by making indentions with your fingers... Well I apparently "docked" the bread.... making holes with a fork... Nonetheless, it came out very nicely! Tasty!! Easy!! Husband gave it five stars and he would definitely let me know if it wasn't up to snuff. Thanks Marina for the great recipe... :) Will make again for sure! UPDATE! ok now I have made almost every ciabatta bread recipe that I have found at all interesting. I keep coming back to this one. My husband also likes this one the best. I usually add a little rosemary that I have growing outside... This bread is great for dipping too!

Pa has made this bread 20 or so times since the 1st try. Everyone that tastes it asks for recipe. Really a favorite with my family an friends. Thanks again.Marina!!!!

This was a great recipe! First time I made it and it was delicious! I used a food processor with the dough blade. It worked great and it was a lot quicker than a bread machine. I also added garlic/chili coarse kosher salt on the top before I baked it. Amazing!!! I can't wait to make it again!

This is one of the first bread recipies I tried years ago. I use this for my home made Schlotzsky's substitusky bread. Just pour batter into a cake pan or individual springform pans for smaller size. Yum.

There's a reason it's called "artisan" bread. Even with a bread machine, baking bread is an art. You can't just dump everything in the bread machine & expect perfect results. All bread recipes should give flour measurements by weight or as a range when measured by volume. Even though the bread machine helps with the physical work of bread-making, you're still responsible for making sure the dough is right by adjusting the flour accordingly. Flour requirements will vary based on weather conditions. During the initial knead, look at the dough to make sure it's forming a nice smooth ball, not a gummy mess and add more flour if needed. This recipe makes a nice loaf if you pay a little attention to the dough in the beginning.

This is a good recipe... Haven't tried yet in combination with creating the sponge first . I am going to make the sponge, then finish the dough using the bread machine, & this recipe. I make most of my own bread, & for gifts, too. The reviews here were helpful. Rodney Dowdle April 9 2006 is an excellent review with excellent suggestions. I will be back to let you know of my version results.

As a novice baker, I found this recipe to be very easy. It turned out great the very first time. Reading the reviews, it seems that the "loose" texture of the dough is a problem for some people. I found that you need to really flour the surface-- I used parchment paper-- that you pour the dough onto so it doesn't stick. Then after the second rise, I sprinkled some flour on the top of the dough and sort of rolled it around so that all of the dough was covered in flour and there was no problem with it sticking to anything at that point! When I formed the loaves, I sort of twisted one of them and left the other one. The one I twisted came out much fluffier than the other one. I also did the spritzing every 3-5 minutes. WOW- it came out so yummy! Just like from an artisan bakery. I was totally impressed with myself! and the recipe, too! :)

GREAT BREAD! I was pleasantly surprised with how well this bread turned out. I used it to make sandwiches for dinner and it was a huge hit. I followed the recipe exactly, and did not have an issue w/ it being too wet or runny at all. It was a nice, simple, rustic style bread. I can totally see enjoying slices of this with an infused dipping oil, and that's exactly what I plan to do with it next time~YUM! Thanks for sharing. :)

This bread is the best. A lot of work is taken out by the machine and I can still keep my hands in, if you will, by only using the dough cycle. I will say that I put a round cake pan full of water in the oven rather than spritzing as it was easier. It freed me up to do other things. Again, great bread.

I printed this recipe to use for homemade bruschetta. There is a restaurant here that uses Ciabatta for their Bruschetta, but the loaves are a lot smaller (about the size of my hand spread) and the shape is rectangular. I also bought some in the grocery store and they were the exact same as that restaurant's. I was sucked into this recipe because of how quick and easy it is, but it really didn't taste as "authentic" as the ones I have purchased. I made 4 rectangular loaves and baked it for only 20 minutes. They came out poofier than I expected. I spritzed my loaves every 5 mins as suggested, and they came out with a nice golden crust. The bread was very good. I think I will have to use a recipe that calls for a starter being made the day ahead if I want the taste I am going for. Thank you for the recipe - it really is a nice tasting white bread.

