Anna Polina Bread

7-8 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp. Salt
3 Tbsp. Oil
½ large cake of yeast
½ cup milk
2 Tbsp. Sugar
3 ½ cups milk

optional garnishes:
Sesame seeds
Poppy seeds
Raisins
Chopped walnuts
Dried fruit

1. Combine the ½ cup milk, sugar and yeast into a small bowl. Stir with a fork to dissolve the yeast. Set aside.

2. In a large mixing bowl measure the flour. Make a well in the center of the flour and add the salt and oil.

3. In a medium sauce pan heat the 3 ½ cups of milk until almost too hot to touch(100 degrees). Add the 3 ½ cups of warm milk to the flour and mix. Add the milk and yeast mixture and continue to mix. Continue adding more flour if necessary and the dough is no longer sticky. Transfer the dough onto a work surface.

4. Divide the dough into thirds and knead each third. Add more flour to each third if the dough is still sticky. Combine the thirds and knead. Tuck the dough under until smooth on top and place the dough into a large and lightly greased bowl. Let the dough rise 2 hours in a warm place or until triple in size.

5. Punch the risen dough down and divide it into parts. Be creative. Add nuts, raisins, etc. After forming bread loaves place them on a lightly greased sheet tray far enough apart to allow fro rising. Cover the with a light towel and let them rise for an additional 1 hour. Score the bread and brush the tops with egg white. Sprinkle the tops with sesame seeds or poppy seeds. Bake at 350|ºF for 25 minutes or until bread is golden. Cool on wire racks.


Variations: Though Anna Polina was Italian, add nuts to her recipe and you have a wonderful french "pain aux noix"!

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