Enriched Dough

There’s nothing quite like homemade bread, and this technique for enriched dough will give you more flavour, longer shelf life and a more interesting loaf than basic bread dough.

Makes 8-10 buns

Ingredients 
Bread:
50ml full fat milk
250 water
30g demerara dark sugar (you can use pretty much any sugar, just not muscavado)
600 flour
60g unsalted butter
1,5 tsp salt
2 tsp yeast
2 eggs
Glaze:
1 egg
Small pinch of salt
1 tablespoon of sesame seeds

Start by dissolving the sugar in milk and water
Now get the flour in a bowl and add the butter and salt, then start rubbing it together until the butter is no longer visible, but has the texture and appearance of breadcrumbs
Add the yeast, the milk, water and sugar mixture, and then the eggs, and start mixing it all together in the bowl
Once it comes together, pour it out onto the worktop and start kneading (watch for the kneading technique for enriched doughs)
When you suspect it’s ready for shaping, you can do a prod test
Just push a finger into the top of the dough and see how well it springs back
If the indentation remains more or less unchanged, keep kneading
If it springs back quickly and continues so that the indentation is almost gone within five seconds, the gluten is sufficiently activated and the dough is ready for rising
Just let the dough sit in an oiled bowl, covered loosely with cling film or a tea towel, and leave it for two hours
We also recommend lightly oiling the top of the dough, just in case it rises so much that the top comes into contact with the covering
Once it has risen, it just needs to be shaped and baked
Tip it out with that layer facing down and flatten it out
Roll it up so all that sticky area is locked up inside, then divide the dough into handful-sized sections, as evenly as possible
Shape the buns and arrange the buns on a tray, leaving plenty of space between
them
Now leave them to rise again
Again, we suggest oiling and covering them loosely
This will take roughly an hour
Prod again gently and if the indentation stays almost unchanged, they are ready to be baked
For the glaze, throughly whisk the egg with the salt and gently glaze the buns
Be carful for the egg glaze not to drip onto the tray too much, as this may cause the buns to stick to the tray
Decorate with sesame seeds or cut a cross at the top with scissors
The oven should be preheated to 220C
Just before the tray goes in, we recommend tossing one 100ml of cold water into the bottom of the oven to create a steamy baking environment
Get the buns into the oven immediately, close the door and turn the temperature
Bake for 25 minutes, and please take care when opening to oven again
Look for a deep golden brown colour on top, and give one of them a tap underneath to see if they’re done, taking care not to burn yourself
If it sounds hollow, they’re ready
Leave to cool on a wire rack before eating them