DO THIS AND YOUR DOUGH WILL BE EASY TO WORK WITH!!! I made this bread yesterday to serve with baked ziti. I ended up kneading it by hand (proofing water, yeast, and sugar for ten minutes till foamy then adding salt, oil, and flour then kneading for 10 minutes). The dough was not too sticky as I was kneading. Then I put it in a big bowl with a little olive oil in it and rolled it around to cover all sides. The key here is that I did it in the MORNING so I covered the bowl with plastic wrap and put it in the refridgerator for the day until I came home at around 4 and it rose a bunch. My dough was not sticky or runny because it was cold. All I had to do was let it out of the bowl, punch it down and split into two loaves, dimple and lightly flour (I didn't do the 15 min rest time since it spent so much time in the fridge). I let it rise covered in the oven for an hour then cooked it spraying with water every few minutes for the first ten minutes then baking normally. It turned out PERFECT and it was SOOO easy!!! I definitely recommend letting it rise in the fridge. ENJOY! PS: eat this bread with a bowl of olive oil mixed with italian seasoning and pepper. It's awesome!

The best and easiest bread machine recipes...Makes a very high fluffy loaf with a nice crust. *****! Chef Marian Thompson

Excellent. Thanks Marina. It's one in the afternoon, Ijust finished baking the loaves and one is almost gone. Hope the other loaf lasts till dinner time. Larry

This recipe does produce a nice bread but I did have some handling problems as others have mentioned. The only way I've found to combat it is to work with cold dough. I mix the dough and allow it to proof a little bit, maybe 7-12 minutes. I cover and put in the fridge for about 4-6 hours, guess you could keep it in there longer. While the dough is still cold I separate and shape my loaves on floured parchment paper. Middle knuckles down I spread starting at the center, making sure not to over dimple/flatten as you'll get a tighter cell structure resulting in the chewiness some people complain about. While shaping/dimpling I have a pan of boiling water in my cold oven, making a mini proofer. I put the loaves in the oven and proof them for 10-15 minutes, it depends on many variables... you've just gotta watch it rise. Once they're done proofing I take them out of the oven and turn on the heat, leaving the pan of water at the bottom. Pop any large air bubbles, pea sized and smaller I leave. Put them in the oven and spritz them with water once at around 3-5 minutes in and the other at 8-10. Over complicated but my results are consistent, great recipe.

I don't have a bread machine, so I do this the old-fashioned way. I dissolve the sugar in warm water and then add the yeast till it foams. Then add the remaining ingredients. It is quite sticky to work with, but well worth it. Thanks for a great recipe!

Sometimes, it still amazes me what kinds of things I can make at home by following a really good recipe. This turned out just perfectly. Great for sandwiches, making garlic bread, or with just butter and jam. I used AP flour because I was out of bread flour, and it still turned out great. Because this was so simple, with hardly any hands on time, I will be making it often.

my husband and son (who is 2) are both big bread eaters. They both loved it. I did not have a spritzer, but the crust was still very crisp!

I really wish I had read the reviews of the people who rated this recipe 1-star because it seems as though I have the same problem. This dough is incredibly sticky and it is impossible to work with. I managed to get it split into 2 pieces and onto the pan, I covered with a clean tea towel as I always do when making bread and even though I floured the bread, the towel completely stuck and deflated. It would not rise again and I ended up throwing the whole batch in the garbage. I really have no idea how some people have had such great results....for me, this was just a complete waste of ingredients.

this recipe is now our family favorite! it goes with everything, and is so easy to make. Two loaves don't last long at our house.

Thanks Marina, for a brilliant recipe, a family favourite, great results every time and freezes very well, if it lasts that long! Dorothy, in Scotland

This is not a review - I'm just trying it for the first time and hoping someone could respond with advice. My bread machine dough cycle is 1 1/2 hr long including 2 rising cycles. I'm wondering if I should take it out after the initial mixing and follow the recipe from there or go the 1 1/2 hr in the machine and then add the separate "rising times" in the recipe. Any input is appreciated! Thanks..

I have tried and failed miserably to make this recipe two times already. My yeast being bad does not seem to be the problem. The dough is extremely runny and hard to work with.

I followed the recipe exactly. I also used a spatula as suggested and coated it with Pam. I also coated a metal spatula with Pam to cut it in half. I stretched the dough rather than shaped it. Spritzed it every three minutes for the first 9 minutes and it turned out PERFECT! Very chewy on the inside while being crisp on the outside. So good I had to make a second batch. Perfect again.

