Petit Pains Au Lait
A classic French milk bread recipe formed into dinner rolls, that is delicious and announces it's wonderful flavor by filling your home with irresistible aroma! Petit Pains au lait are so versatile, you can fill them with your favorite fillings or just make them to accompany a bowl of delicious French soup!
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About Milk Bread Buns Recipe
Personally, I love mixing, smelling and eating homemade baked bread and this beautiful French bread recipe is superb.
There are 3 stages in making these mild buns or French bread as is quite usual for most yeast breads of this style.
Don't let this worry you. It is simple and all comes together very easily. You just need some time.
You will enjoy the eating at the end, but will also be amazed at how much the process is rewarding.
(Try other great French bread recipes at home.)
Key Ingredients
- unbleached white bread flour - Why unbleached white bread flour? Unbleached and bread flours produce a denser texture and more structure to the baked goods. Which is in direct contrast to all-purpose flour which is better for cakes and cookies where a light consistency is the goal.
- butter - adds flavor and a softer roll.
- white sugar - food for the yeast, a must for the buns to rise.
- salt - enhancing the flavor.
- milk - the liquid the yeast must have to activate.
- active dried yeast or instant yeast - which is the ingredient that makes bread rise so beautifully, but as mentioned must be fed something to eat and liquid to drink, so to speak.
How To Make Milk Bread Buns Recipe
1. The First Stage: Mixing The Milk Buns
Assemble your 6 ingredients together, following the instructions on how to mix it up which is very important.
The 2 photos below show you what your bread will look like after mixing the dough.
And then after the rising stage is complete.
The time it takes for the rising stage depends, to a great extent on the temperature of the room.
The warmer it is the faster it will rise.
2. The Second Stage: Second Rising
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface again and knock it back, in other words, punch it!
Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and shape them into balls for your bread rolls.
Cut a cross on the top of each one with a sharp knife.
They should look something like this.
Cover with lightly oiled clear film or a clean damp teacloth and leave for another hour or until doubled in size.
3. The Third Stage: Enjoying The Aroma While Baking
Brush the tops of the bread rolls with milk and place in a preheated oven.
Bake at 200C/400F/Gas 6 and bake for about 20 minutes or until they are golden brown in colour.
Place them on a wire rack to cool and hopefully there will still be some left for your meal!
🍞More French Bread Recipes
📖 Recipe
Prep Like a Pro
Before you start cooking, chop, measure, and prep every ingredient, and gather your tools.
This simple habit reduces stress, prevents overcooking, and instantly improves your meals. Mise en Place - "Everything in its place."
Milk Bread Buns Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups unbleached white bread flour
- ¼ cup butter at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup lukewarm milk
- 1 teaspoon dried yeast 15gm/1/2 oz fresh yeast
Instructions
First Stage
- Sieve the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl.
- Mix in the sugar.
- Rub the butter into the flour until it is very fine like breadcrumbs.
- If using fresh yeast, cream the yeast with 3 tablespoons of the milk.
- Stir in the remainder of the milk.
- Add the yeast/milk mixture to the flour and using your hands, mix to a dough.
- If using dried yeast, add it to the mixture with the flour and then add the lukewarm milk.
- Mix to a dough with your hands.
- Turn out onto a floured surface and knead the dough for about 5 minutes until it is smooth and elastic in texture.
- Put your dough into a lightly oiled bowl and cover with clear film or a clean damp tea cloth and leave for about 1 hour or until it has doubled in size. The temperature of the room will determine how long this might take. The warmer it is the less time it takes.
Second Stage
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface again and knockback, punch it!
- Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces and shape them into balls for your bread rolls.
- Cut a cross on the top of each one with a sharp knife.
- Cover with lightly oiled clear film or a clean damp tea cloth and leave for another hour or until doubled in size.
Third Stage
- Brush the tops of the bread rolls with milk and place in a preheated oven, 200C(400F, Gas 6) and bake for about 20 minutes or until they are golden brown in color.
- Place them on a wire rack to cool.
- There you have your Petit Pains Au Lait - they smell gorgeous and taste divine!
Notes
- You can choose to make loaves instead of buns, in bread pans or round loaves and bake on oiled baking sheets or line with parchment paper. Add 5-10 minutes if baking loaves.
Loved it, tweaked it, or not your "cup of tea"... I’d really love to hear how it went for you.