The Best Caprese Ciabatta Sandwich In No Time

I made the Ultimate Ciabatta Sandwich for the first time the other day. To make this sandwich, I first made pesto. Besides pesto and ciabatta, I also used sliced mozzarella cheese, large tomato slices, and fresh basil. I loved how it turned out. It was absolutely delicious and packed with exciting flavors, comparable to the gourmet-style sandwiches sold in sandwich shops. The whole family loved it so much and asked for more!

Every good day starts with a Sandwich, especially a fresh, succulent, and delicious sandwich packed with bold Italian flavors like the tangy tomato, creamy mozzarella, and aromatic basil. It is all I need in the morning. I will guide you through making a fresh, authentic Italian tomato mozzarella sandwich.

Why Will You Love this Ciabatta Bread Sandwich?

• A simple sandwich with a flavor explosion: A sandwich loaded with massive Italian tomatoes, Mozzarella cheese, fresh basil leaves, pesto (Italian green sauce), and ciabatta bread is pure love. 
• Ciabatta Sanwich Ideas: This is a healthy sandwich that you can serve to your kids, and they will surely love it. My 7-year-old niece Alessia’s favorite sandwich so far. Moreover, the main problem that every mom faces is wanting a quick and healthy breakfast.
• Make the authentic Italian taste at home: If you hear the word ciabatta, there is no way that your mouth will drool, as it tastes and smells fantastic. It is thought that ciabattas can only be made perfectly at a café, but you can easily make them at home.  Your home smells like an Italian kitchen. You can make a sandwich on Friday night at home, chill on the couch, and catch up on your favorite TV shows. 
• Vegan-friendly: There are many delicious recipes but finding one that is vegan-friendly and delicious is rare, as all the ingredients except cheese are vegan. All my vegan-friendly buddies, you can use avocados, cashew cream cheese, or tahini sauce instead of cheese. 

What is ciabatta?

Ciabatta is an Italian bread with a crispy and crunchy outer texture with a soft and spongy interior. Ciabatta bread is mainly made from flour, olive oil, active yeast, and warm water. It is a famous bread used in sandwich preparation, making toast, or serving cheese tomato soups. There are many ciabatta sandwich ideas for making it a complete sandwich. The famous ingredients used are cheese, tomatoes, garlic, onion, tangy pesto, fresh greens, salami, turkey, and other ingredients. I like my sandwich to be completely fresh, simple, and full of flavors because its simplicity is the beauty of Mediterranean and Italian cuisines.

Instruction to Make The Ciabatta Bread

1.Make the Dough

 Take warm water in a large bowl, add active dry yeast, and mix well. Pour salt and olive oil and mix well. Add bread flour and use a spatula to mix it until there is no dry flour and a dough texture is formed. It is a very sticky dough. Cover and rest for 30 minutes. 

2.Rest the Dough

After 30 minutes, dip your fingers in water, pull the ciabatta sticky dough from the bottom, and fold it to the opposite side (first time, stretch and fold). Rest for another 30 minutes, and then do the same (second time, stretch and fold). Again, for the third time, cover and rest the dough for another 30 minutes and repeat the process (the third time, stretch and fold the dough). Lastly, cover and rest the dough for 30 minutes.

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3.Shape the Dough

Sprinkle some flour on the board and move the proofed dough to it. Press gently with your hands and flatten the dough into a rectangle until it is 1 cm thick.

4.Bake the Ciabatta Bread

Dust some flour on the spatula and workplace and shape the dough into eight equal portions. Move each piece to the baking pan lined with parchment paper, cover, and rest for 30 minutes. Bake for 20 minutes at 430F. Transfer on the cooling rack before utilizing and there you go. Porous and light Ciabatta bread is ready to enjoy.

How to Make Pesto

Pesto sauce is famous in Italian cuisine and is often served on bread and a sauce. It is as delicious as its ingredients. To make the pesto sauce, roast the pine nuts until golden brown. Blend roasted pine nuts, garlic, salt, pepper, basil leaves, olive oil, and grated parmesan cheese until it forms a sauce. 

Ingredients

• Ciabatta loaf: I explained ciabatta bread earlier. You can take a long or short loaf. This bread is perfect for sandwiches because the porous surface holds the ingredients without getting soggy. 
• Tomato slices: If you like your sandwich to be loaded with tomatoes, take big slices, like 2-3 or possibly 4. Big Italian tomatoes are sweet and go well with tangy pesto sauce. 
• Cheese: Take 2-3 mozzarella slices. If you like your bread loaded with extra cheese, add mozzarella. Provolone, Burrata, Burrino, or Cheddar wrap best. 
• Arugula leaves: The best part about this sandwich is these fresh green leaves, which have lots of aroma and freshness. I also tried this sandwich with basil and spinach, and they tasted good. I am team arugula by the way.
• Pesto: Homemade fresh pesto is good. I have given details about how I make the pesto.

How to make a Ciabatta Sandwich

1.Prepare the Ciabatta Slices

Cut the ciabatta bread horizontally from the center and toast the inside of both pieces using olive oil.

Spread the pesto on the ciabatta bread.

Place the mozzarella slices on the bread

and bake it for 5 minutes at 400F. 

2.Assemble the Filling and Serve

Arrange the tomato slice on the melted mozzarella cheese. Arrange the arugula leaves on it and place the top of the ciabatta bread.

Your sandwich is ready to serve. 

Different Variations to Make the Sandwich Perfect!

• Deli meats: You can use any deli meat, such as turkey chicken, or roast beef, in this sandwich. The meat will add rich, succulent, and juicy flavors to this mozzarella and tomato sandwich.
• There are many choices in cheese selection. I prefer mozzarella, provolone, and cheddar. Different cheeses provide a distinct aroma and flavor to the sandwich. 
• Green herbs are so versatile in taste and freshness. I like my ciabatta sandwich with arugula, but you can select any fresh green herb, like basil leaves and baby spinach. Iceberg lettuce can also be great.
• Sauce and vinegar are also suitable for sandwich preparation. I’ve tried extra virgin olive oil, Dijon mustard, and balsamic vinegar in my sandwich, and it was a hit. 
• Roasted cherry tomatoes form a majestic combination. Roast the cherry tomatoes with a clove of garlic and extra virgin olive oil, and you’ve got the heavenly combination with ciabatta bread. 

Ciabatta Sandwich Ideas

• Use fresh ciabatta bread. You can make it from premade, but I recommend making it fresh to enjoy the crispy, spongy bread.
• While assembling the sandwich, I would recommend adding the tomato after cheese to avoid soggy bread.
• Lightly toast the bread after cutting it in half to get the perfect contrast of crispiness and softness of ciabatta bread. 
• I will tell you to cut the sandwich diagonally. Diagonal sandwich parts are easy to eat and look more appealing. I just remembered that I needed to cut the sandwich diagonally. After cutting, I realized something was missing, but the sandwich tasted the same (no worries). Don’t worry if I forgot; you can!
• If you are willing to carry the sandwich to eat outdoors or want to take it to work, then pack it in wrapping paper. If you want to enjoy it fresh, you can secure it with a toothpick. 
• Present the sandwich on the wooden board to make it aesthetically pleasing. 

Make These Sandwiches Ahead of Time.

You can store these sandwiches in aluminum wrap in the refrigerator for a day or two, but to avoid sogginess, you need to store the greens and tomatoes separately and add them to the sandwich just before you eat. I don’t recommend freezing the whole sandwich, but you can freeze the bread by securing it in plastic and aluminum wrap. Thaw the sandwiches at room temperature, reheat them in the oven, and enjoy.

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