August 3, 2009 - 2:02pm
"Sweet Bellagio" bread - need a recipe
Hi all,
I am trying to find information about, and especially a recipe for, a bread called "Sweet Bellagio." My husband has gotten it at the Breadsmith bakery chain, where it's described as "The sweeter cousin of Ciabatta, it’s origins trace to the Lake Como region of northern Italy. It’s thin, crispy crust and porous interior makes this bread excellent for dipping oils or sandwiches."
My Google-fu is failing me because I can find out nothing more about it. I'd appreciate any info or any recipes to try that might even approximate it.
Thanks!
-Heather
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"Bellagio" makes me suspect it's a Ciabatta recipe unique to some commercial enterprise like a restaurant or hotel. There are a lot of recipes out there for sweet Ciabatta breads using every variety of fruit, nut, etc. you might imagine. Can your husband tell us more about the flavor. Is it fruity (figs, apples, oranges, cherries, raisins?) or perhaps a licorice/sugar flavor?
He says there's no fruit, and no hints of anything herbal to it, but that it's just lightly sweet but not sugary. He gave me the bag and the ingredients are: unbleached unbromated wheat flour, water, white sugar, salt, extra virgin olive oil and yeast.
That's a start, but I'm afraid I'm not an accomplished enough baker to be able to guess the proportions and technique.
"I'm afraid I'm not an accomplished enough baker to be able to guess the proportions and technique"
Nonsense, you can do it.
Ciabatta often starts with a poolish or biga; your choice. Flour is going to be 100% (baker's percentage) and the poolish or biga often dominates with about 170%. The amount of water will vary depending on whether you use a poolish or biga but it will generally range from about 33% (with a poolish) to 80% with a biga. Salt would probably be about 3% and yeast somewhere around 1.5% (instant) or 2% (active dry yeast). Any good quality bread flour will replace the stuff that's listed on the bag you've read and you can decide for yourself how much sugar you want to use. I'd probably start with about 10% and adjust from there.
Go ahead. Try a one pound loaf. Pull up any Ciabatta recipe from the web (like this one perhaps - http://www.breadcetera.com/?p=101 - although I think I migh cut that one in half if there's just two of you) and run with it. If you don't like it you can feed the ducks at the park with it next weekend and try again.
I'd take a Ciabatta recipe and add sugar a little at a time until you get it right. You may need to decrease the yeast slightly as well.