Like others I had problems with the dough being too wet. To be fair though, I made some substitutions to the flours called for.

This has turned out wonderfully both times I made it. Excellent recipe :D nice big air bubbles, and light bread.

I followed the recipe to a "T" and it came out great. My husband said it tastes just as good as the ciabatta bread from the bakery. I think using the bread flour helps to keep the dough from getting to "runny". The dough was a little sticky but not what I expected from reading the reviews. I will definitely make this again and try to spice it up with herbs and/or cheese. Great recipe!

this was amazing. I added the ingredients in the order of warm water and yeast first with the sugar and let that sit for a few minutes to proof then I added the flour and the salt on top so that it is added in last during the mixing cycle (salt can kill the yeast if added to early). I then dumped it all out onto a floured cutting board and covered for about 15 minutes to settle, and then used a sharp knife to cut into four long loaves of bread. I was looking for a good bruschetta size loaf, and they came out so moist and fluffy, perfect! Do make sure you spritz them every 3-5 minutes and you will get nicely browned and not to crunchy outside, I also baked the smaller long loaves for only about 20 minutes. So good, will definitely make this one of my regulars!! You could add fresh herbs or garlic, I can imagine the possibilities, but its also perfect on its own. In fact, i'm going to get another piece! Yum!!

Very Good! This bread came out wonderful! I took the advice of other reviewers and spritzed my bread while it was baking. I did it every 7 minutes. I also added some fresh rosemary and that gave it a wonderful aroma! I can't wait for hubby to get home so we can have a glass of wine and dip this bread into olive oil with oregano in it. Some reviewers complained of this bread being too sticky. It was somewhat sticky & wet, but not overly so. Came out perfect!

While looking for a bread to go with seafood bisque, I came across this recipe. I followed it exactly and couldn't have been more pleased. I hardly had to touch the dough as it dumped easily onto the floured board and I covered it. I used a knife to cut it in half and once again it was pleasant to work with. The taste was perfect as the crust was very crunchy and crisp. It was just perfect for our soup. It would also make a great dipping bread as Christina stated. This is definitely a keeper amongst my recipes! Thank you Marina for sharing!

This bread is GREAT. Make with white bread flour and make it with whole wheat My family loves it.

Wow. Excellente. Do NOT skip the water-spraying step or bread may come out burnt-ish and too crusty. Sprinkle the top with oil and salt. Delicious.

This turned out perfectly. I didn't find the dough to be intimidatingly runny in the least. Wonderfully crispy crust and soft on the inside... Thanks for making me look like a pro!

Delicious. Dough is hard to work with until you've made it a few times and gotten the hang of it. It's pretty aggravating if you're used to easy bread machine recipes - but worth it. One thing other reviewers haven't mentioned is that it's useful to scrape down the sides of the breadmachine a few minutes after it's started mixing to be sure to incorporate all of the flour in the corners. Also, I followed other's suggestions and proofed the yeast first and used a themometer to check the temp. of the water. Lastly, I turn the dough out directly on the cooking sheet that I will bake it on. I let it rise in a slightly warmed oven with the pan of boiling water underneath. Turns out perfectly everytime.

I made this last weekend, and although the texture was fantastic (crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside), the bread couldn't stand alone. It needed to be a little sweeter or something. Next time I think I'll try to add more olive oil and sugar in the dough, and maybe take the suggestion below to add dried rosemary to the dough. Really great recipe in need of just a few tweaks.

I really like this recipe, and I really like using the bread machine to help with the dough! I have made ciabatta bread the "old fashioned" way, and it is a mess, this takes a lot of the mess out of it. The dough is not nearly as wet and messy as traditional. While it doesn't taste exactly like regular ciabatta bread, it is close enough and good in its own right. And for less mess it is worth it! I have seen people on here complain about it being wet, that is what makes it so good! My boyfriend makes it a work and they use large tubs to make it in and it takes many hours and they have to 'knead' quite a bit, this is a nice recipe because the bread maker gets most of the hard part, I only have to do the last! Thanks!!

