Victorian Milk Bread
1 1/4 cups lukewarm milk
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon sugar
3 1/2 cups bread flour
2 teaspoons dry yeast
egg glaze, made with 1 egg and 1 tablespoon milk
Sprinkle yeast and sugar into 1/2 cup of milk in bowl. Leave for 5 minutes; stir to dissolve. Stir in half of remaining milk. Mix flour and salt in large bowl. Make well in center and pour in dissolved yeast. Mix in flour. Stir in reserved milk to form a sticky dough. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
Put dough in clean bowl and cover with dish towel. Let rise for 45 minutes. Punch down, cover and let dough rise again until doubled in size about 45 minutes.
Grease an 8 x 4 x 2 1/2 inch loaf pan. Shape dough into an “S” shape by shaping dough into a long loaf.
To do this you flatten dough with the lightly floured palm of your hand to expel any gas bubbles. Keep dough in a round shape by exerting pressure evenly. Take one end of dough and fold it into center. Press gently to seal fold. Fold other half of dough into center, so that the folds overlap along middle of loaf. Gently press along seam with lightly floured palm of your hand to seal two folds. Use thumbs of both hands to create an indentation in center of dough. Before brining top half toward you, rest your fingertips along top of dough and five a firm, short push forward. This action tightens the interior of dough and gives an even textured crumb when bread is baked. Make sure dough is about 16 inches in length and 3 1/4 inches wide. Turn the shaped dough over at each end to form a S shape. Place shaped dough in greased loaf pan. Cover with dish towel. Proof until dough is 1 inch above the top of pan, about 1 hour.
Brush top of loaf with egg glaze. Bake in preheated 400F oven for 45 minutes until golden.
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