Milk Bread

Approachable, deliciously soft and richly flavored white bread.

Servings: 6
Category: Entrees
Source: King Arthur

Recipe

Servings

Prep:30 minutes

Cook:36 minutes

Total:3 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup (240ml) water, warmed to about 110°F (43°C)
• 1 /4 cup (60ml) whole milk, warmed to about 110°F (43°C)
• 2 and 1/4 teaspoons (7g) instant or active-dry yeast
• 2 Tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar
• 4 Tablespoons (1/4 cup; 56g) unsalted butter, softened to room temp
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons table salt
• 3 and 1/3 cups (about 420-430g) all-purpose flour or bread flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed (NOTE: All-purpose flour is convenient for most, but bread flour produces a chewier loaf of bread and I highly recommend it.)

Directions

1. 1. Whisk the warm water, warm milk, yeast, and sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes, or until foamy on top.
2. 2. Add the butter, salt, and 1 cup (125-130g) flour. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add another cup of flour. Beat on medium speed until relatively incorporated (there may still be chunks of butter). Add the remaining flour and beat on medium speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 2 minutes.
3. 3. Keep the dough in the mixer and beat for an additional 5-8 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5-8 full minutes. If the dough becomes too sticky during the kneading process, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work surface/in the bowl to make a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not add more flour than you need.
4. 4. Lightly grease a large bowl with olive oil or nonstick spray. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides. Cover and allow the dough to rise for 1-2 hours or until double in size.
5. 5. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan.
6. 6. When the dough is ready, punch it down to release the air. Lightly flour a work surface, your hands, and a rolling pin. Roll the dough out Into a large rectangle, about 8x15 inches. It does not have to be perfect-in fact, it will probably be rounded on the edges. Roll it up into an 8 inch log and place in the loaf pan.
7. 7. Cover shaped loaf. Allow to rise until it's about 1 inch above the top of the loaf pan, about 1 hour.
8. 8. Adjust oven rack to a lower position and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).
9. 9. Bake for 32-36 minutes or until golden brown on top. if you notice the top browning too quickly, loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil. (I usually add aluminum foil over the loaf around the 20 minute mark.)
10. 10. Cool for a few minutes in the pan on a cooling rack before removing the bread from the pan and slicing. Feel free to let it cool completely before slicing, too.
11. 11. Cover leftover bread tightly and store at room temperature for 6 days or in the refrigerator for up to 10 days. See full recipe on my website for overnight, make-ahead, and freezing instructions.

Notes

1. If you do not own a mixer, you can mix this dough with a large wooden spoon or silicone spatula. It will take a bit of arm muscle

2. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger-if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise. You can also do a windowpane test to see if your dough has been kneaded long enough: tear off a small (roughly golf ball size) piece of dough and gently stretch it out until it's thin enough for light to pass through it. Hold it up to a window or light. Does light pass through the stretched dough without the dough tearing first? If so, your dough has been kneaded long enough and is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading.

3. To test for doneness, if you gently tap on the loaf, it should sound hollow. For a more accurate test, the bread is done when an instant-read thermometer reads the center of the loaf as 195-200°F (90-93°C).

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Created from recipe on November 27, 2025 (Thanksgiving)