Absolutely incredible!!!! I feel like a real pro! I did the recipe to a T and at the end made square shape buns for burgers...classy! SOOO good Husband brought some to the neighbors to show off. Big thanks! Louise

This has now turned into my go to recipe for rolls. The dough bakes up just beautiful and makes the perfect roll for sandwiches...light yet with a beautiful crispy top. The dough is quite sticky and I am glad that I have resisted adding extra flour, because I think that is what makes this such delicious bread. This is a definite keeper for such easy and beautiful results!

This was amazing. Everyone loved it. It had a nice crunchy crust with a tender and soft inside filled with air bubbles. The dough is not that wet, I think people exaggerate or just don't like baking bread that much. I just dumped it out of the bread machine, let it rise, then stretched it (make sure to flour your fingers) into 4x12 loaves and let it rise again. I followed the recipe exactly. There is minimal touching involved. Easy and super delicious.

Tried this today. It came out great on the first try. I used a baking stone and had to add about 5 minutes cooking time.

Best and easiest!!! Followed directions exactly but as other reviewers wrote, I left dough in bread machine for 20-30 minutes and removed from pan. Not as loose as I expected and followed the rest of directions and it turned out great, hubby loved the taste. Making second batch tonite for town meeting day pot luck. Keeping one loaf for us though! Will be making many times in the future. Thanks for such a great crusty bread recipe better than the store.

Absolutely great recipe. I had started out elsewhere with a from-scratch hand-made biagi; gave up instantly with a gelatinous mess. I switched to this recipe, only making the salt Kosher, otherwise the ingredients were followed exactly. Elsewhere I did follow 2 suggestions: (1) let the dough stay in the breadpan for 20 minutes (which yielded an easy-to-work-with dough which I then placed in a butter-greased bowl covered with plastic wrap; and (2) placed the dough, once punched down, into the refrigerator for 4 hours. The technique followed by me after that: uncover the bowl, punch it down and knead it over, then let it rest for 15 minutes. No one else has suggested how many rolls you can make, but the answer is 12. After shaping and let rise for 1 hour, I used a baking stone on the center rack and a roasting pan on the bottom rack into which I placed 1 cup of boiling water from my tea kettle right after putting the rolls in (I would recommend putting only 6 rolls in the oven at a time else they will be merge together). For each 3 minutes thereafter I lightly spritzed the rolls for the first 10 minutes; the rolls were done in about 12 minutes, not the 25 suggested by the recipe. Be sure to use a Thermapen to get an accurate reading for doneness. Thank you all for your suggestions!

Really good, except for the airpockets were not as large as I had thought they'd be. OH! and for those that haven't figured it out..the 13X14 in loaf..uh..TYPO!! It is supposed to read 3X14. We did not have a functioning spray bottle, so we did not 'spritz'...but I do think that it is a must..I will have to go and get one before we make this bread again.

wow! really good! It was extremely hard to work with, and I thought that there was no way that it would turn out... but when I took it out of the oven I was optimistic and when I sliced it I knew that it was a keeper! thanks so much - it is better than my grocery store!!!

This was really good! My dough wasn't all that sticky when it came out of the machine....more plastic-like than anything. It was even difficult to shape. But once baked this bread was amazing! I think next time I will make buns out of it.

This is my go to recipe for Ciabatta Bread. It never fails me and we all love it.

This was a relatively easy recipe. The oven setting seems too high. The crust was done before the bread inside was done. I shall try 400 dgrees. I think it should mention using luke warm water to activate the yeast, also. Still a very nice bread. I will make it again with a couple of tweaks.

I had a hard time rating this, because mine was just a "pool" of dough, as others have stated. You can't cover it, either - too sticky. The first time I made it, I had floured the top & covered with wax paper, which I had to bake with it on or deflate the dough - which was only about an inch high as it was! It had spread to almost cover the pan...I loved how it turned out! Perfectly crunchy top & bottom & airy/chewy inside. I cut it into sandwich-sized pieces, then split them to make a top & bottom. I don't like a thick bread - I used to cut the middle out of store-bought ciabatta rolls, using the middles as more sandwich slices (but no nice crust). I assumed I made the bread with too much liquid, so made it a 2nd time being very careful to measure everything exactly. Same watery dough the 2nd time, but I didn't care! The flavor & texture are excellent - with or without toasting. I purposely spread it as much as possible (about 10"x12") sprayed it with Pam and the plastic wrap to cover it & let it rise. It didn't get much higher, and the covering stuck anyway, so it deflated some when I removed it. It came out 1" high - just thick enough to split in two. I'm rating this 5 stars because I personally LOVE it like this and will continue to make it for myself. (first flop I've ever liked!)

