Dan Lepard's milk loaf and sourdough focaccia recipes

An artisan focaccia for those who regularly get their bake on, and a simple milk loaf for beginner home bakers.

Simple milk loaf

This old-school milk loaf has a homely appearance and a rich, buttery flavour. It's perfect for a cheese toastie or a breakfast sausage sandwich slathered with mustard and ketchup.

1½ tsp fast action dried yeast

320g milk, whole or semi-skimmed

20g golden or maple syrup, or honey

500g strong white flour, plus extra for shaping

1½ tsp fine salt

25g unsalted butter, melted

oil for kneading, shaping

cream or beaten egg to finish

1. Whisk the yeast, milk and syrup together in a large bowl.

2. Add the flour and salt then squidge the lot together into a soft, sticky dough with the flour and liquid evenly combined. Drizzle with the warm melted butter, then work this into the dough.

3. Cover and leave for 10 minutes. Rub one tablespoon of oil on the work surface and knead the dough for just 10 seconds. Rub the inside of the bowl with another tablespoon of oil, return the dough to it, cover and leave for another 10 minutes.

4. Repeat this light kneading twice more with a 10-minute interval, then leave the dough for 30 minutes or until the dough has risen in volume by half.

5. Line a deep loaf tin (12cm x 19cm) with nonstick paper. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and shape each into a ball. Drop them, side-by-side, into the tin, then cover and leave to rise for 1½ hours, or until the dough has increased in volume by half.

6. Heat the oven to 210C (190C fan-forced). Brush the top of the loaf with cream or beaten egg then bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 180C (160C fan-forced) and bake for a further 25-30 minutes, or until the top of the loaf is a shiny dark brown and has come away from the sides of the tin.

7. Remove from the tin and leave to cool on a wire rack.

Artisan focaccia

The word "focaccia" is now synonymous with the bubbly, open-textured bread that has become a regular feature in artisan bakeries around the world. These bakers work the dough over many hours so that holes created by the fermenting yeast are stretched and enlarged, giving a beautiful honeycomb effect to the crumb. If you don't have a sourdough starter you can mix ¼ teaspoon yeast with 100 grams each of flour and water plus a tablespoon yoghurt, and leave this to bubble overnight: a bit like comparing grape juice to wine but it gives you a better crumb texture.

330g water, at 20C

200g sourdough starter, mixed 1:1 flour and water

1 tsp malt powder or brown sugar

80g olive oil, plus extra for stretching the dough

1 tsp fast action dried yeast

500g white bread flour

1 ½ tsp salt flakes

1. Whisk the water with the starter, malt and yeast until smooth. Add 30g of the olive oil with the flour and salt, mix to a soft, sticky dough then cover and leave for 10 minutes.

2. Rub the remaining olive oil on a lipped baking tray so that it is coated. Knead the dough on the tray lightly for just 10 seconds, shape it into a ball then cover again and leave a further 10 minutes. Knead the dough on the oiled tray once more, returning it to a smooth, round ball. Leave for one hour at room temperature to rise slowly.

3. To stretch and fold the dough, rub an extra one tablespoon of oil onto the tray. Pat the dough out into a rectangle then stretch and fold the dough in on itself by thirds. Flip the dough over, so the seam–side faces down. Cover and repeat this stretching and folding every 40 minutes for the next two hours. When the dough is ready, a cut into the centre should reveal a dramatic network of holes.

4. Line two 30cm x 20cm baking trays with non-stick paper.

5. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and place each in the centre of a tray, then dimple the surface with your fingertips. Cover the dough and leave for 30 minutes, Heat the oven to 220C (200C fan-forced).

6. Uncover each piece of dough then stretch it to cover more of the tray. Drizzle with extra olive oil, sprinkle salt flakes over the surface, then make deep impressions with your fingertips pressing into the dough right down to the tray.

7. Bake for 35 minutes, or until they are a rich golden brown.

Makes two sheets of focaccia.

Recipes adapted from The Handmade Loaf by Dan Lepard, Hachette, $29.99