A chewy, slightly sweet, mild bread for communion--or make it as loaves for toasting or for sandwiches. I have updated this recipe and it is scaled to make 1 9" x 5" loaf of bread. I will put the original measurements in the comments if you are used to making the original amount.
Heat the milk until it's steaming and beginning to bubble around the edges. Remove from the heat, and whisk in the butter and honey until the butter has all melted and the milk is warm and not hot.
Pour the milk mixture into the bowl of your stand mixer, and whisk in the salt.
Pour in all the flour followed by the yeast.
Fit the mixer with the dough hook and bring the dough together on low speed.
Increase the speed to medium and knead for 8-10 minutes (you can also do this by hand. It will take about 10-15 minutes.) When ready, the dough will be very supple and extensible and not at all sticky. This is a fairly firm dough. No dough should stick in the bottom or sides of the bowl after kneading.
Gather the dough into a nice round and put back in the mixer bowl. Brush on olive oil to thinly cover the exposed dough. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double in size, about two hours.
Press the gases out of the dough. For one 9"x5" loaf of bread, press the dough into a rectangle and then roll it up and fit it into the pan. To make a round loaf, shape into a round, making sure to create some tension on the outside of the dough ball by rolling it between your palms on a clean countertop.
Cover and let rise until almost doubled again, about an hour. If baking a round, slice an X into the top with a sharp knife.
Bake at 350F for about 30-35 minutes, until deeply golden brown and the internal temperature of the bread reaches 200F. If making loaf bread, brush the crust with a little melted butter as soon as it comes out of the oven.
Let cool on racks completely before slicing.
Notes
To Make a Double Batch
20 oz whole milk
2 oz unsalted butter
2 teaspoons yeast (active dry or instant)
32 oz bread flour
4 oz honey (1/3 cup)
2 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
All instructions are the same as in the main recipe.
Other Ways to Form the Dough
Rather than forming loaves or a round, you can also make great hamburger buns out of this dough. Scale them at 4 ounces or so. This would also make a lovely braided loaf, so don't limit yourself. Simple divide the dough into thirds after the first rise, braid, and tuck the ends under, and then give it its second rise.Nutritionals are based on slicing the loaf into 12 slices. If you portion the dough differently or slice the bread more thinly, the nutritional information will vary.