I gave it 2 stars because the taste was very good, however after I dimpled it the 2nd time it did not rise in the oven when baked, the bread came out very flat. Next time I won't dimple at all and see if that helps.

I've made this bread several times already (no bread machine - do it by hand); I add fresh rosemary to the dough, and proof the dough and sugar in water, as suggested by another reviewer, before adding to the flour; also, instead of a 45-minute rise, I let it rise for one hour. I also pre-heat a pizza stone sprinkled with corn meal, and a metal loaf pan on the rack below the pizza stone, for a half an hour before baking the bread. There is no need to spritz the bread if you pre-heat a metal loaf pan and then add a cup of very hot water to the loaf pan when putting in the bread. The water hitting the pan will create plenty of steam as you quickly shut the oven door, and the result will be a nice, crispy crust. I make all of my breads this way.

I have made this at least ten times and the dough runs over the pan and bakes up with a very pale crust. Instructions say not to add more flour, but this is so runny you can't even shape it. Don't know how one person was able to shape it into buns. Looking for a different recipe.

I have never, ever, eve, ever made bread before but I was able to make this bread by following the recipe exactly! The bread turned out great for my first try, and I'll definitely be making it again!

Loved it! I put a bowl of water at the bottom of the oven like someone recommended! It turned out perfect!!

I loved my bread's crispy, chewy crust and spongy interior! Even if this isn't true ciabatta because it doesn't use a starter, it still tasted excellent! I would cook it for less time at a lower heat, though, because my crust was much too brown. Also, use very floured hands when working with the dough, and use grease along with flour when flouring the pan, because my bread stuck in places.

I am in the middle of making this right now. Memo to anyone who is game enough to try it... When taking the dough out of the tin, flour your hands, your board or tray... Flour everything!!! Not until you actually try this do you realise how sticky, and loose the mixture. This however is not in any way a bad thing!!! Can see how it works, and work it does! Awesome recipe as long as you flour your hands, the board, the tray, and whilest you are at it... Whe whole kitchen. lol

delicious! In my oven it only took 20 minutes & came out big & puffy cause i didnt stretch it enough

This was good bread. I used my kitchenaid mixer because I don't have a bread machine. I also used all purpose flour and my dough wasn't even remotely runny, I'm guessing this is why my bread was so much denser than I was expecting, even though I barely worked it at all. Thanks for sharing your recipe.

It turned out so delicious!

Don't Give Up! It seemed I was doing something wrong. The loaves didn't rise much and even though I floured the top when letting them "rise", they stuck to everything I covered them with. Because I kept checking on them and changing the covering (plastic wrap, wax paper, finally damp towel worked best), I let it sit for an extra 20-30 minutes, then baked even though they seemed to be "stuck" to the floured non-stick baking sheet. It turned out delicious with a perfect texture and came right off the sheet. So my advice, don't give up on it, no matter...!!

We love this bread, its become a real treat in our house! The last time I made it, I roasted a head of garlic and made a paste from it with a little sea salt and rosemary. I added it to the bread machine and let it knead for a few minutes before taking the loaf out to rest. The final product came out beautifully! The recipe is lovely on its own, but the garlic was a nice addition.

Great recipe!! I love Ciabatta and this was so easy to make. The caution about resisting the temptation to add more flour was good as I certainly would have. The dough was softer and stickier than I would have expected. Also, user tip to use a spatula and a metal scraper was good as it made handling the dough possible. The results were excellant!!

This is my first attempt at ciabatta and it went well. I had to baste the bread with water as I don't have a spritzer. The taste was great. I think it is worth the work if you have the time.

