Progress on the bread front. I finally got the flour/water ratio right on ciabatta: it’s gotta be wet. Wet doughs make loaves that are springy and not dry on the inside. You can see it in the way the crumb looks as you pull the bread apart: big air pockets and a great elasticity. The final bread only tears after a stretch. Mmmmm….

A tiny amount of water makes the difference. I started with the normal flour/water ratio I use, threw it in the mixer, and then added only a couple ounces of water while it was kneading. Usually the dough sticks to a spot at the very bottom of the mixer bowl when it’s done, but by the time my extra water was incorporated, it was sticking to the whole bottom of the bowl. More water would have made a pourable slurry, which you can’t really shape, so you have to stop while you still have dough and not batter. But that line between dough and batter is where the best bread happens.