Milk Bread

 What comes after baking cakes...is baking your own bread. I always wanted to learn making breads, but this 2020 pandemic just pushed me a step forward to actually learn it. I am a self taught cook, and although I go through books regarding recipes, youtube has been a lot of help in learning to make breads. I have followed here the dinner rolls recipe from the channel tasty and it has worked wonders. In baking breads, kneading is one vital process that you have to learn. I am not so much impressed of the no knead breads, ad I like structure and stability in my dough, and the beautiful crumbs, which without kneading is hard to get. If you don't have a kitchen aid, kneading a dough by hand, for 20-25 minutes is hard, but that is what you must do to get a soft and squishy bread. 

Milk Bread is one of the first breads I perfected my hands on, and it is easy to make too. Beacause of the fats from the butter and whole milk, the bread turns out soft and squishy. And once you have tasted the magical taste of fresh breads, it will be difficult to buy those stale store baught breads from the selves of the supermarkets. 

Milk Bread

Ingredients:

1 cup full fat warm milk

1/2 cup warm water

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup sugar

2 and 1/4 tsp active dry yeast

4 cups of flour

1 and 1/2 tsp salt

2 large eggs

Method:

In a saucepan, on very low heat warm the milk.

When the milk is warm enough, i.e. you can dip your finger and keep the finger there without burning it, switch off the flame.

Mix in sugar, butter, yeast and warm water.

Stir until everything dissolves.

And then, leave it at the kitchen counter for 10-15 minutes, allowing the yeast to bloom.

After 15 minutes, when the mixture becomes frothy transfer the milk and butter mixture in a large bowl. Add the flour and salt and mix until you have a lump.

No transfer this to the work surface and knead. Do not add any flour, just knead with the heels of your palms, stretching and slapping it continuously, for around 15 minutes, until the dough comes together and it is not lumpy like before. Roll it into a ball and put inside the large bowl. Grease it with a little oil. Cover with a cling film. Let it rise for 1 hour.

After an hour, or when the dough has doibled in size, punch it to deflate.

Knead for 5 minutes again.

Now, you can guve it any shape you want.

You can divide the dough into two and put into two 1 pound loaf pans or make into individual 16 balls.

After shaping them, cover them with a damp lightweight kitchen towel and proof for another 30 minutes to 1 hour, or until they have doubled in size.

Break the egg and whisk until nice and frothy.

With a brush give the loaves or the balls an egg wash.

Bake in a pre-heated oven for about 30 minutes for the indivifual balls and 30-40 minutes for the loaves.