This is your sweet and savory staple when you need a fluffy dough. It is a truly remarkable recipe that bridges the gap between everyday savory loaves and sweet treats. What makes this dough so special is its rich composition: whole milk, active sourdough starter, egg, and butter contribute to a tender, moist, and incredibly flavorful crumb. It also has a touch of sugar that aids the fermentation and adds a subtle sweetness.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!With this dough, you can make soft sandwich bread, decadent cinnamon rolls, fluffy dinner rolls, pull-apart bread, monkey bread, cardamom buns, sticky buns, doughnuts, babka, burger buns, hot dog buns, pigs-in-a-blanket… and so much more! I’ve even made a Vegemite and cheese babka… but I’ll spare you from that recipe (for now). It’s the dough I reach for whenever I want something soft and rich.
Below is the foundational recipe for sandwich bread to get you started!
Sourdough Sandwich Bread (Light Brioche Sourdough)
Ingredients
- 240 grams bubbly, active sourdough starter
- 400 grams warm whole milk
- 70 grams melted butter
- 2 eggs
- 58 grams sugar
- 720 grams all purpose flour
- 16 grams salt
Instructions
- Warm the milk and butter. Melt your butter first, then warm the milk in the same bowl. Let it cool slightly so it’s warm but not hot.
- Mix. In a stand mixer bowl with the dough hook attachment, mix together your sourdough starter, sugar, and egg. With the mixer running on low, slowly pour in the warm milk and butter. Add in the flour and salt and mix until everything is combined. The dough will look rough and sticky – that’s exactly right.
- Rest the dough. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let rest for 30 minutes.
- Knead. With the dough hook, knead on medium speed (3 or 4) for 6–8 minutes. The dough should be soft and start to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Let it rest for 5 minutes and perform the window-pane test to make sure it’s ready by gently stretching a small piece of dough between your fingers – if it stretches thin enough to let light pass through without tearing, it’s passed the windowpane test.
- Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap or a lid.
- Let rise overnight. Rise at room temperature (around 67–68°F) for 8–12 hours, or until doubled and puffy.
- Prep your pan. Butter or line two 9×5” loaf pans.
- Divide the dough into two equal portions.
- Shape each portion by stretching dough into a rectangle (8×12"), fold like a letter, then roll into a log. Place seam-side down. Optional: pre-shape into a round first, then shape into a log. This is what I do for a neater shaping.
- Final proof. Let rise until the dough rises 1 inch above the pan rim (usually 1.5 to 2.5 hours).Don’t be afraid to really push the second rise. Underproofed dough bakes up tight and dense… this one loves time!How to know it’s ready: Dough should feel light and puffy, spring back slowly when gently pressed, and jiggles a little when you nudge the pan
- Bake. Bake at 375°F (190°C) for 35–40 minutes, or until golden and hollow-sounding with an internal temp of 190F.Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a rack. Let cool for 1hr and enjoy!Ready to store? You can wrap in a tea towel and store at room temp for 3 days. For longer storage, slice and freeze.
Notes
- You can swap the butter for melted coconut oil if you want it dairy-free.
- Honey works in place of sugar. You might want to hold back about a teaspoon of liquid to keep the dough balanced.
- This recipe does use eggs for structure and softness, but you can try a flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flaxseed mixed with 3 tablespoons water per egg). It will be a little denser, but still soft and delicious.
