No knead Ciabatta Bread and Piperies Florinis Dip (Red Sweet Peppers)

Piperies Florinis are red long sweet peppers, named after the prefecture of Florina, in Norther Greece, where they are produced.

I read in the site of a local producer that these red sweet peppers have been growing in Florina for centuries and date back to antiquity.  They were probably brought back to Macedonia from India by the decendants of the troops of Alexander the Great.

I love grilling these peppers in the oven and then they are easily peeled, seeds removed and remain with a succulent thick wall.  They have a lovely sweet flesh and flavour and are absolutely delicious.

Red Peppers are a great source of vitam C, double the quantity found in citrus.  Vitamin C is important as it helps absord the iron and calcium and other amino acids.  They also contain vitamin A, lycopene and beta carotene.

These peppers have a succulent thick wall, and are easy to peel after pan roasting. They have an absolutely delicious, rich ripe pepper flavor, full-bodied and not overly sweet.

This recipe goes to Simona, of Briciole, who is hosting this week’s Weekend Herb Blogging, started by Kalyn and now managed by Haalo.

To roast Peppers

12 Florinis peppers

2 tablespoons olive oil

Piperies Florinis Dip, recipe by Ivy

(makes about 3 cups)

Ingredients:

12 roasted, skinned and deseeded peppers

6 tablespoons olive oil

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 – 3 large cloves garlic

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

See how to roast Piperies Florinis here.

Put all the ingredients in a food processor and puree.

I made this bread and dip at the beginning of May.  The 1st of May was on Saturday and as it is a public holiday, on Friday we had to buy bread for three days.  As I didn’t want to eat stale bread on Sunday, I wanted to make bread myself and after google searching for recipes, I decided to make this easy ciabatta.

Ciabatta which is an Italian bread from the region of Liguria and in Italian ciabatta literally means “carpet slipper” is  made with wheat flour and yeast.   The loaf is somewhat elongated, broad and flattish and, like a slipper, should be somewhat collapsed in the middle.

I used a bread flour I bought from my local bakery, called “starenio” in Greece and which is a yellowish like semolina hard wheat floor.

The bread had a crisp crust, a somewhat soft, porous texture, and was light to the touch.  Ciabatta is also perfect for making sandwiches which are known as panini.

I followed the directions given in the video and left the bread for 14 hours to rest (instead of 16). The next day after shaping the bread, I left it for two hours to rise and baked it for about 45 minutes.

No knead Ciabatta Bread

Makes: 1 bread (700 grams)

Ingredients:

4 cups bread flour (500 grams)

42 grams fresh yeast

1 ½ tsp salt

2 cups lukewarm water

Directions:

See the video for step by step instructions.

To serve:

Cut slices of ciabatta, place them on a baking tin and roast them in a preheated oven for 10 minutes.  While the bread is still hot, add some Red pepper dip and crumble some feta on top, sprinkle some oregano and put back in the oven for 2 – 3 more minutes.

For those following the Mediterranean Diet, if you want to cut down the calories and avoid eating protein, after roasting the bread, you can still enjoy it by only spreading some pepper dip on top.

Serve while still hot!

Kopiaste and Kali Orexi!

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