A simple and honest homemade milk loaf
ingredients
500g strong good branded bread flour
10g salt
25g sugar
30ml olive oil or melted butter
320ml warm milk
25g fresh yeast
Method
1. In a large mixing bowl add the flour, salt, sugar and olive oil.
2. Dissolve the yeast into the warm milk and add to the mixing bowl to form a soft and sticky dough.
3. Dust a work surface with flour and turn out your dough onto it, kneading well for ten minutes till silky and springy.
4. Return the dough back to the mixing bowl and cover with a clean tea towel placing somewhere warm to prove for a good hour or so. Don’t worry if you don’t have an airing cupboard, as a slower rise will give you more flavour.
5. Once risen well, empty the dough onto the work surface and shape up into a cob, plait, bloomer or tin loaf.
6. Place you shaped bread onto greased baking trays or loaf tin, ensuring the seam is at the bottom.
7. Put somewhere warm to allow it two prove up again till double in size, such as on top of a preheating oven or a sunny window bottom.
8. Lightly dust the top of your loaf with flour to add crispness. Tin bread can be slashed down the middle of the loaf with a sharp knife.
8. Once risen well, bake your loaf in a hot preheated middle shelf oven 220c/Gas Mark 7 for 30-35 minutes till dark brown colour.
9. If you decide to make a tin loaf, remove from the tin and return the loaf back to the oven to crisp the bottom and sides.
10. Place your loaf onto a cooling wire to cool fully before slicing up big wedges for the ultimate sandwich!
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