Yum! My second successful loaf of bread today! I followed this recipe exactly, except I just left the dough in my bread machine for an extra 20 minutes instead of placing on the counter under a bowl to rise (as was suggested to me on The Buzz). The directions aren't kidding- this is some of the stickiest dough I have ever worked with! I did manage to resist the urge to add more flour, but it was difficult :) I thought there was no way I was going to be able to form the dough into anything resembling an oval (or anything else for that matter!), as I could not hardly even get it off my hands. So, I divided it in two, and just sort of plopped it on the baking sheet in frustration. Don't worry though- after it sits for a bit it is easy to go back and get it into shape. I did spritz with water every 5 minutes or so of baking, and I got a beautiful crispy crust. The inside is perfectly chewy. Just wonderful! Thank you Marina! :)

I made this bread yesterday and my husband saya it's the best he' had so far from the bread maker.

I'm a novice at bread baking, but this turned out excellent anyway. Everyone in our family loves the crunchy crust with the chewy inside. I don't hesitate serving it since there is minimal salt, sugar, and olive oil. It taste great and is healthy.

This bread was easy to make and very delicious. I would not change anything about it. I was very pleased

I made dough into dinner rolls and they came out light, fluffy, and crunchy on outside. Great. As another user did, I did not use a bread machine and added rosemary to the recipe. Also, I not sure if this made a difference but I let the dough rise for 4+ hrs before forming rolls. Then let rise 1 more hour. Next time I will try adding olives to recipe!

Very good. I followed the advice of another reviewer and used a rubber spatula to get the dough out of the bread machine pan and it worked great. The bread baked up nicely. I didn't have any problems with it at all.

Easy Recipe. Liked the technique of using bread machine to do the mixing and kneading. No messy clean up! Flavor was good. Would like to try it in a smoked turkey sandwich. Good with soup, too. Will make this again!

Absolutely a wonderful recipe.

My first time with ciabatta and it was perfect. I read every review and ladelded out the flour with my measure as one suggested and used bread machine for kneading and one rise. Used spatula to remove with no difficulty and then divided dough into two nice loaves using flour on my hands. Let rise second time on parchment lined baking sheets. Did water spritz after 10 min. And they turned out looking great and tasted fabulous. I was afraid to try after so many talked about so liquid. I honestly think scooping the bread flour out with the one cup measure made the difference. Can't wait for hubby to taste.

Poor reviews from poor bakers... this recipe has been spot on everytime! I usually use it to make the best sandwich rolls around... after the rest, cut the dough in 8... flatten into 4 to 5 inch discs let rise for 45 minutes bake at 425 for about 12 minutes... cool on a rack and bag em' and tag em'... good eats!

Before I made this bread I did a bit of research and found that the dough is supposed to be wet and sticky which is exactly what I ended up with. Marina, this was delicious and exactly what I had hoped for. Crusty on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside with lots of beautiful holes. Delicious and thank you!

I love this recipe, thank you for sharing it! It is perfect. By using the bread machine it's easy to make. Before taking it out of the machine I spread olive oil over my hands and the spot where it is going to rest and I have few problems with it sticking. Also, I just make one large loaf instead of two smaller ones. You must mist during baking to get the perfect crust.

this is excellent, the only problem I had was when I tried to dimple after the last rise. It had crusted slightly (even toweled) and fell. I should have let it rise again, but it rose slightly and is quite tasty.

the best of the rustic bread recipies we have found to date (I have gone through at least 8 bread recipies. All good, but not as good as this one. We do have 2 or three things we did that made the bread even nicer. 1) place a pan of water at the bottom of the oven and spray the cooking bread a few times with water (moisten, do not wet). We read that this contributes to a crustier bread. 2) We used a higher temo when cooking (475 degrees) 3) We chose not to glaze with egg and water. We dusted with flour instead. That said, the ingredients and technique we used was otherwise identical. this is one awesome loaf of bread.

Made this one time and am making it again today. Really easy and really delicious! It is a runny batter, but it works in the end. Remember, it is a rustic bread and is not meant to look perfect.

It was great. It was definitely messy. Flour your hands to handle that dough. And i liked the idea to cover "it" with a large bowl. It reminded me of The Blob as it crept out from underneath the bowl. HaHa! But it was worth the effort. And my family was well pleased.