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Pane di ComoComo Bread

BY HAND

BY MIXER

This is a spectacularly delicious white bread with a crunchy domeand a feathery floury top that tastes of the sweetness of wheat. It isexcellent for breakfast. The loaf is engraved with the delicate patternof the basket in which it is given its final rise and the interior ishoneycombed with irregular holes.

The breads of Como are more than slightly confusing. Both theciabatta and the pane francese (recipes follow) are also breads fromComo, but this Como bread is what is made and eaten there today.

Makes 2 round loaves

STARTER1 teaspoon active dry yeast or 1h small cake (6 grams) fresh yeast1 scant teaspoon malt syrupIh cup warm water2h cup milk, room temperature1 cup (135 grams) unbleached all"purpose flour

Stir the yeast and malt into the water; let stand until foamy, about10 minutes. Stir in the milk and beat in the flour with a rubberspatula or wooden spoon about 100 strokes until smooth. Cover withplastic wrap and let stand until bubbly, at least 4 hours but preferablyovernight.

DOUGH2 cups water, room temperature6 1;4 cups (860 grams) unbleached all"purpose flour1 tablespoon (15 grams) saltCornmeal

Add the water to the starter; mix and squeeze it between your fingersuntil the starter is fairly well broken up. Mix the flour and salt andstir 2 cups at a time into the starter mixture. When the dough is toostiff to mix with a wooden spoon, just plunge in with your hands.Mix until well blended, 4 to 5 minutes. Knead on a well,flouredsurface until elastic but still moist and tacky. Once it has cometogether nicely, crash it down vigorously on the work surface todevelop the gluten.

Mix the starter and the water with the paddle until the starter is wellbroken up. Add the flour and salt and mix for 2 to 3 minutes at lowspeed. The dough will be smooth but won't pull away from the sideof the bowl. Change to the dough hook and knead at medium speed,

BY PROCESSOR

Pane di ComoAntico 0 PaneFranceseComo Bread ofthe Past, KnownToday as FrenchBread

REGIONAL AND RUSTIC BREADS 103

scraping down the side of the bowl as necessary, until the dough iselastic but still slightly sticky, 3 to 4 minutes. Finish kneading byhand on a floured work surface.

Refrigerate the starter until cold. Unless you have a large processor,make the dough in two batches. Place the flour and salt in a foodprocessor fitted with the dough blade and process with several pulsesto sift. Place the starter on top of the flour mixture. With the machinerunning, pour 2 cups cold water through the feed tube and processuntil the dough comes together and gathers into a ball. Process 30 to45 seconds longer to knead. Finish kneading on a well..floured .surfacewith well..floured hands. The dough will be tacky and moist.

First Rise. Place in a well..oiled bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap,and let rise until doubled, about I 1h hours. The dough is readywhen it is very bubbly and blistered.

Shaping and Second Rise. Cut the dough in half on a floured surfaceand shape into 2 round loaves. Place in oiled and floured 8.. inchround bannetons or in baskets lined with generously floured kitchentowels. Cover with towels and let rise until fully doubled and risento the tops of the bannetons, about 1 hour.

Baking. Thirty minutes before baking, heat the oven with a bakingstone in it to 4000 F. Sprinkle the stone with cornmeal. Very carefullyinvert the loaves onto the stone and bake until the loaf soundshollow when the bottom is tapped, about 1 hour. Coolon racks.

It is said that the legendary taste of Como bread owes a lot to theair and water of the famous lake, but even without those particularingredients, this bread is a remarkable and delicious loaf with a big..holed chewy interior and a crunchy crust. Today it is known all overItaly as pane francese, or French bread. When it was still called Comobread, it was the only food that brought about a rapprochement ofsorts between the contentious regions of Lombardy and Piedmont.Each was fiercely proud of its culinary specialties, creating quarrelsover every dish and gastronomic tradition, but they did relax theirdifferences long enough to speed this bread from the Paduan plain

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Pane di Como Antico (continued)where it was baked to the far reaches of both areas. I am told that itreached its pinnacle of tastiness on the Sunday bicycle ride fromMilan to Como when it was served as a snack after about 25 milesof pedaling.

