The easy (but oh so delicious!) white bread with poppy seeds

Level: Easy
Total Time: 2h 30min

Norwegians eat a lot of dark bread and it is often the base for their daily open sandwich lunch. There are no canteens in school so the kids need to bring their own sandwich lunch box. I was never a typical Norwegian when it came to bread as I never managed to get very fond of this dark bread sandwich tradition. The Norwegian white bread on the other hand is delicious! It is often served with Nordic shrimps or grilled chicken legs. The bread is soft, but yet crunchy, airy but still holding well together for a sandwich and oh so tasty…

Despite the French superiority when it comes to the quality of their baguette, I am less impressed by their other white bread. I still stick to my Norwegian recipe for white bread with poppy seeds. It is really easy to make but it does take some time due to resting. If you are in a hurry you can increase the yeast level by half and put the dough to rise in 30-35°c, but I recommend you plan ahead and let it rise slowly. The texture and taste are better that way. You can easily freeze this bread, either in slices or whole. Wrap it in foil and heat it in the oven for a few minutes and it will become as freshly baked! You can also reheat the slices in the toaster. It is a perfect bread to use for a shrimp sandwich or served with frog legs, with fried chicken legs or even with the French dish Croque Monsieur.

THE TIPS TO SUCCEED

1: Let the dough rest as indicated to create an airy texture.

2: I recommend slicing the bread with a razor blade before baking it and adding a bowl of water to the bottom of the oven. Both help the bread to rise even better.

Let’s get started

Ingredients

This is ingredients for 1 bread made in a 2L loaf pan.

• 500 g All-purpose flour
• 320 ml Milk
• 1 pcs Egg
• 1 tsp Salt
• 12 g Fresh yeast
• 30 g Butter soft (at room temperature)

How to do it?

Add the flour and salt into the kitchen machine bowl.

Mix the egg well and separate out a small part of it to brush on the bread before baking.

Add the cold milk and the egg into the flour/salt and start mixing.

Add the yeast in crumbles while the machine is working on medium/low speed. Let it work for 10 minutes.

Add the soft butter in small pieces and let the machine work for another 10 minutes. By kneading it for so long the flour develops its gluten and makes the bread stronger and more elastic, which in the end helps your bread to rise and get an airy consistency.

Cover the bowl with plastic and let it rest for 1h 30min.

Place the dough on a flour-covered table and knead it a few times, fold it over, roll it out to the length of your loaf pan and place it inside. Cover with a kitchen towel and let it rest for 1h.

Set the oven to heat at 190°c with an oven-proof bowl with water placed at the bottom.

Brush the dough with the egg and drizzle with poppy seeds. Cut the dough, using a razor blade, either in parallel lines or crossed (as in the picture). The bread will need to let go of some steam, by cutting it you allow it to let go easier and rise better.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

How to serve white bread with poppy seeds?

This is THE bread to use for the Scandinavian Shrimp sandwich but I use it with many other dishes: with Nutella for an afternoon snack, with grilled chicken or frog legs, with soups, or as a base for the French dish Croque Monsieur. Enjoy!