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Prep time
2 hours
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Cook time
50 minutes
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makes
1 loaf
Author Notes
Using milk to hydrate bread dough produces a beautifully fluffy and delicately perfumed sandwich bread. The fats in milk also create a bread that's softer on the edges, so it's great for sandwiches, soft breadcrumbs, toast, and lining desserts like summer pudding. —Amanda Hesser
Test Kitchen Notes
This recipe is shared in partnership with GonnaNeedMilk. —Food52
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Watch This Recipe
Milk Bread
Ingredients
- For the starter:
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1/3 cup
(45 grams) bread flour
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1 cup
whole milk
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1/2 cup
water
- For the dough:
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2 3/4 cups
(370 grams) bread flour
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1/4 cup
(60 grams) sugar
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2 1/4 teaspoons
(1 packet) active dry yeast
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1 teaspoon
salt
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1
egg
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2 tablespoons
honey
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1/2 cup
plus 2 tablespoons whole milk, plus more for brushing on the dough before baking
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4 tablespoons
unsalted butter, cut into pieces and brought to room temperature, plus more for buttering mixing bowl and baking pan
Directions
- For the starter:
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In a small saucepan, whisk together the flour, milk, and ½ cup water until smooth. Set over medium low heat and stir as you bring it to a simmer. Continue stirring and cook the mixture until it’s thickened but pourable (like a béchamel), about 10 minutes. Scrape enough starter into a ½ cup measuring cup to fill to the rim, cover with plastic wrap, and let cool (discard the remaining starter or make a second loaf!).
- For the dough:
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In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the flour, sugar, yeast, and salt and mix for a few seconds, just until blended. Add the egg, milk, honey, and ½ cup starter. Mix on low speed until a dough forms; knead for 5 minutes.
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Add the room temperature butter to the mixer and knead another 10 to 12 minutes. The dough should be soft and smooth.
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Butter the inside of a bowl that’s at least twice the volume of the dough. Scrape the dough from the mixer onto a lightly floured countertop. Shape into a ball and place in the buttered bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel and let the dough rise until doubled in size. This will take about an hour; start checking after 30 minutes.
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Punch the dough down, fold in the sides and scrape it onto a work surface. Using a bench scraper or knife, cut the dough into 4 pieces. Shape each piece of dough into a ball; Place them 4 inches apart on the countertop, cover with the dishtowel and let them rise until puffy, but not doubled, 10 to 15 minutes.
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Heat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter a 9x5-inch loaf pan. Working with one ball at a time, turn the ball over onto a lightly floured surface and using the base of your palm, pat the dough into a flat oval, about 4 inches wide. Working from one of the narrow ends, roll the oval into a log just wide enough to fit crosswise into the pan. Place the log in the pan, seam side-down and crosswise. Repeat with the remaining balls of dough, so that you have 4 dough logs equally spaced on the base of the pan.
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Cover and let rest until the dough is rising above the edge of the pan and is springy when gently pressed, about 40 minutes.
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Brush the top of the loaf with milk and bake until golden brown, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven to a baking rack.
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Let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert the loaf onto the wire rack, set right side up and let cool.
Before starting Food52 with Merrill, I was a food writer and editor at the New York Times. I've written several books, including "Cooking for Mr. Latte" and "The Essential New York Times Cookbook." I played myself in "Julie & Julia" -- hope you didn't blink, or you may have missed the scene! I live in Brooklyn with my husband, Tad, and twins, Walker and Addison.
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