I based this recipe on one from Giancarlo Grignani, a scholar andmaster baker in Milan, who researched the bread as it tasted inearlier centuries. He uses a complicated natural yeast for which Ihave substituted a starter made with a minuscule amount of yeastand mixed with a little whole'wheat flour into the unbleached flourto give it the authentic taste of a time when flours were less refinedthan today. I have often made this dough and refrigerated it overnightfor the second rise; it only gets better with the long cool developmentof the yeast.

Serve it with stews and meats with rich sauces, with green salads,fresh cheeses, sliced salami, and smoked meats.

Makes 2 long loaves

34 cup (180 grams) Biga (page 100) made with half the yeast11/2 cups water, room temperature1/2 cup (65 grams) whole-wheat flour3 to 314 cups (435 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour2 teaspoons (10 grams) saltCornmeal

BY HAND

BY MIXER

Cut the starter into small pieces in a large mixing bowl. Add all but1 to 2 tablespoons of the water and mix until the starter is in fineshreds and the liquid is chalky white. Stir in the whole'wheat flourand most of the all,purpose flour, 1 cup at a time. When the doughis a fairly rough and shaggy mass, stir in the salt dissolved in theremaining water. Knead on a floured surface, sprinkling with up toIh cup additional flour and using the dough scraper to scrape up thefine film of dough that will accumulate on the work surface, as wellas to turn and lift the dough. After about 5 minutes of kneading,slam the dough down hard several times to help develop the gluten.Continue kneading until the dough is smooth, a total of 8 to 12minutes. The dough should still be soft, moist, and sticky.

Mix the starter and all but 1 to 2 tablespoons of the water with thepaddle in a large mixer bowl. Mix in the flours and then the saltdissolved in the remaining water. Change to the dough hook andknead at medium speed until soft, moist, and sticky but obviously

BY PROCESSOR

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elastic, about 4 minutes. Finish kneading by hand on a flouredsurface, sprinkling with additional flour, until smooth but still soft.

Refrigerate the starter until cold. Process the starter and llh cupscold water with the steel blade and remove to another bowl. Changeto the dough blade and process the flours and salt with 2 or 3 pulsesto sift. With the machine running, pour the starter mixture throughthe feed tube as quickly as the flour can absorb it. Process 30 to 45seconds longer to knead. The dough will be moist and sticky. Finishkneading by hand on a floured surface, sprinkling with additionalflour, until the dough is smooth but still soft.

First Rise. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plasticwrap, and let rise until doubled, 11;2 to 2 hours. The dough is readywhen it has numerous bubbles and blisters under the skin.

Shaping and Second Rise. Divide the dough in half on a floured surfacewithout kneading it. Shape into 2 round loaves. Let them relax undera cloth for 20 minutes. Line baking sheets or peels with parchmentpaper and flour the paper generously. Roll each ball into a fat cylinderand place seam side down on the paper. Dimple the loaves all overwith your fingertips or knuckles, as for focaccia, to keep the doughfrom springing up. The dough should feel delicate but extremelyspringy. Cover the loaves and let rise until doubled, with many visibleair bubbles, 11,4 to 11;2 hours.

Baking. Thirty minutes before baking, heat the oven with a bakingstone in it to 425 0 F. Sprinkle the baking stone with cornmeal. Carrythe peel or baking sheet to the oven and very gently invert thedough onto the stone. Gently remove the parchment paper. (Seeillustration in Ciabatta recipe, page 107.) Immediately reduce the heatto 4000 F and bake until golden, 35 to 40 minutes. Coolon racks.

