About this bread
Recipe #9 Milk loaf is a rich buttery bread, slightly sweet with the airy texture of a croissant. It’s perfect for toast and sandwiches, or right out of the oven. Milk Loaf differs quite a bit from #3 Batch Loaf even though they both have a bit of sweetness. The addition of milk changes the texture and adds flavor.
Milk loaf is a nice bread to make when you have plenty of time on your hands and can start early in the day. I attempted to make this loaf one evening after work. The first prove took at least two hours, and I should have given the second prove at least that much time. But it was after bedtime on a school night, and I was tired of waiting. The result was a dense, doughy, inedible loaf.
According to Paul Hollywood in 100 Great Breads, recipe #9 Milk Loaf is a very ancient bread, dating back over 1500 years. It is similar to Japanese Milk Bread or Amish Milk Bread. I think it needs a more glamorous name like Pain au lait.
Although the recipe originated from 100 Great Breads cookbook, I altered the ingredients slightly, and the cooking method.
Paul’s recipe was a bit sparse with the details. It didn’t say anything about scalding the milk, or even heating it up. And as I said above, there was no mention of how long it takes to prove this dough.
It’s worth it in the end. This buttery, sweet bread is something special. It would work well for cinnamon rolls.
According to Kitchn.com:
“In bread making, scalding the milk serves a more scientific purpose. The whey protein in milk can weaken gluten and prevent the dough from rising properly. Scalding the milk deactivates the protein so this doesn’t happen.”
#9 Milk Bread
Ingredients
- 4 cups white flour (bread flour if you have it, I didn't so I used regular white flour and it was fine)
- 1½ teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 6 tablespoons butter, softened
- 2⅓ teaspoons instant yeast
- 1⅓ cups milk that has been scalded then allowed to cool to 110- 120°F. Heat milk to 191°F. or until bubbles form and it starts to get a skin on the surface.
Instructions
- Put all ingredient except milk in a large mixer bowl. Gently and lovingly work in butter with your fingers until the flour resembles bread crumbs.
- Add milk to dry ingredients and if you have a mixer, use the dough hook to thoroughly combine. The dough should be just a tiny bit sticky. If not add a tiny bit of water.
- Knead the dough for 5-10 minutes until very stretchy when you pull it.
- Put the dough back in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until double in size. This will take about 2-3 hours.*
- After it has doubled in size, roll it into a rope and coil. Place in well-greased round bake-proof bowl. Let rise until double. This will take another 2 hours or so.
- Once it has doubled, bake in preheated 400°F oven. If you like, you can brush with an egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water). Bake for 35 minutes, or until internal temperature is 190°F.
Baking notes:
- This isn’t a difficult bread to make, it just takes longer to rise because of the milk and the sugar. It’s worth it because it tastes AMAZING!
- It’s a good idea to take a quick photo of your dough BEFORE the first proving. Sometimes it’s difficult to tell if it has risen. Generally, if it doesn’t seem like it’s doubled, it probably hasn’t.
- Proving the dough is very important to this bread. Make sure it is fully risen both times.
