Hokkaido Milk Bread

I hate Sundays.

I know, I know—‘Blasphemy!’ It has nothing to do with it being the Lord’s Day (or me being a truant church-goer). I’m sure I’m not the only one that dislikes them, almost more than Mondays. Let’s break it down, shall we?

Fridays are amazing because of the potential they hold. ‘What could possibly happen this weekend, this amazing break from my boring 8-5 job?’

Saturdays are… well, self-explanatory. They’re fantastic.

Sundays are the beginning of the end, and that’s why I dislike them so much. The little voices of reproach seep in past my weekend happiness shield, reminding me of all the things that I haven’t done yet—the bathroom needs a good scrubbing, those vegetables in the fridge are going bad. The thank-you cards for my wedding gifts sit on the table, an all-too-loud reminder that I am incapable of sticking to a timeline for my wedding even after my wedding is over. And what do I do instead?

I bake. I bake a delicious, milky spin on brioche—loaves that fill my apartment with a sweet smell and glisten in the light with a silky egg wash.

The weekend inevitably ends and I’m always sitting on my couch with a frown on my face, wondering where it went. At least this time I have… bread? Something tells me I’m missing the point of my own uplifting narrative…

I love Hokkaido milk tea (with boba), so the name of this recipe intrigued me. I suppose I should have been more wary when I realized that the bread is essentially an Asian-style brioche, but I carried onward. In the end, it was quite an adventure! I learned a lot of things in the process:

•   Brioche requires a lot of kneading! I had my KitchenAid mixer set on medium-low for 20 minutes continuously, and it got pretty warm to the touch at the end. The bowl even jammed on the base and I couldn’t twist it off! (In the end, it took some oil and a few slaps in the right direction on the handle to dislodge it.)
•  I learned the importance of having osmotolerant yeast for sweeter breads (instant yeast is a good substitute as well)… I only had active dry yeast on hand, so I improvised and had the yeast sit in warm milk for 10 minutes before adding it to the rest of the mixture, and made sure the ratio was 1.25:1 to account for the different in yeast composition. I think that if I attempted to make this bread again, I would get a fluffier consistency with instant as opposed to active dry yeast.
•  I had to adjust my temperature/bake times to my oven—the first loaf (pull-apart) got a little browner and crustier on top than I would have preferred because I followed the recipe to the T. The second loaf (traditional) had a much more even bake because I turned the temperature down to 325℉ and baked the bread for longer.

The final result is still delicious, but I am confident I could make it better the next time by incorporating the notes above.

And how does it taste? Fluffy and milky, with a hint of sweetness. I think it’s rather funny that I’ve been scared stiff about baking bread for a while—and in my first serious attempt, bake something much more demanding and complicated than a regular white or wheat loaf. But the stomach wants what it wants, so why deny it?

Recipe adapted from Elra’s Baking