106 PANI REGIONALI E RUSTICI

CiabattaSlipper--ShapedBread fromLake Como

BY MIXER

I can't think of a way to describe the fabulous and unusual taste ofciabatta except to say that once you've eaten it, you'll never think ofwhite bread in the same way again. Everyone who tries this breadloves it. Ciabatta means slipper in Italian; one glance at the shortstubby bread will make it clear how it was named. Ciabatta is aremarkable combination of rustic country texture and elegant andtantalizing taste. It is much lighter than its homely shape wouldindicate, and the porous chewy interior is enclosed in a slightlycrunchy crust that is veiled with flour. Eat for breakfast or slice anentire ciabatta horizontally and stuff it with salami and cheese.

This dough should be made in the mixer, although it also worksin the processor. I have made it by hand but wouldn't recommendit unless you are willing to knead the wet, sticky mass between yourhands-in mid..air-turning, folding, and twisting it rather like taffy,your hands covered with dough. You can't put it on the table becausethe natural inclination is to add lots of flour to this very stickydough and pretty soon you wouldn't have a ciabatta. Resist thetemptation to add flour and follow the instructions. The dough willfeel utterly unfamiliar and probably a bit scary. And that's not theonly unusual feature-the shaped loaves are flat and look definitelyunpromising; even when they are puffed after the second rise, youmay feel certain you've done it all wrong. Don't give up. The loavesrise nicely in the oven.

Makes 4 loaves, each about the width of a hand and the length of the armfrom wrist to elbow1 teaspoon active dry yeast or 1h small cake (6 grams) fresh yeast5 tablespoons warm milk1 cup plus 3 tablespoons water, room temperature1 tablespoon olive oil2 cups (500 grams) Biga (page 100), made 12 hours before33;4 cups (500 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour1 tablespoon (15 grams) saltCornmeal

Stir the yeast into the milk in a mixer bowl; let stand until creamy,about 10 minutes. Add the water, oil, and starter and mix with thepaddle until blended. Mix the flour and salt, add to the bowl, andmix for 2 to 3 minutes. Change to the dough hook and knead for 2minutes at low speed, then 2 minutes at medium speed. Knead brieflyon a well..floured surface, adding as little flour as possible, until thedough is velvety, supple, very springy, and moist.

BY PROCESSOR

1. Pulling and stretchingthe dough

2. Dimpling the dough

REGIONAL AND RUSTIC BREADS 107

Refrigerate the starter until cold. Stir the yeast into the milk in alarge bowl; let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes. Add 1 cup plus3 tablespoons cold water, the oil, and starter and mix, squeezing thestarter between your fingers to break it up. Place the flour and saltin the food processor fitted with the dough blade and process withseveral pulses to sift. With the machine running, pour the startermixture through the feed tube and process until the dough comestogether. Process about 45 seconds longer to knead. Finish kneadingon a well..floured surface until the dough is velvety, supple, moist,and very springy.

First Rise. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap,and let rise until doubled, about ItA hours. The dough should befull of air bubbles, very supple, elastic, and sticky.

Shaping and Second Rise. Cut the dough into 4 equal pieces on a well..floured surface. Roll up each piece into a cylinder, then stretch eachinto a rectangle, about 10 X 4 inches, pulling with your fingers toget it long and wide enough. Generously flour 4 pieces of parchmentpaper on peels or. baking sheets. Place each loaf, seam side up, on apaper. Dimple the )oaves vigorously with your fingertips or knucklesso that they won't rise too much. The dough will look heavilypockmarked, but it is very resilient so don't be concerned. Coverloosely with dampened towels and let rise until puffy but not doubled,I 1h to 2 hours. The loaves will look flat and definitely unpromisingbut don't give up for they will rise more in the oven.

Baking. Thirty minutes before baking, heat the oven with bakingstones in it to 425 0 F. Just before baking, sprinkle the stones withcornmeal. Carefully invert each loaf onto a stone. If the dough sticksa bit, just work it free from the paper gently. Bake for 20 to 25minutes, spraying 3 times with water in the first 10 minutes. Coolonracks.

3. Turning the ciabattaoff parchment ontostone