Finally a recipe from Bon Appetit that I feel like making! The magazine has changed too much for me. I don’t like the layout, the photography, or the lack of page numbers. I get that I’m not the demographic, anymore, but…

So… as I was perusing the September issue, I found a recipe for Milk Bread. I do love my bread and I love baking new recipes, so this one was a natural. And since I have 10 pounds of Daisy Heritage Lancaster Red Wheat Flour in the pantry, this seemed like the perfect place to start.

I’ve bought Daisy Flour in the past, but this is the first of the Lancaster Red that I’ve bought. It doesn’t get much more local – it’s grown and milled just 50 miles from us. And it is awesome flour!

My ‘everyday’ flour is Antimo Caputo “00” from Italy.Yes, I use imported Italian flour for everyday use. I’ve reached that age and point in life where it just doesn’t make sense not to. I like how it feels, tastes, and bakes. End of discussion.

The Lancaster Red also has its roots in Italy. It was brought over to the US from Genoa in the early 1800s. It is hearty without being heavy. Local, heritage, and organic. It doesn’t get much better.

Back to those rolls…

I followed the recipe pretty much as written but when it came to putting the dough into “Six Jumbo Muffin Tins” I had enough dough for 12. I have no idea the size of the tins they were using, but these rolls are huge as it it – a double amount would be a loaf of bread!

Size or no, they came out fantastic!

They were light-textured, rich in flavor, and had a great, chewy crust! Everything I like in a loaf of bread!

I don’t often make breads with milk, but this one shall be a keeper, for sure! They worked on every level.

Because the recipe is available all over the web, I’ll go ahead and reprint here, as well…

Kindred Milk Bread

• 5 1/3 cups bread flour, divided, plus more for surface (Kindred uses King Arthur)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup mild honey (such as wildflower or alfalfa)
• 3 tablespoons nonfat dry milk powder (such as Alba)
• 2 tablespoons active dry yeast (from about 3 envelopes)
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 3 large eggs, divided
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, at room temperature
• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• Flaky sea salt (optional, but shouldn’t be)

Cook ⅓ cup flour and 1 cup water in a small saucepan over medium heat, whisking constantly, until a thick paste forms (almost like a roux but looser), about 5 minutes. Add cream and honey and cook, whisking to blend, until honey dissolves.

Transfer mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook and add milk powder, yeast, kosher salt, 2 eggs, and 5 cups flour. Knead on medium speed until dough is smooth, about 5 minutes. Add butter, a piece at a time, fully incorporating into dough before adding the next piece, until dough is smooth, shiny, and elastic, about 4 minutes.

Coat a large bowl with nonstick spray and transfer dough to bowl, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

If making rolls, lightly coat a 6-cup jumbo muffin pan with nonstick spray. Turn out dough onto a floured surface and divide into 6 pieces. Divide each piece into 4 smaller pieces (you should have 24 total). They don’t need to be exact; just eyeball it. Place 4 pieces of dough side-by-side in each muffin cup.

If making a loaf, lightly coat a 9×5″ loaf pan with nonstick spray. Turn out dough onto a floured surface and divide into 6 pieces. Nestle pieces side-by-side to create 2 rows down length of pan.

If making split-top buns, lightly coat two 13×9″ baking dishes with nonstick spray. Divide dough into 12 pieces and shape each into a 4″-long log. Place 6 logs in a row down length of each dish.

Let shaped dough rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in size (dough should be just puffing over top of pan), about 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375°. Beat remaining egg with 1 tsp. water in a small bowl to blend. Brush top of dough with egg wash and sprinkle with sea salt, if desired. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until bread is deep golden brown, starting to pull away from the sides of the pan, and is baked through, 25–35 minutes for rolls, 50–60 minutes for loaf, or 30–40 minutes for buns.

f making buns, slice each bun down the middle deep enough to create a split-top. Let milk bread cool slightly in pan on a wire rack before turning out; let cool completely.

Do Ahead: Bread can be baked 5 days ahead; store tightly wrapped at room temperature.

 

These will also make great burger buns. Maybe there will be a Last Hurrah BBQ before the snow falls!

Around here, anything is possible…