Homemade bread has a truly unique aroma and taste. Today I made ciabatta with chestnuts in the dough and they turned out delicious, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside with pieces of chestnut that make the bread even more flavorful.
I love kneading, and when I make homemade bread, I like to always experiment with new recipes like this chestnut ciabatta which is made in a very simple way; you just need to mix all the ingredients in a bowl directly with a fork, and the result will be exceptional! Perfect ciabatta, like those from the baker, actually even better with pieces of chestnut in the dough.
Prepare these crunchy buns with the aroma and taste of autumn. I bought the chestnuts at the MD supermarket in my area. The recipe is very simple; let’s make it together right away!
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 6 Hours
- Preparation time: 50 Minutes
- Cooking time: 15 Minutes
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup semolina flour
- 1 1/2 cups water (lukewarm)
- 1 teaspoon fine salt
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
- 20 chestnuts (cooked and peeled)
- as needed flour and semolina (for the work surface)
Steps
To make this delicious chestnut bread, start with the dough. So, in a large, high-sided container, preferably a rectangular one, pour in the two types of flour and mix them, create a hole in the center, and pour in the water, leaving a quarter aside.
Pour the yeast into the water, then mix with a fork to dissolve it, stirring in the outer flour. You should get a coarse mixture, now let it rest for about 20 minutes, covering it.
Pour the oil into the dough, add the salt, and while continuing to mix with the fork, finish pouring in the remaining flour, kneading everything. Once the ingredients are combined and a slightly coarse dough is obtained, cover it again and let it rest for 15 minutes.
After the resting time, with hands moistened with water, make folds in the dough by pulling up the edges of the dough and tucking them in. You’ll see that the dough will now be smoother and more homogeneous. Do another round of folds at a 15-minute interval. In the last fold, add the pieces of cooked chestnuts to the dough. Leave the dough in the container where you kneaded, cover it again, and let it rise until it doubles in volume.
On a well-floured surface, slide the dough out of the bowl, shape it into a rectangle with the help of flour and semolina and a scraper. Cut the dough into several rectangles with the scraper, place them on a baking tray with parchment paper, and let them rest for half an hour.
Bake the bread in a preheated fan-assisted oven at 390°F for about 20 – 25 minutes. Once cooked, let the chestnut bread cool before enjoying it; it’s really delicious with this rustic chestnut flavor in the dough.
