Simple All Purpose Sweet Dough Recipes

Steps:

• Warm 1/2 cup water and the milk in a saucepan over low heat until a thermometer registers 100 degrees F to 110 degrees F. Remove from the heat and sprinkle the yeast on top, then sprinkle with a pinch of the sugar; set aside, undisturbed, until foamy, about 5 minutes.
• Whisk the melted butter, egg yolk and vanilla into the yeast mixture until combined. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, the remaining sugar, the salt and nutmeg. Make a well in the center, then add the yeast mixture and stir with a wooden spoon to make a thick and slightly sticky dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead until soft and elastic, about 6 minutes. Shape into a ball.
• Brush a large bowl with butter. Add the dough, turning to coat lightly with the butter. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until the dough is doubled in size, about 1 hour, 15 minutes.
• Turn the dough out of the bowl and knead briefly to release excess air; re-form into a ball and return to the bowl. Lightly butter a large piece of plastic wrap and lay it directly on the surface of the dough. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

Steps:

• 1. If you are using a bread machine using the "dough only" cycle, simply put all wet ingredients in first (for most machines, check yours) . So the water or milk, butter, egg, then the dry ingredients and set for 'dough only'. Check after the first 5 minutes to see if it is too wet (add a teaspoon of flour) or too dry (sprinkle with a little water).
• 2. If making the dough by hand or standing mixer, whisk the wet ingredients into a bowl. While you want the chill off the milk, if using, you don't want it too hot or the yeast will get scalded! Add the sugar. Add 1 cup of flour, the potato flakes, the salt and yeast. Whisk until thickened. Add the rest of the flour and use a danish whisk, wooden spoon or dough hook on standing mixer to mix this in. If it is too sticky, add some flour, a tablespoon at a time. If it is too dry (floury, cracked and not tacky) sprinkle some water it and mix in. You want it to be tacky, like a post-it note.
• 3. Knead the dough on a lightly floured counter. Pushing, folding over, pushing. Or use a dough hook in standing mixer and let knead for a few minutes until it pulls away from bowl and feels springy, about 3-5 minutes. You do not need to knead long because you are not making a loaf of bread with this dough. Kneading develops gluten, and with most sweet breads and buns, you do not need much gluten. So you just knead it until it is a bit springy and is coming together into a nice ball.
• 4. If you are using it right away, put the dough into an oiled bowl, oil the top and cover with plastic wrap to let it "proof" or rise until about double in size, 45 min to 1 hour. Or you can put it into a bag sprayed with oil and big enough to let it grow inside, and store it in the fridge until you want it, perhaps the next morning. I sometimes use used bread bags for this and twist tie the top. The next morning, or when done proofing, you would press it down, releasing the gasses and redistributing the yeasts. Then shape it into whatever you are making and let it raise again. Then it is ready to bake. If it came out of the fridge, of course it will take a bit longer to rise after shaping. But the warmth from your hands help to warm it up. See specific pastry recipe for details.

Steps:

• In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk, sugar and butter. Heat until slightly warm to the touch then remove from heat and stir in the yeast. Let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes.
• In a large bowl, stir together the flour and salt. Mix in the eggs, oil and the yeast mixture. Mix until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and continue to knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Grease a large bowl with 1 tablespoon of oil. Place the dough into the bowl and turn once to coat. Cover and let stand in a warm place until double in size, about 1 hour.
• Use remaining oil to grease a cookie sheet or 9x13 inch pan. For plain rolls, punch down dough and divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll the pieces into balls and place them into the greased pan side by side. Let dough rise for 20 to 25 minutes, or until almost double. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until rolls are golden brown.

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast and salt. In a saucepan, heat milk, butter and water to 120°-130°. Add to dry ingredients; beat just until moistened. Add egg and remaining flour; beat until smooth. Shape into a ball. Do not knead. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Use for Braided Coffee Cake or Coffee Cake Ring.

Steps:

• Pulse oat flour, gluten-free flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda in the bowl of a food processor until combined. Add butter and cream cheese and pulse just until they form pea-sized pieces. Whisk together egg and vanilla in a small bowl. With the machine running, add egg mixture to flour mixture and process until the dough just begins to hold together, about 10 seconds.
• Turn out mixture onto a work surface and push together to form a rough ball. Knead a few times to combine, then divide dough in half and flatten into 2 disks with smooth edges. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very firm, at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.
• To make cookies (Makes about 2 dozen):
• Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
• Dust your work surface and rolling pin generously with all-purpose gluten-free flour. Remove 1 dough disk from the refrigerator and roll out into a round about 1/8" thick. If dough becomes too soft to roll out, cover with plastic wrap and chill until firm. Cut out as many cookies as possible from with cutters and transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets, arranging them about 1 inch apart (scraps can be rerolled as many times as you like).
• Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until edges are golden, 10 to 12 minutes, then transfer sheet pans to wire racks to cool completely. (If re-using baking sheets to bake multiples batches of cookies, let sheets cool completely between batches.)
• To Make Pie or Tart Crust (Makes enough for one double-crust pie, two single-crust pies, or two 9-inch tarts):
• Dust a large piece of parchment paper and your rolling pin with all-purpose gluten-free flour. Remove one dough disk from the refrigerator and roll out on parchment into a 1/8" thick round, gently reshaping and rotating the dough as you go to make sure it's not sticking, and adding more GF flour underneath as needed. If dough becomes too soft or sticky, slide dough-covered parchment onto a baking sheet and freeze until firm, about 10 minutes. Invert a 9" pie plate over rolled out dough, gently slide your hand under parchment paper, and re-invert. Remove parchment paper, then fit dough into pie plate and crimp edges as desired. Chill in freezer 10 minutes, then bake according to your pie or tart recipe.
• To Make Bar Cookies (Makes two 8" baking dishes):
• Roll or press out dough according to your bar cookie recipe and bake according to instructions.
• Do Ahead
• Dough can be frozen for up to 3 months; thaw in refrigerator overnight before using.

