Germans do not eat much white bread and that mostly as toast for soup or Fladenbrot, Pizza, and croissants. "Toastbrot" is as close to US white bread as you will find. It is not as squishy, and it is often baked in Pullman pans with cover to create a uniformly square piece of bread.
This recipe calls for an overnight sponge to develop flavor. It may be one of the best tasting white breads you will ever eat.
Makes 1 to 2 loaves, depending on size of pans.
Prep Time: 19 hours
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 19 hours, 45 minutes
Ingredients:
- ***Sponge - Day 1***
- 1 5/8 c. (200 g.) bread flour
- 1/2 tsp. (4 g.) salt
- 1/4 tsp. (1 g.) instant yeast
- 2/3 c. (150 g.) water
- ***Final dough - Day 2***
- All of the sponge
- 3 1/3 c. (420 g.) bread flour
- 1 1/2 tsp. (11 g.) salt
- 1 T. (15 g.) sugar
- 1/4 c. (60 g.) butter, softened
- 2 tsp. (7 g.) instant yeast
- 7/8 c. (210 g.) lukewarm milk
Preparation:
This bread is designed to have a tight crumb. It is a stiff dough and you roll out all the large bubbles. The short rises are also to keep the crumb tight. It will rise in the oven and have a hard crust.
Begin 18 hours before you wish to make the final dough and about 20 hours before the bread is to be finished. Make sponge by stirring all ingredients together until they form a ball. Knead in the bowl until smooth. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature for 2 hours, then refrigerate for 16 hours.
Remove sponge from refrigerator and let it start to come to room temperature (1/2 to 1 hour).
Knead all ingredients for the final dough in a stand mixer for 10 minutes with a dough hook on low speed.
Let dough rest 10 minutes in a warm spot.
Shape one half of the dough by rolling into a rectangle and forming into a long log (pinch the edges shut when you roll it up). Cut the log into four equal pieces, dunk them in water and lay the pieces crosswise (see image) in a buttered bread pan. The water keeps them from building a skin and makes them stick together after baking.
Note: The size of the bread pan will determine whether you make one loaf or two (or one loaf and a few rolls). A 2-lb. Pullman loaf pan (4 x 4 x 13 inches or 4 x 4 x 16 inches) will make one loaf, a 4 x 4 x 9 inch pan will make one giant loaf or one loaf plus a few rolls. Or you can make two loaves in the smaller pan, which will not rise as high.
Let the loaf (loaves) rise in a warm spot 20 - 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Place pan in oven, lower oven temperature to 390°F and bake for 30 40 minutes for smaller loaves or 45-60 minutes for larger loaves, or until done - when inner temperature reaches 180°F or higher.
