So, I’ve been getting raw milk from a co-worker who has a farm. The cow’s name is Sasha and every week I visit her for my quart of milk (and often a dozen farm-fresh eggs). One of the quarts I got two weeks ago didn’t get the cream skimmed off soon enough and went a little sour. DO NOT USE YOUR MILK IF IT IS PASTEURIZED AND HAS GONE SOUR! Pasteurized milk is actually decomposing, whereas raw milk is merely changing into another form. Ok, now that we understand that, let’s move on. So, many people like to drink sour milk (it’s like buttermilk), but I am not one of those people. Not wanting to waste my cup and a half of slightly sour milk, I scoured the internet for an appropriate recipe. I came upon Buttermilk Wheat Bread at AllRecipes.com. While it is written for the bread machine, a few changes make it perfect for the oven. I skimmed the comments and saw that many people had kindly listed those changes for me. And, because I was out of wheat flour, mine is entirely white flour. Below is the recipe with my modifications. This may just be the best bread I’ve ever baked…
Buttermilk Bread
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups soured raw milk (or buttermilk)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons white sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
Directions
Warm the milk to around 110 degrees. Add milk and the melted butter to your stand mixer. Pour in the yeast, sugar, and salt and mix briefly. Let sit for a minute to proof. Add in the flour, 1 cup at a time, mixing well. Use the dough hook attachment if available and knead for 3 – 5 minutes. Turn once in oil to coat and let rise in a warm place 45 minutes or until doubled. Punch down and place in greased loaf pan. Let rise another 15 – 30 minutes, depending on desired loaf size. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 – 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on rack. For softer crust, apply butter to the top as it cools.
