OK .. trying not to get off topic but I'm trying to make Ciabatta from
Mike Avery's book and from other sites I've visited and books they
talk about dipping in olive oil...I'm wondering is it plain oil, which
is no problem for me I love olive oil, just never dipped bread in it.
DUH ... do y'all put spices in it or just plain... LOL this from
someone who hasn't ever made Ciabatta and is expecting to be able to
dip it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and havn't even got the biga/sponge started
yet.. just want to be ready.. will let y'all see if it comes out
edible!! :-) nancy

OOOOPs shoulda said Ciabatta not sourdough LOL!!!!! :-)

nancy wrote:
> OK .. trying not to get off topic but I'm trying to make Ciabatta from
> Mike Avery's book and from other sites I've visited and books they
> talk about dipping in olive oil...I'm wondering is it plain oil, which
> is no problem for me I love olive oil, just never dipped bread in it.
> DUH ... do y'all put spices in it or just plain... LOL this from
> someone who hasn't ever made Ciabatta and is expecting to be able to
> dip it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and havn't even got the biga/sponge started
> yet.. just want to be ready.. will let y'all see if it comes out
> edible!! :-) nancy

Olive oil and fresh ground pepper is delicious on ciabatta or any
italianish bread. Just pour a bit of oil on a dish and grind some pepper in.

They do this at Macaroni Grill and at least one other italian restaurant
I've been to.

nancy wrote:
> OK .. trying not to get off topic but I'm trying to make Ciabatta from
> Mike Avery's book and from other sites I've visited and books they
> talk about dipping in olive oil...I'm wondering is it plain oil, which
> is no problem for me I love olive oil, just never dipped bread in it.
> DUH ... do y'all put spices in it or just plain... LOL this from
> someone who hasn't ever made Ciabatta and is expecting to be able to
> dip it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and havn't even got the biga/sponge started
> yet.. just want to be ready.. will let y'all see if it comes out
> edible!!
It's not a matter of right or wrong, it's a question of what you like.
I'll make some suggestions as a starting point.

If you have a rich, flavorful extra virgin olive oil (and extra virgin
doesn't always mean rich and flavorful), you might want to leave it
alone and just enjoy the tastes of the olive oil.

If you have a light or bland oil, you probably want to do something to
it to jazz it up a bit. You can always jazz up a nice extra virgin,
it's just a matter of taste.

Some things to jazz up the olive oil..

a quick grind of freshly ground pepper - simple and delightful

some herbs, either with pepper or alone - whatever herbs you like

a light drizzle of balsamic vinegar, either with or without pepper and herbs

chopped garlic

roasted garlic

Or, whatever floats your boat. The important thing is to do something
you enjoy!
Mike

Thanks Hans and Mike... I have biga made and will finish work on my
bread tomorrow... got my fingers crossed and have been blessed with
faeries in my kitchen before so hopefully they want this try to work
too !!!!

thx :-) nancy

Also try dipping it in balsamic vinegar.

Doug
--
Doug Weller --
A Director and Moderator of The Hall of Ma'at http://www.hallofmaat.com
Doug's Archaeology Site: http://www.ramtops.co.uk
Amun - co-owner/co-moderator http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Amun/

Just Balsamic? Donno 'bout you folks, but while I love Balsamic
vinegar I find that a bit too strong. I usually pour 1/4 cup of
olive oil into a dish, and add a couple of teaspoons of Balsamic to
that. Then you dip & "sweep" a bit in order to get some of the
vinegar.

Obviously you can alter that balance to suit your tastes. It's just
that the bread tends to take pure vinegar up very quickly...and that
taste quickly overwhelms the flavor of the bread... At least
IMESHO...(:-o)!

In any event, enjoy!
Dusty

"Doug Weller" > wrote in message
...
> Also try dipping it in balsamic vinegar.
>
> Doug
> --
> Doug Weller --
> A Director and Moderator of The Hall of Ma'at
> http://www.hallofmaat.com
> Doug's Archaeology Site: http://www.ramtops.co.uk
> Amun - co-owner/co-moderator http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Amun/
>

In a number of Italian restaurants that I've gone to they would serve a nice
bread and put a high quality olive oil on a plate adding fresh ground black
pepper to it. I've always enjoyed this and think I'll try it sometime with
sourdough bread.

Randy
Albuquerque, NM

"nancy" > wrote in message
...
> OK .. trying not to get off topic but I'm trying to make Ciabatta from
> Mike Avery's book and from other sites I've visited and books they
> talk about dipping in olive oil...I'm wondering is it plain oil, which
> is no problem for me I love olive oil, just never dipped bread in it.
> DUH ... do y'all put spices in it or just plain... LOL this from
> someone who hasn't ever made Ciabatta and is expecting to be able to
> dip it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and havn't even got the biga/sponge started
> yet.. just want to be ready.. will let y'all see if it comes out
> edible!! :-) nancy