Milk Bread - cooking recipe

Ingredients

4 cups bread flour
1 large egg, room temperature
4 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 cup 1% low-fat milk, warmed but NOT scalded

Preparation

Grease a standard size loaf pan.
Sift the flour into a large warm bowl and add the egg, butter, yeast, salt and sugar.
Gradually mix in the milk--NOT all of it may be necessary--and knead by hand or by machine until smooth and elastic.
Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for approximately 1 hour.
Knead the dough again, BRIEFLY and fit the dough into the loaf pan.
Let rise again in a warm place for approximately 45 minutes; then glaze the top of the loaf with either some beaten egg or some milk.
Bake the loaf in a 450\u00b0F oven for 15 minutes; then REDUCE the oven temperature to 425\u00b0F and bake for an additional 20 minutes or until the loaf is golden and sounds hollow when tapped on it's base.
This bread was declared by Victorians to be a nice soft loaf with a good storage life and deemed perfect for teatime or breakfast use.
Prep time includes time for the dough to rise.