Steps:

• Make the tangzhong: Combine the milk and 6 tablespoons flour in a medium saucepan and whisk until smooth. Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture begins to thicken, about 2 minutes. Continue to whisk vigorously, making sure to scrape along the bottom curve of the saucepan, until the mixture is very thick and looks like smooth mashed potatoes, about 20 seconds longer.
• Remove saucepan from heat and scrape the tangzhong into the bowl of a stand mixer. Cover the bowl and let the tangzhong sit until it's room temperature, about the better part of an hour. (A cool tangzhong is crucial to ensuring proper dough development; you can speed it along by chilling the bowl and occasionally uncovering it to stir the tangzhong.)
• Make the dough: To the bowl of the stand mixer, add 4 eggs (reserve the remaining egg for brushing over the dough), then add the oil, sugar, salt, yeast and remaining 3 3/4 cups flour. Fit the mixer with the dough hook and mix on low speed until the ingredients come together as a coarsely textured dough, about 3 minutes. Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a bowl scraper or flexible spatula, then mix on medium-low, scraping down the sides once or twice more, until dough is smooth, firm and very elastic, 12 to 15 minutes. It will have gathered around the hook but still cling to the slides and bottom of the bowl, and have a mostly tacky, not sticky, texture.
• Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add half of the chilled butter pieces and mix on low speed until the butter pieces have incorporated into the dough, about 5 minutes. Stop the mixer, scrape down the sides again, and add the remaining butter. Mix on low until all the butter is completely incorporated. The dough should no longer stick to the sides of the bowl and will have a very smooth, supple appearance. Increase the speed to medium-low and continue to mix until the dough is extremely elastic, another 10 to 15 minutes.
• Test the dough: To see if the dough has built sufficient strength and elasticity - which it will need to expand to its maximum volume in the oven - stop the mixer and raise the hook. The weight of the dough will slowly pull it downward off the hook. (A strong dough will stretch the distance to the bottom of the bowl, rather than tear.) You can also do a windowpane test: Pinch off a golf ball-size piece of dough, and use your thumbs to flatten it and work the dough outward into a thin layer. Slowly stretch the dough, until it forms a thin membrane through which light can pass. If it tears before that point, or as it falls from the hook, continue to mix on medium-low and repeat the test every 5 minutes.
• Let the dough rise: Scrape the dough onto a work surface. (If the dough is a bit sticky, dust it very lightly with flour.) Fold it in half several times to create a smooth, taut surface, then place back inside the stand mixer bowl, smooth-side up. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or an airtight lid and let rise at room temperature for 30 minutes, then transfer to the refrigerator and chill for at least 4 hours and up to 24. (If making hamburger buns or pistachio morning buns, stop here and see recipes.)
• Prepare the pans: Using a pastry brush, lightly coat the bottom and sides of 2 standard loaf pans with room-temperature butter. Line each pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the two longer sides, then lightly brush the parchment paper with more butter. Set the pans aside.
• Portion the dough: Remove the dough from the refrigerator and uncover. Scrape the dough from the bowl and place on the work surface. Use the heel of your hand to knock out the gas and deflate the risen dough, which will be quite firm. Using a kitchen scale and a bench scraper or a knife, portion the dough into 16 equal pieces. (Each piece will weigh about 70 grams.) If you don't have a kitchen scale, you can eyeball it.
• Form the loaves: Working with one piece of dough at a time, fold it onto itself a few times to create a smooth surface, then gather the edges and pinch them together to form a smooth bundle of dough that looks like a garlic bulb. Place it seam-side down on the work surface and position your hand over the dough, palm barely touching the top and fingers lightly cupping it and resting on the work surface. Drag your hand - and the dough with it - slowly across the surface, moving it in small, rapid circles. The friction between the dough and the surface will help tighten the dome so your loaves rise upward. You shouldn't need to add flour, since the cold dough is easier to handle and much less sticky, but if your dough is slightly warm or otherwise sticky, add just a bit of flour to make it easier to handle. Continue with all the pieces of dough, then arrange the balls inside the prepared loaf pans, 8 per pan in a 2-by-4 pattern.
• Proof the loaves: Cover the pans tightly and let sit at room temperature, undisturbed, until the dough has doubled in size and the individual domes appear puffed and balloonlike, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Meanwhile, arrange an oven rack in the center position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Beat the remaining egg in a small bowl until no streaks remain, then set aside.
• Test the loaves: For the softest, airiest bread, the dough must be fully proofed. Test it by uncovering the loaves, lightly oiling your finger, and gently poking the surface. It should feel filled with air, spring back, and hold a slight indentation from your finger. If it doesn't, cover again and continue to let it rise, repeating the test every 10 or 15 minutes.
• Apply egg wash and bake the loaves: Brush the surfaces of the proofed loaves generously with the beaten egg and transfer the pans to the oven. Bake side by side, rotating each pan 180 degrees and left to right after 15 minutes, until the surfaces have risen dramatically and are deeply browned, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool completely in the pans, then cut along the short sides with a paring knife to loosen. Use the parchment paper to lift the loaves out of the pans. Slice with a serrated knife.